AFTERNOON TEA: THE MONTCALM

THE MONTCALM

AFTERNOON TEA

F e b r u a r y 12 t h 2 0 18

MONDAY:
london

Over the years I've visited many different places for afternoon tea, my first experience was at
The Waldorf Hilton; an extremely opulent hotel, beautiful service, and an overall wonderful experience. One of my most favourites to date has to be at Flemings Hotel Mayfair which I visited this time last year. Everything from service to the dining experience was exceptional. You get a lot of afternoon teas that present themselves in the most mesmerising way but fall short to live up to their imagery. Reviews can be just as misleading when someones best experience could be your worst...unfortunate, I guess. My friend (Valerie) recently celebrated a milestone and as a continuation of birthday celebration, we went to Afternoon Tea at The Montcalm.

THE TEA:
taste test

Diving into the selection of teas I opted for the Persian Rose tea. I have a thing for Rose, not necessarily in tea but more so in a cake, macaroons and of course in flowers. Unsure of what it would taste like I always considered afternoon tea a great time to try something new, you know build upon your existing palette. The tea was very different for me and did grow on me as time went on. It has a very malt taste to it with a floral top note. It's not one I felt complemented the tea well but nonetheless was interesting to try.

The scones were good, not great just good. They were slightly hard on the outside and softer to the inside which is a balanced combination but to me, they were slightly overdone. I'm not picky but I can't forget the scones I tried at Flemings they were second to none; light, dense and soft, they literally melted in your mouth. As this is a 5* hotel I did have higher hopes yet, they were enjoyable.

SANDWICH & CAKE :

oh taste and see

The use of different colours of bread was really cool and creative. The first sandwich I tried was the pinkish coloured one, it was filled with hummus and watercress (i think), it was nice, light and soft. Now one thing I did notice was all the edges of the sandwich's felt a little 'mad-a-few-hours-ago which was a little disappointing.

Alone from that, I did enjoy those that I tried and it was very filling. Onto the cake, when it comes to afternoon tea I feel like you get a good assortment of sandwiches, a fair selection of scones and substandard cakes at the top. In comparison to the pictures online I was left slightly underwhelmed by the cakes presented and had higher hopes for the spread. I'm not a fan of chocolate desserts so I wasn't so keen on the options but I adored the macaroon, I couldn't make out the flavour but it was truly amazing and if they served a few of those on the top tier I would have been super pleased.

WHAT'S THE TEA VALERIE? :

service...oh hey Valerie

The service was wonderful, the waiters were attentive, polite, kind and very welcoming, they made the experience that much greater. During our tea they offered us more tea and champagne; usually, you may be offered more tea and sandwiches but never champagne which was very sweet of them.

As dining rooms go I loved the natural light that beamed through the centre of the room. The wallpaper was fascinating, I loved the tones and how it carried the room so gently. I wasn't so fond of the tables used throughout the room. In the pictures, I'd seen online the afternoon tea was served on a white tablecloth which looked 100% better, maybe since then they have changed the dining room and interior as it didn't represent its current presentation. In my opinion, a tablecloth always adds an element of sophistication and makes everything served on the table look that much more sharp and neat.

EXPERIENCE :

final thoughts

All in all, we had a wonderful time at The Montcalm we were able to chill, relax and catch up in a peaceful environment, even the music playlist was popping! I don't think I would come back for afternoon tea but I wouldn't mind trying breakfast, lunch or dinner. Based on the service alone I would happily stay at the hotel and come back soon.