Don’t leave London without experiencing afternoon tea at The Rosebery
Cast aside that cappuccino. Leave that latte alone. Forget that flat white. Tea is brewing up a storm. Yes, the charming relaxed ritual of afternoon tea is back in fashion.
For the quintessential afternoon tea experience, Haute Time recommends making for the Mandarin Oriental for our favourite Knightsbridge hotel has opened a new venue - The Rosebery – offering a chic afternoon tea service every day.
Named after Lord Rosebery, The Rosebery has made a welcome return to its roots (it was a stylish tea room back in the 1920s before being used as an event space). Theinterior design – created by G&A Designs (the team behind the Booking Office Bar at St Pancras) – makes the most of the room’s Victorian origins but employs contemporary touches. Think specially commissioned one-of-a kind art works and seating in shades of forest greens and browns to bring it bang up-to-date. The design also makes full use of the expansive space and height of the room and its abundance of natural light.
Every element in creating the afternoon tea and champagne salon has been truly bespoke, including the new Rosebery China Collection by William Edwards, glassware by John Jenkins and uniforms designed by one of Britain’s young fashion designers, Charlotte Taylor.
But it’s not just the setting that wows – so too does the food. Before afternoon tea (£45) even begins, the immaculate staff will bring out a moreish mango amuse bouche to cleanse the palette.
And then a beautiful tiered tray of treats magically arrives. Expect the daintiest of sandwiches (Slow roasted organic chicken and buttered corn, Smoked salmon tartar with creme fraiche and fill, Cotswold egg and mustard cress, Cucumber, cream cheese and pea shoots, Portland crab and crayfish fondue on brioche and Wiltshire cured ham and heritage tomatoes all shaped in circles as opposed to conventional triangles), fluffy freshly baked sultana and plain scones served with strawberry jam and clotted cream as well as more out there accompaniments (rose jelly and lemon curd) and tip top pastries. Standouts include the Milk chocolate passion fruit tart, Green tea eclair and Raspberry and yuzu macaroon. Mmmm.
Save room (we struggled to) for a further plate packed with generous slices of both banana and dundee cake, followed by a delicate dish of die to for chocolate truffles. Little ones aren’t neglected either: there’s the Rosebery mini tea for the under 12s for London’s well heeled ankle biters.
Wash it all down with a choice of Breakfast, Afternoon and Directors Reserve tea blends that have been exclusively crafted to Mandarin Oriental’s specifications, together with a selection of speciality teas, in conjunction with the East India Trading Company.
Or if you’d prefer an alcoholic tipple to tea, opt for a glass of champagne. Highlights include Ruinart rosé (£23 per flute), Bauchet Premier Cru Empreinte (£72 a bottle), Egly-Ouriet Grand Cru Brut, Ambonnay (£255) and 82 Dom Pérignon Oenothèque (£1,650). After sunset, when The Rosebery transforms into a sophisticated bar, you can also get stuck into champagne cocktails and sake (Japan’s national drink is stocked extensively).
All told, afternoon tea at The Rosebery helps cement the Mandarin Oriental’s reputation as one of London’s premier gourmet destinations (Heston Blumenthal and Daniel Boulud both have outposts here) and represents a great way to while away an afternoon in palatial surroundings. Just don’t expect to eat again that day….