Claridges Afternoon Tea

I have been to Claridges twice for afternoon and once for lunch. I have enjoyed all of my visits, and Claridges afternoon tea is by far one of the best I have had. The review I am going to write is about a special afternoon tea that Claridges had, which was celebrating chocolate week. The cakes were designed by William Curley. It was the first time I had tried patisseries from William Curley and they were sublime. Since then I have sampled lots of his chocolates and I have also had the 5 course dessert menu at his store in Belgravia (more about that to come in a later post.)

Beautiful scones, which had a lovely crust and were soft and warm inside. They were a nice size, so we did not feel guilty eating 3 each.

 

 

 

 

 

The wonderful array of pastries.

 

Madagascan Chocolate and Orange Dome: Madagascan dark chocolate mousse layered with caramelised oranges, Grand Marnier cream and chocolate biscuit Alhambra.

Toscano Chocolate and Sea Salt Caramel Tart: Piedmont hazelnut tart layered with sea salt caramel, raspberry dacquoise and dark chocolate ganache. This one was the best of the four and after we ate this selection we were given two of our favourites to sample again.

Pistachio and Chocolate Opera: Layers of Sicilian pistachio Joconde, black cherry ganache and pistachio creme mousseline.

Toscano Chocolate and Praline Paris Brest: Choux pastry ring filled with praline, chocolate creme patisserie, and creme Chantilly.

 

 

 

 

 

Not sure I liked them.... 

 

 

 

Quality & Presentation of  the Food

The quality of the food is excellent; some of the best pastries I have ever eaten. Rich butter pastry, filled with rich chocolate, balanced well with fruits, and good textures of nuts, or sugar work. Lovely flavours, which are carefully balanced. Our plates were constantly replenished.

The presentation was superb, wonderful attention to detail; I felt that this was also the case when I visited the restaurant again.

Service & Ambience

The service was excellent. The waiters did not rush us at all. We arrived at 5.30pm and left after 10pm- a seriously impressive afternoon tea. We asked if we had stayed the latest and the waiter said he had one diner that stayed until 11pm!  We were made to feel special.

I really liked the ambience of the restaurant with the wonderful pianist and double bass player. The main part of the tea room is the best area to sit in.

Value for Money

The afternoon tea came to about £35.00 each, without champagne. As I have said previously one of the best afternoon teas I have had. I will definitely be returning for another one soon.

Website: Claridges

Overall Rating: