— IN CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
GO TO THE MOUNT NELSON, A BELMOND HOTEL
As far as Afternoon Tea goes, no one is doing it quite like Mount Nelson, A Belmond Hotel. Cape Town’s blush-hued hotel has become known worldwide for its iconic tea offering. The Nellie first started serving Afternoon Tea in 1989, and is now one of the top experiences in the Mother City for locals and travellers alike. Walking the line between upscale and warmly inviting, the experience hosted in the Lounge and on the sun-basked terrace is simply world-class. Their extensive menu of over 60 teas is curated by South Africa’s first expert-trained tea sommelier, Craig Cupido. You will find everything from the classic black, herbal and rooibos variations, to rare white teas – such as White Peony Flower and White Monkey.
To commemorate the hotel’s 125th anniversary this year, Mount Nelson has created a special tea blend in partnership with Mingwei Tsai of Nigiro Tea Merchants. It’s a brew of Rooibos, Honeybush, Mesquite and Apple — a skilful homage to South African infusions — presented with pink rose petals that add a floral fragrance, exuding the elegant energy of the property. The menu, which features locally-sourced ingredients and changes according to the seasons, plays an important role in pairing with and supporting the vast teas on offer. Savoury specialities include mushroom tartlets, salmon on seed loaf, elevated bobotie sausage rolls, roast beef sandwiches and perfectly balanced vichyssoise soup. Head pastry chef Vicky Gurovich has crafted the ultimate menu of sweet delicacies to compliment the savouries, in keeping with the time-honoured tradition of Afternoon Tea. The artful pastries include lemon blueberry meringue choux buns, pistachio carrot cake, and raspberry and chocolate mousse on Valrhona brownie, to name a few. Elaborate cakes aside, the scones are decidedly simple, and for good reason, they’re baked fresh for each sitting and served with clotted cream and strawberry jam. And if that’s not enough, The Nellie — who is newly, and proudly, pet-friendly — offers a dedicated dog Afternoon Tea menu, meaning your pup can join you on your next sojourn.
– IN CHELSEA – LONDON
GO TO ANYA CAFÉ
As far as iconic British brands go, no one is doing it quite like Anya Hindmarch. Drawing inspiration from the charm of old-world British cafes, this one-of-a-kind cafe serves up a reimagined take on Afternoon Tea, complete with the brand’s signature sense of play on London’s Pont Street. Anya Cafe’s Afternoon Tea includes freshly-baked scones, served warm with clotted cream and strawberry preserve, their famed smiley-faced lemon cake, lemon curd meringue chubby cloud cake and caterpillar tarts.
While on the savouries, you can look forward to simple finger sandwiches with smoked salmon with lemon, dill and cream cheese, cucumber and egg and cress. In terms of tea itself, you’ve got a choice of ‘good and proper’ teas, such as English Breakfast and Earl Grey, as well as ‘fresh teas’, such as fresh mint and buckwheat tea.
IN PARIS, FRANCE
GO TO HÔTEL DE CRILLON, A ROSEWOOD HOTEL — PARIS, FRANCE
Served in the Jardin d’Hiver tea lounge, Hôtel de Crillon’s menu is concise but curated, with a drinks offering that includes a selection of Grand Crus teas, provided by Maison Terre de Chine. Their savouries include waffles with salmon gravlax, lobster rolls and lime and pomegranate zucchini crisp with cream cheese. While on the sweet side, you’ll find strawberry rum baba with mascarpone whipped cream; bolivian chocolate and lime tartlets and coconut-rhubarb shortbread. No Afternoon Tea is complete without scones and here you’ll find freshly-baked classic or fig-cranberry scones.
The story of Hôtel de Crillon starts in 1758, long before Anna Russell requested the first iteration of Afternoon Tea, when King Louis XV commissioned architect du jour Ange-Jacques Gabriel, to build twin structures overlooking Place de la Concorde, one of Paris’ most famous public squares.
Behind one of the façades, a private residence was built to host ambassadors. Originally owned by the family of the Counts of Crillon, the mansion was eventually transformed into a luxury hotel in 1909. Today, their Afternoon Tea pays homage to the hotel’s illustrious history.
