High Tea at Peninsula is akin to Breakfast at Tiffanys. Exquisite, expensive, evocative. Even the receipts comes in such detail, same as Miumiu or Tiffanys, the many folds and slots.
It had to be Peninsula, combining two loves, High Tea (a ritual rich in English tradition) and watching the world roll by on a holiday especially.
The Peninsula in Hongkong stands out for its architecture, so very commanding and classic.
I was smirking my way in, thinking very naively there will not be a queue, afterall The Lobby's floor space is huge, taking up almost the entire lobby, literally.
Of all days I picked a weekend, a busy one and there was already a queue at 3pm when the High Tea starts at 230pm. Think you can queue? Wait till you try this one. 1 whole hour and the people just keep joining the queue, all the way till I was seated and well fed, it was only till 5pm when the queues waned.
We were entertained whilst in the queue with live music from above, seated in a balconey are three musicians, pianist, violinist and another string instrument. The Lobby Strings of Peninsula...music favourites were played throughout the lazy afternoon, teasing the audio senses of patrons at The Lobby. Otherwise, steal a peak inside Cartier just next to The Lobby and drool over their jewelry or ogle at lucky women parading baubles.
Twenty people and probably 6 tables later, finally our turn!!! In sheer jubilation.
The notice board outside The Lobby.
In all grandeur.
I cannot help but keep my head up, starring at the fine workmanship and the "neo-classical arches". Not once could the waiters stop and think, the whole lobby was filled with people dining, taking photos...I felt as if I really needed a gown just to blend in with such grand surroundings.
Silverware.
The menu and winelist.
Everything there is almost pictureperfect, save for the rather casually dressed crowd made up of mostly tourists.
A choice of tea from the Peninsula Tea Collection, I went for the Caramel tea that was initially mistaken for Chrysanthenum Tea and the Sis went for fruity Peach. No doubt service was fine, but the waiter could not mask his unhappiness. He made the change for me but rather grudgingly despite wearing a smile, we were taking a photo and there he stood pouring the tea, refusing to budge.
The other selections include fruit teas.
Tea for two, three tiers.
First tier of tea cake, chocolate tart, strawberry roll and truffles.
Second of savoury finger sandwiches, flaky pastries and quiche.
Third tier of scones and meringue.
Devonshire Clotted Cream and Strawberry Preserve
Raisin English scones!
Smear on clotted cream and strawberry preserve, the scone was delectable. Buttery, moist and warm. The preserve was addictive, we polished off every drop of it.
A simple Cucumber sandwich that tasted different, somehow. Cool cucumbers sliced so thin decorated gingerly on top of a cream spread in between two slices of bread, simplicity rules.
Smoked salmon on wheat bread, surprisingly not soggy at all, I savoured the cured salmon and enjoyed thoroughly.
Savoury quiche, the pastry fell apart in crumbs to reveal a tasty finish.
Mini French Pastry with savoury stuffing, tasted quite like luncheon meat. The pastry was wonderful, not too cloying nor too oily. Just right.
Tomato herb bread with ham. The magic lies with the cream spread that they use, full flavoured and compliments nearly all the breads showcased.
French pastry with meringue layer at the bottom. This was utterly melt in your mouth, the pastry so flaky, well baked...it was a joy to eat.
Lychee Panna Cotta with Raspberry Compote and Lychee Granite was served chilled seperately towards the end of the meal.
This has got to be the best panna cotta I've ever eaten! Lychee Granite's like sorbet, lychee shaved so fine it dissolves in your mouth like sorbet. The panna cotta's wobbly smooth, milky and fragrant, encrusted with tangy raspberry preserves. Absolutely divine. The palette was wildly tickled thereafter.
Traditional Tea Cake although just butter cake tasted great.
Strawberry Roll was overhyped. On its own, the sponge roll with strawberry in whipped cream is very light but definitely not the most outstanding of the platter.
Valrhona Chocolate Ganache Tartlet
The multitude of chocolate layers embedded within the gem, truly every chocolate lover's dream. It is a beautiful piece of art in itself.
Passionfruit Pistachio Fingersponge, the sponge is one featherlight treat! The pistachios gave this a nutty taste but otherwise, airy fairy is all its about.
Chocolate dipped biscuit. The bittersweet confectionery with chopped pistachios was delicious on its own.
Mango mousse is so fine, the layering done so well...not at all dry, with the perfect amount of moist between layers. The topmost layer of mango jell-o retained its chewiness, mango mousse so tantalizing and finally the chocolate cream and then sponge made with such precision, the flavours did not blend into one but retained its separate flavours. The chocolate sides did more than just adorn this treat. Another stunner from the high tea.
Premium Peninsula Truffle screams godsent. The chocoholic was supremely pleased with all the chocolate creations.
I am really sold on Peninsula for its high tea. Every single item was outstanding in its own way, nothing was bad in fact. Amongst the tiered high tea sets I have tried, this reigns so supreme, its throne will be hard to topple. The right balance of savoury and sweet and does not come across as "leftovers from lunch buffet" or lacklustre, every effort is put in to complete this experience. Live music instead of lounge cd music was a major plus point, it felt quite spectacular just indulging in the ambience.
The Peninsula experience is indescribable, down to the finer details they seem to pay so much attention to (sans the service glitch). On top of the world I was, food crafted with such mastery...no doubt the most expensive three tier to date but all worth it.
The Peninsula's Classic High Tea HKD 398 for two, HKD 268 for one
The Peninsula Hotel
The Lobby
19-21 Salisbury Road
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