Afternoon High Tea @ Axis Bar, Mandarin Oriental

Someone said that "Heaven is...time to have time for afternoon tea."

How very true in this day and age where I text more than talk, shop more than I eat and spend more than I earn. It was one of those girlfriend meet ups that we decided to take a step back to enjoy life a little.

Before I even go straight into the details of our supposedly leisurely high tea that was supposed to wrap up our year quite nicely, it was stopped in the tracks of the ladies at Axis Bar who insisted that my girlfriend had not answered her phonecalls in time the last few days leading to the high tea hence our table was given away. Just like that.

30 minutes of wait time saw a very kind manager squeeze a table out for us but not without some frustration on our end. My girlfriend called back to the roaming number but the reception staff could not trace the source hence she had no clue who tried to call. The question is, is this what the Mandarin Oriental experience is all about?

Unimpressed even before we could take a nibble of anything.

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Armed with a pot of tea, I was all ready for an afternoon of bliss.

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Red Wine Prune Jelly

Served with a golden leaf, liked the luxurious touch but most importantly, the wine jelly was delicious! A great appetizer and texture of the marinated prune.

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I really would not mind exchanging my red wines for this.

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The hightea arrived in plates or courses as the waitresses term it. At this juncture I was slightly disappointed that my high tea did not arrive in tiers.











Foie Gras Canape with Pickled Beets
Smoked Salmon with Capers Aioli and Dill-Champagne Crystals
Christmas Baked Ham and Caramelized Pineapple Wrap


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Rum and Raisin Sandwich

An icecream flavour in a sandwich, not particularly outstanding but I thought the presentation was befitting of the occasion. 
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Smoked Turkey and Purple Potato Mosaic with Lingonberry

This jellied dish was prettier to look at, though the combination of meat and fruit was actually quite yummy.

Christmas Beef Croquette with Tomato Concasse

It seemed like a rougher version of pate, nothing too extraordinary. 

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Caramel Chestnut Creme in Spinach Cone with Crumble

Memorable because it was served in a cone, loved the savoury and sweet combination. 

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Pies were in the next course, a savoury and sweet!

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Port Wine Braised Duck Rillete Puff

Loved the flaky flavours and port wine braised duck stuffing.

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Traditional Christmas Pumpkin Pie

An interesting festive pie, the raisins made this more of a raisin than pumpkin pie however.

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Ginger Scone
Madagascar Vanilla Scone

Scones to complete the tea experience, I thought both flavours were wonderfully done.

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Especially when paired with the berry jam - a punch fist in air kind of satisfaction.

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At long last the three tiers arrived and made this look like high tea!


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Cranberry Almond Sable

Bite sized portions made this sweet treat a joy to consume, fact is, after so many sugary bites it is easy to get too full. 

Crispy Chocolate Classic Yule Log

Rich and moist, I loved the chocolatey crisp bites within. 

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Raspberry Cremeux

I am not big on shooter desserts but because it was had such an impossibly cute chocolate topper. The raspberries, pistachios and custard made this one merry dessert. 

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Brandy Fruit Cake

This was in the form of a brandied cherry on a chocolate, one toothsome sweet treat.

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Strawberry Cinnamon Cheese Cake

 Light and fluffy, the biscuit base was a delightful touch.

Christmas Stollen

Peppered with enough cinnamon to make me love this stollen. It was hardly as dry as the rest and had a cake instead of bread consistency.

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Serenaded by a pianist who played non stop for almost an hour, it was a relaxing afternoon.

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Axis Bar and Lounge still stands as one of the more outstanding places for high tea around, will be back if they do improve on their reservation policy!

$42 per person, $80 for two.

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