Thanks to some very generous presents from siblings, we had an incredibly luxurious London afternoon to celebrate Adrian's 35th birthday.
First, thanks to a (very belatedly used) Christmas present from Dominik, we had high tea at The Savoy in the Thames Foyer. Having been recently renovated, The Savoy is absolutely beautiful and such a sumptuous place to spend a few hours. Adrian had the 'high tea' (sandwiches, smoked salmon and scrambled eggs, crumpets, and cake) and I had the 'afternoon tea' (sandwiches, scones, petit fours, and cake) - basically so we could try everything!
Both came with the choice of an extensive selection of teas, and I chose the 'Lychee Red' ("Surprisingly sweet and soft, with lingering, lifted aromas of Asian fruits and perfumer’s flowers. Baroque, decadent, and irresistible") and Adrian had a really interesting yellow tea (I didn't even know you could get yellow tea!) which was the 'Huo Mountain Yellow Buds' tea ("Graceful, sappy with a hazel sweetness and a distinctive cool finish that leaves the mouth very refreshed"). We each had about four or five whole pots, so it was just as well we both really enjoyed our choice! The tea was served from a tea set consisting of a tray, tea pot and water pot, the cumulative value of which was £900...
The food was delicious, with the favourite sandwich of both of us being the egg (lightly flavoured with mustard), and my favourite thing overall being my delicious petit fours (although the lemon curd that came with the scones was pretty nice too).
The funniest part though I thought was that we were in the very front table, facing the entrance way, so we had prime people watching position (you can see the front table where we were in this video). I know we're going to appear in a lot of people's photos as well! (Adrian reckons they put attractive people in that spot, so I'll take the compliment thank you very much.) I also thought Emmy would be interested in this stunning display of orchids in the foyer.
I was absolutely stuffed after the afternoon tea (for over £50 per person I should hope so), so we took a short walk across the river to the Southbank to peruse the bookstalls before heading back to the American Bar to meet Pam and Dan for some cocktails. Again, while pricey, they were an absolute treat and thank you to Alexandra for sponsoring them! I particularly liked my 'Blushing Monarch' (gin, Campari, Triple Sec, passionfruit), named after Princess Diana, who apparently frequented the bar regularly.
We finished the night at Cay Tre in Soho, with some really delicious, fresh Vietnamese food - something completely different to The Savoy, but the perfect yin and yang I think.
So, a completely decadent day in London, but definitely well worth it!
First, thanks to a (very belatedly used) Christmas present from Dominik, we had high tea at The Savoy in the Thames Foyer. Having been recently renovated, The Savoy is absolutely beautiful and such a sumptuous place to spend a few hours. Adrian had the 'high tea' (sandwiches, smoked salmon and scrambled eggs, crumpets, and cake) and I had the 'afternoon tea' (sandwiches, scones, petit fours, and cake) - basically so we could try everything!
Both came with the choice of an extensive selection of teas, and I chose the 'Lychee Red' ("Surprisingly sweet and soft, with lingering, lifted aromas of Asian fruits and perfumer’s flowers. Baroque, decadent, and irresistible") and Adrian had a really interesting yellow tea (I didn't even know you could get yellow tea!) which was the 'Huo Mountain Yellow Buds' tea ("Graceful, sappy with a hazel sweetness and a distinctive cool finish that leaves the mouth very refreshed"). We each had about four or five whole pots, so it was just as well we both really enjoyed our choice! The tea was served from a tea set consisting of a tray, tea pot and water pot, the cumulative value of which was £900...
The food was delicious, with the favourite sandwich of both of us being the egg (lightly flavoured with mustard), and my favourite thing overall being my delicious petit fours (although the lemon curd that came with the scones was pretty nice too).
The funniest part though I thought was that we were in the very front table, facing the entrance way, so we had prime people watching position (you can see the front table where we were in this video). I know we're going to appear in a lot of people's photos as well! (Adrian reckons they put attractive people in that spot, so I'll take the compliment thank you very much.) I also thought Emmy would be interested in this stunning display of orchids in the foyer.
I was absolutely stuffed after the afternoon tea (for over £50 per person I should hope so), so we took a short walk across the river to the Southbank to peruse the bookstalls before heading back to the American Bar to meet Pam and Dan for some cocktails. Again, while pricey, they were an absolute treat and thank you to Alexandra for sponsoring them! I particularly liked my 'Blushing Monarch' (gin, Campari, Triple Sec, passionfruit), named after Princess Diana, who apparently frequented the bar regularly.
We finished the night at Cay Tre in Soho, with some really delicious, fresh Vietnamese food - something completely different to The Savoy, but the perfect yin and yang I think.
So, a completely decadent day in London, but definitely well worth it!
