Peter Street, Manchester
Last week was National
Afternoon Tea Week, and I’ve certainly done my fair share of celebrating.
Following my alternative, extra-saccharine afternoon tea at Home Sweet Home,
laden with delicious cinnamon churros and a selection of stodgy cakes, this
week’s offering was much more traditional.
As a special birthday present for my Grandma, I treated her to afternoon tea at The Midland Hotel, one of
Manchester City Centre’s premium hotels. It’s an iconic and historic venue
which has played host to stars from across the globe – even Prime Ministers,
Presidents and members of the Royal Family have stayed there. There are
conference rooms, two fine dining restaurants, a spa and four-star
accommodation all under one roof.
In April, The Midland added a
new string to its bow: The Tea Room, a dining room dedicated entirely to its
renowned afternoon tea experience. The tone is set from the moment you arrive.
Walking through the marbled reception, the elegant interior is beautifully
grand, oozing glamour. The Tea Room itself is opulent and tranquil, complete a
silver and blue marble-effect carpet and comfy chairs covered in flock fabric.
We were seated at a cosy table
for three in the corner of the room, an excellent position for being nosy. Let’s
be honest, who doesn’t love a bit of people watching? Each table is accompanied
by a silver stand, from the floor to table height, which is a genius idea, as
it means that a) the tea stand isn’t going to take up valuable table space and
b) you won’t get a crick in your neck from peeping around it to talk to your
companions. Crisp white table cloths and China cups and saucers are very much
the order of the day. There’s even a chefs counter, where you can see your
afternoon tea being prepared.
The Traditional Afternoon Tea
is £25 per person, and you’re presented with three tiers of pure excellence.
Start savoury, of course, with five miniature sandwiches. If you’re a fan of
the plain sandwich, this isn’t the place for you. To appreciate this
experience, your palate needs to be as sophisticated as the surroundings. There
was duck egg and mustard cress on white bread, smoked salmon and lemon verbena
crème fraîche on dark malt bread, honey-baked gammon with garden pea mousse on
granary, goat’s cheese with beetroot chutney on walnut bread and Goosnargh chicken
with barbecued sweet corn on a brioche bun. All the sandwiches were very
flavoursome, with the variety of breads adding an extra dimension. My
favourites were the smoked salmon and lemon - a combination that you wouldn’t
expect to work but was very powerful – and the goat’s cheese and beetroot. The
unusual mix of sweet and savoury worked very well.
As I peeped around at the busy
dining room, I noticed that some parties ate the cakes before the scones,
whilst some ate the scones before the cakes. Which is correct? Personally, I
thought this was a no-brainer: scones first, my argument being that they bridge
the gap between savoury and sweet. Either way, you have to give warning when
you’re ready to tuck into them, as you are served a scoop of jam onto your
plate. We were given a choice of three: strawberry, raspberry or lemon curd. Intrigued
as I was by the lemon curd, I’m not sure it sits correctly on top of a scone,
so I played it safe and opted for the strawberry. Heaped on with clotted cream,
you really can’t beat it. We had a plain scone and a sultana scone each, and
they were decent sizes. We could have opted for the ‘scone of the day’, which
was strawberry. Served slightly warm, they were quite possibly the best scones
I’ve ever tasted. They pulled apart on the seams effortlessly, without
crumbling, and had the perfect crunch on the outside.
The third and final round: the
cakes. For me, the most important part of your afternoon tea experience. First
of all, there was a passion fruit and white chocolate meringue tart. This played
tricks with the mind as it looked like a lemon meringue pie, so I think my taste
buds were completely unprepared for the sweet passion fruit flavour, instead
expecting a tart citrus taste. It was delicious, with soft, peaked meringue,
just the way I like it.
Next up was a dark chocolate
delice, a layered dessert with a biscuit base, cranberry filling, chocolate
mousse in the centre and chocolate ganache on the top, finished off with
feuilletine and flakes of gold leaf. I’d never had a ‘delice’ before, but I
loved the cranberry flavour and the light, airy texture.
Number three was a pistachio
and olive oil cake, topped with orange curd. It was a deliciously moist sponge
with an intense nutty flavour. I had no idea what to expect, but it turned out
to be one of my favourites.
We ended on a dome of Scottish
strawberry and champagne moose with a Victoria sponge base. The exterior, made
from strawberry coulis, was sweet and fruity, underneath which lay the
champagne mousse. The sponge base paid homage to the traditional Victoria
sponge cake. For my companions, it was a little too sweet, but that’s a phrase
that doesn’t enter my vocabulary.
As we placed our silver
cutlery down on our plates and wiped our sticky fingers on the napkins draped
across our laps for the final time, we were feeling pleasantly full, but not
stuffed – a sign of an excellent afternoon tea. You shouldn’t be left wanting
more, but neither should you feel uncomfortable.
Afternoon tea at The Midland
Hotel is one of the finest examples of this great British tradition. It oozes
glamour and elegance, putting a contemporary stamp on this conventional pastime.
The food is exquisite, the staff are attentive and there’s an unlimited supply
of tea – what could be more perfect?
You can add bubbles to your
afternoon tea, upgrading to the Royal version for an extra £7. There is also a
vegetarian, a vegan, a gluten free and a children’s option, so there’s
something to suit all needs.
At the heart of Manchester
City Centre, The Midland Hotel is a must for a unique afternoon tea experience.
It can make a special occasion extra special.
View the menus and book online here:
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