September 25, 2011

London: High Tea at the Kensington (pt. 2)


Once LaShauna and I had happily enjoyed some piping hot tea and fabulous finger sandwiches, it was time for scones & sweets!

The scone was unlike any I'd ever seen. It was a cross between a roll and a popover, almost. It was soft, fluffy, and ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS. My scones are pretty damn good, but these...these might be even better.



We had 2 scones each--plain and raisin. Normally I'd pluck out the raisins, but I just went with it and actually enjoyed them!



The scones came with 3 toppings: strawberry-rose petal jam, lemon curd with passionfruit, and of course, clotted cream. I'm not a fan of the rose-petal flavor, so this was my least favorite. But the curd. My word, the CURD. LaShauna & I took a bite at the same time and I think we had the exact same look on our faces--the heavens opened up, a choir sang, and glorious sunbeams shone down upon our table. I would fly back to London JUST for this curd (and another lunch at Gordon Ramsay's, but that's another post).


Oh my word. For serious. That curd. It was so good that we got a second pot of it. So. Freaking. Good.




The curd was good on its own, but it was when we layered it with the clotted cream that it was absolutely transcendant. Heavenly, I tell you.



At this point we ordered extra pots of tea. What I didn't realize is that all hot drinks were included with the tea price--we could have drunk a Thames' worth of tea, hot chocolate, and more! Instead, I had second pot, this time of red Rooibos tea (caffeine-free South African blend).



After we sated ourselves with the ethereal scones, along came the course of sweets. A teeny fruit crumble, sticky date cake, lemon custard tart (so-so), and beautiful macarons (coffee for LaShauna, strawberry for me).



The sweet treats were beautiful and delicate and lovely--look how teeny-tiny that macaron is!!



Also delicious? The chocolate creme brulee---sigh.


As fun to eat and admire as these sweets were, I would have been honestly happy enough to end with the scones!



And the curd. Really, that curd.


The whole experience was absolutely luxurious, and I can't believe it took me this long to get around to having high tea. If you make a trip to London, call ahead of time (way ahead of time for many places) and make a reservation. You will have a simply lovely time and you'll have to tell me all about it!


The Kensington Hotel
109-113 Queen's Gate
South Kensington, London SW7 5LR
Tel: +44 (0) 207 589 6300
US Toll Free: +1 877 849 6258




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