High tea

(Marunouchi) Four Seasons in one day: Best afternoon tea in Tokyo

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I died and went to high tea heaven! On Earth, they call it the Four Seasons. I’ve done afternoon tea before at the Four Seasons in Cairo, Egypt. Was a totally different experience to the one I just experienced in Tokyo. Wouldn’t it be great to try afternoon tea all around the world at the Four Seasons hotel! There are two Four Seasons Hotel in Tokyo. One at Marunouchi (Tokyo station) and another at Chinzan-so. I’ve been wanting to do a man-ly afternoon tea for a while now, that is, an afternoon tea with some guys, what I like to call “Masculini-Tea”. Typically afternoon tea is viewed as a girly thing to do, but really, it’s something that can be enjoyed by guys too.

I decided to organize a tea event with my team from work. In my little department at work, there are four of us, plus our manager. I am the only female. We had originally planned for our get-together as a little bonenkai last December, but ended up postponing it to a shinnenkai. One of our team members couldn’t make it. In addition to the 4 of us, the EA to the MP came along (just for a pot of tea before heading off early) and a former employee. My work colleagues are awesome for agreeing to do an afternoon tea. I thought there would be resistance, but there were totally up for it, and I dare say, even excited about. I decided on the Four Seasons at Marunouchi for a few reasons. It was close to where we work, so everyone could get there using their teiki and hopefully not get lost getting there, also it was a venue which I thought would be the most appropriate for guys (no florally china, no three-tired platters etc), and we also happened to get a discount of 25% (a special offer to employees at our law firm).

Move over the Peninsula, I think this might be the best place to do afternoon tea in Tokyo. The food here was pretty darn good! So gourmet, so delectable and filling! It was more like an amuse bouche degustation. I was so excited to be there. I had been looking forward to this one for ages. Let me start from the beginning. The afternoon tea takes place at the Ekki Bar and Grill. Reservations highly recommended. The place was pretty much booked out.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

The set on offer was the Winter Afternoon Set. I got mine with the glass of champagne.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Then our platters of food were brought out to us. There was so much food. What I loved about it here, is that they do a very modern take on afternoon tea. Here you won’t find a traditional afternoon tea. There are no sandwiches and no three-tiered platters. Instead there is an assortment of delightful, delicious savoury goodies which are brought out to us on trays and plates. Let me take on you the culinary journey that is afternoon tea at the Four Seasons. Feast your eyes on this:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

There was the mini Wagyu burger (wagyu – need I see more. It did lack a little something though):

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Delicious melted cheese and ham toasted panfried sandwich with truffle oil (yummy):

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

The snow crab croquette which was scrumdidilyumptious. A shame it was so small. :

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Mini salmon tart. So good. Again, it was a shame it was that small.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

The teriyaki chicken wrap (was a little bland):

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

These savoury treats kicked arse over regular cucumber and salmon sandwiches anyday!

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Already starting to get full, there were the sweets to get through. An amazing assortment of sweet treats on offer.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

There was the pistachio macaroon:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

A sweet called the White Dome:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Fruitcake:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

The cassis marshmallow:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Panna cotta:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

And churros (whoever would have thought churros for afternoon tea. Not sure how Victorian royalty would feel about that. But how awesome are churros. Anything deep fried and coated in sugar is a definite winner). There was even a dip for the churros!:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Total bliss:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

I do have to admit though, that the sweets probably looked better than they tasted, but all still very edible and filling. At some point during all this eating and indulgence, they also brought the scones out. These are served separately, and come out warm. There were 2 different types of scones, served clotted cream, and our individual strawberry jam jars. Surprisingly, a lot of afternoon tea venues I’ve been to don’t serve strawberry jam. They serve other jams like raspberry or cherry and I am always disappointed. Strawberry jam is the BEST, so I was in my element here. The strawberry jam had real whole strawberries in it. Everything here was pretty amazing. The ultimate place for afternoon tea.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

It was a struggle to get through this feast. Another huge bonus point here is the very impressive tea selection. Most tea venues will offer about 6-10 different teas. Here there are a whopping 23 teas to choose from, as well as coffees and hot chocolates – all of which you can try as many different beverages as you like, and as much as you like. I went through 3 pots of tea and a hot chocolate. The teas were very standard in taste, but the variety on offer was commendable. I had my regular favourites – Assam and English Breakfast tea.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Also ordered the hot chocolate made with 66% cocoa -perfect because it wasn’t too sweet. Just enough bitterness. The hot chocolate is served with “condiments” which turned out to be a mini platter of marshmallows, chocolate curl balls and cream.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

A pot of tea on its own (without ordering the afternoon tea) will set you back 1500yen which is steep. It is definitely worthwhile to get the afternoon tea set. The teapots hold generous servings of tea – 3 cups per pot. And the pot are tea plungers, which are really cool. No need for the strainer. Check out the very extensive tea and beverage menu here (all nomihoudai). There is a tea to please everyone – black teas, chinese tea, Japanese tea, herbal teas, iced teas, and coffees as well. I do love how they also list who their tea suppliers are:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Ended the afternoon with lemongrass and peppermint tea. I have recently discovered lemongrass tea and I love it. It’s hard to buy in Japan though. The only problem with peppermint tea blends, is that the peppermint is always so overpowering and drowns out all the other flavours. Still, a nice tea to cap off the afternoon, and aid digestion.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Exotic honeys from Hungary and France too, to sweeten the herbal teas or served on scones. (we had to ask what these were):

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

I really liked the detail in the sugar cube arrangement (like a chess board):

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

On the seventh floor of the building, it offers views but not very exciting scenery. It mostly looks over the maze that is Tokyo station and the railtracks below, and nearby office building towers.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

The interior is pleasant enough. Modern, clean. Full of ladies, apart from our table of men. It’s a shame that the afternoon tea takes place in a main dining restaurant rather than a nice lounge with plush comfortable sofas. However the design is simple, contemporary and sophisticated unlike other Four Seasons’ hotels which can be extremely ornate and traditional.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Service here was very good, although you do have to constantly flag them down. Winter afternoon tea menu:

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Price for afternoon tea at Ekki is 3900yen. With champagne it is 4900yen. 10% service charge will be added as well. With a 25% discount though, this made it excellent value. For about 4000yen, I had all that gourmet food, plus a glass of champagne plus as much tea and hot drinks as I liked. Excellent value, even without the discount. Well worth paying for and definitely one of the better afternoon teas available in Tokyo. Another bonus here, is that being the Four Seasons hotel, they change their afternoon menu every season, with some of the treats being a staple all-year round! It looks like I might have to make it a thing to visit in every season. I am pretty sure the mini wagyu burger though is standard all year round though. They also offer limited afternoon tea for special occasions such as Valentines’ Day and Christmas. I checked out their upcoming Valentines afternoon tea – it includes a lot more chocolate and strawberries and even chocolate fondue! Will also have to try the Four Seasons afternoon tea at Chinzan-so. From what I can gather, it is more traditional. Floral teaware, 3-tiered platters. Whilst the Marunouchi hotel has a more modern Western feel, the Chinzan-so is more Japanese and traditional. I’ve heard there’s a garden there too. This place perhaps tops all the other venues in Tokyo for afternoon tea. It definitely wins, in terms of food quality, originality and creativity, value, and extensive tea selection. Will perhaps need to re-visit my ranking sheet and re-assess. For now, it is definitely in the top 5 afternoon tea venues in Tokyo. Seating session is 2.5hours, but I didn’t see people getting ushered out at 5pm on the dot. I found that 2.5 hours was just perfect though, because everything was so satisfying and so filling. My work colleagues were awesome sports for partaking in afternoon tea. It was nice to spend a cold winter’s afternoon together. I think they enjoyed it. After all that food, I was glad I had arrived on an empty stomach and had swum 2km that morning to appreciate it all.

From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea
From Four Seasons, Marunouchi: Afternoon Tea

Four Seasons at Marunouchi afternoon tea at Ekki Bar and Grill. Details at their website.

New Year, more tea

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Another year, another afternoon tea party. A shinnenkai Tea Party.

From Tea at Hotel Okura
From Tea at Hotel Okura

So I did another afternoon tea over the weekend, and I must say it was very easy to rank this one. Quite simply, because it went straight to the very bottom of my list of afternoon teas in Tokyo. The venue in question – Hotel Okura. It promised to be such a nice experience. Disappointment it delivered.

From Tea at Hotel Okura

It’s not situated in a convenient location. The hotel is in the boring Toranomon embassy district, a 10min walk from the closest subway station. I got lost getting there and ended up close to 30min late because I couldn’t figure out how to get there. Entrance into the hotel is a little confusing too. They have a hotel annex – the South Wing, so be sure to go to the right hotel building. Entrance was hidden by a carpark. Not a visibly-labelled hotel.

From Tea at Hotel Okura
From Tea at Hotel Okura
From Tea at Hotel Okura

As for the hotel itself. It’s very 70s. From the decor, right down to the 70’s dressed bellhops out the front of the hotel. Afternoon tea takes place in the Orchid Room, where needless to say, orchids adorn the table. Table setting is very pretty and florally. The Orchid Room is a dining room with a buffet set up in the middle for the lunch crowd. Felt a little odd to be doing afternoon tea in the middle of a buffet room. Most hotels usually offer tea in the cafe/lounge bar. No view to speak of either.

From Tea at Hotel Okura

The whole afternoon tea experience was very disappointing. I don’t know where to begin. Don’t let these glossy photos fool you. Sandwiches were really plain, bland and dare I say even, quite disgusting. Way too much butter. More butter than filling. And very ordinary. I declined to eat all my sandwiches.

From Tea at Hotel Okura
From Tea at Hotel Okura

The scones were ok. More like biscuits (in the American sense, that they were very very dry). Scones to Australians should be big, round, and buttery fluffy.

From Tea at Hotel Okura
From Tea at Hotel Okura
From Tea at Hotel Okura

Cakes were also very 普通.

From Tea at Hotel Okura

Food on the whole was a little skimpy here compared to other places. The 不味い sandwiches were plentiful, but only two cakes. Most places tend to be quite generous on the dessert side. As for the tea, the selection was standard. The usual Ceylon, Assam, Earl Grey, English Breakfast and a couple of other herbal blends. However, you can only choose one choice of tea. So no tea sampling. They do however, give you fresh pot refills of your selected tea. With our group of six, we each chose a different tea, that way we could each sample eachother’s tea.

From Tea at Hotel Okura

Time session ended promptly at 5pm without warning except when we were given our bills and ushered promptly out. Because the afternoon tea is in the main buffet dining room, dinner service needs to be prepared. My standard criteria for an afternoon tea session is 3 hours – minimum.

From Tea at Hotel Okura

Save your 3200yen, which is what tea at the Orchid Room will set you back. Complete photo album here

Christmas FestiviTea at the Peninsula

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(Do you like the title pun?) As part of my mini high tea movement, I decided to organise a Christmas Tea Party. I chose to have it at the Peninsula Hotel in Tokyo. Firstly, it’s my favourite hotel to do afternoon tea, (it’s the only venue where I have gone back to again) and it’s also in a great location – Yurakucho/Ginza area. They also happened to be offering a seasonal Christmas afternoon tea menu.

From High Tea in Tokyo

I made a really nice invitation (if I do say so myself) (see Exhibit A below) which I emailed out to some fellow afternoon-tea lovers. I made the invite by creating a collage of photos that I had taken the first time I ever went there for tea. Exhibit A: Christmas Invite (template)

From Christmas Tea at the Peninsula

Now what the Peninsula Hotel lacks in views (the Lobby Lounge is located on the ground floor) it makes up for in wonderful service. The Peninsula Hotel wins points on all criteria – location, decor, food, service and price. It’s hard to fault it.

From High Tea in Tokyo

The Special Peninsula Christmas Afternoon tea menu was as follows: THE PENINSULA CHRISTMAS AFTERNOON TEA Selection of finger sandwiches – Christmas roasted chicken and sautéed apple wrap roll – Toasted croque monsieur with prosciutto and gorgonzola cheese – Smoked salmon and cucumber tartar with dill sour cream – Mushroom, almond and walnut quiche Festive Sweets – Stollen – Chocolate log cake – Pistachio pound cake – Christmas strawberry short cake – Peninsula chestnut chocolate brownie – Ginger bread cookie Plain and raisin scones, clotted cream and organic jam Choice of Peninsula tea

From Christmas Tea at the Peninsula
From Christmas Tea at the Peninsula
From Christmas Tea at the Peninsula
From Christmas Tea at the Peninsula
From Christmas Tea at the Peninsula

There was a lot of food. I struggled to get through it and in fact, did not get through everything (which is a rarity for me). The set was 3600yen plus, 10% surcharge. This includes all of the above food and unlimited pots of an assortment of tea, and coffee.

From High Tea in Tokyo

We also got a glass of sparkling wine for an extra 1400yen. It is Christmas after all, and what’s Christmas without a little indulgence.

From Christmas Tea at the Peninsula

The Lobby Lounge was packed. Every table was taken, and there was a waiting queue to boot. I had booked for our group of 6 a few weeks in advance. Live piano music played Christmas songs in the background, and Christmas trees and wreath adorned the lounge area to set the festive mood. It was such a lovely girly day out, spent in the warmth of a beautiful hotel with Christmas treats and endless pots of tea. Again, spreading the love one cup of tea at a time. Even my friend Yu-chan from Fukushima came down to Tokyo for the weekend.

From High Tea in Tokyo

The Peninsula Hotel is truly a five star hotel. Where else can guests of the hotel get chaffeured around Tokyo in Rolls Royces. (Rooms here also look out onto the Imperial Palace and Ginza district). The highlights here are an accumulation of lots of little things such as the ‘P’ (for Peninsula) emblazoned on the saucers, the perfect sized tea pots (not too much and not too little), the warm oshibori (warm towel) on arrival, decent scones, generous serving portions, and generous seating session. They really know how to look after their guests here at this hotel.

From High Tea in Tokyo
From High Tea in Tokyo

The service here was above par. We overstayed our 3-hour seating session by an hour, yet were not asked to leave. Bonus points right there. They were most accommodating for the 2 vegetarians in our group (notify the hotel in advance, which I always do). I wrote them a thank you email after our visit there, and received a very nice email back. The staff speak excellent English – super impressive English I might add. All staff were most attentive to us, despite how crowded and busy they were. Christmas Tea Party in Tokyo is hereby going to be a tradition.

From Christmas Tea at the Peninsula
From Christmas Tea at the Peninsula

Peninsula Hotel afternoon tea details can be found here.

Photos from the first time I went to the Peninsula for tea (Autumn tea set in 2009) can be found here

Fit for a queen: Fortnum and Masons high tea, Tokyo

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If it’s good enough for the Queen, then I suppose it’s good enough for me. Fortnum and Mason is tea brand with a rich history, Fortnum and Mason being the names of the two chaps that founded it. They are actually the appointed grocers by royal warrant for the Royal Family of England, and famed for their teas, groceries and luxury hampers, and have been around since 1707 serving Victorian high society. Three centuries, and still going strong. Not too shabby, at all. Their headquarters is in London which looks super fancy. According to Wikipedia, the Fortnum and Mason tea store in Piccadily, London underwent a 24 million (British pounds) refurbishment for their 300th anniversary in 2007. Wow. There establishment is like a mini-department grocery store, and also houses 5 restaurants where you can enjoy both afternoon tea and high tea (yes, there is a difference). Would be amazing to go there. It’s almost like a royal tea gallery. Will be on my to-do list when by perchance I shall ever be in London again. Do a Google image search for Fortnum and Mason – lots of fun ogling at the pictures.

From Fortnum and Mason

The first time I came across Fortnum and Mason’s was at Yokohama. They have a tea salon at the big Lala port shopping centre. I looked up their Japanese website and saw that they had other locations. The only one in Tokyo is at Nihonbashi, with other stores in Nagoya and Sendai. Fi was visiting from Hokkaido for the weekend and wanted to partake in tea. Fi, her dad – who also joined us, and I enjoyed a nice traditional British afternoon tea at the Fortnum and Mason tea salon in Nihonbashi. Fi did not arrive empty-handed either. She gave me some Hokkaido omiyage – potatoes from Kutchan, home to the potato festival. Gotta love Hokkaidoites. Fi and her dad are from England, so it was most appropriate that I chose this particular venue (I might add, this was not by accident). The tea salon is located in the 2nd basement floor of the Mitsukoshi department store (Shin Kan) in Nihonbashi. On the odd occasion, it’s nice to not do a hotel tea.

From Fortnum and Mason

We each ordered the 3-tiered afternoon set and it did not disappoint. First of all, a cake sample platter was brought out to us. On it were about 8 different cakes. We could each select 2 cakes for our set. We each each chose 2 different cakes each, which we would share, thereby getting to try 6 different cakes. The sandwiches were plentiful here, and even the cucumber sandwich made an appearance. Simple but delicious fillings. Tasty, simple sandwiches, and some variety scones with jam and cream. Very traditional here. All the teas are, of course, Fortnum and Mason branded, and mostly a black tea variety. It was nice that on the menu, that they categorised the teas according to strength. I went the royal blend, which I did not think was so strong. I am of the opinion though, that I think a lot of their tea blends are quite similar tasting. I am a huge of English breakfast tea, so I enjoy blend variations of that tea. (Reminds me of a funny story actually, when I was in London about 7 years ago, I went to a cafe and ordered an English breakfast tea, but what I ended up being served was an English breakfast fry-up of eggs, sausages etc.)

From Fortnum and Mason
From Fortnum and Mason
From Fortnum and Mason

The afternoon tea set here is reasonably priced too at 2520yen. Your choice of only one tea though, but you are allowed hot water refills of that tea. Serving portions were very decent too. Thank you to Fi’s dad who shouted us on this occasion. My only complaint about the Nihonbashi Fortnum and Mason tea salon was the fact that it was boiling hot in there. Central heating was cranked up, and the bright lights generated a lot of heat. All of us were feeling the heat. It was like a sauna. One does not want to perspire whilst sipping tea. Apart from the (dis)comfort factor, afternoon tea at Fortnum’s is a pleasant one. After eating and drinking, be sure to check out their store which stocks a very pretty range of teas, biscuits, and other condiments (preserves and the like). Got to love their packaging!

From Fortnum and Mason
From Fortnum and Mason

Yes, they have my royal seal of approval.

From Fortnum and Mason
From Fortnum and Mason
From Fortnum and Mason

For more photos, click here. Some interesting, useful links: Read about Fortnum and Mason on Wikipedia here. Fortnum and Mason UK website here. Lots of interesting reading to be had on that site. Refer to the links at the bottom of the page eg history/timeline through the centuries, and their restaurants. Fortnum and Mason Japan website, click here. Fortnum and Mason Mitsukoshi Nihonbashi tea salon, here.

No frills afternoon tea

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Last Wednesday was Culture Day in Japan – another public holiday and day off in which to enjoy another afternoon tea. Culture Day it was, and cultured up I did, by drinking more tea.

From Courtyard Marriot tea

In a period of 11 days, this was my third partaking in afternoon tea. The request this time was for a cheap afternoon tea, and cheap it was. We went to possibly the cheapest afternoon tea establishment in Tokyo. However, it is nice to know that cheap does not necessarily mean bad. I had consulted my High Tea spreadsheet and came up with the Courtyard Marriot hotel in Ginza. Here you can partake in afternoon tea for 1680yen. Print off the offline coupon and you can score yourself an additional 10% discount.

From Courtyard Marriot tea

The lounge was nothing fancy, more like a really, really nice cafe/coffee shop in the lobby of a hotel. The three of us all ordered an afternoon tea set which consisted of sandwiches, one scone, pumpkin pie, and 2 little cakes. The food was tasty, very good. Nothing gourmet, but simple and delicious. There are only four basic teas that you can choose from – darjeeling, assam, earl grey or UVA. We all went the UVA (a Ceylon tea) which was perfect. UVA is a lighter tasting, less astringent black tea. Just what I was in the mood for. Here they tea is served in cups, and you can get as many cup refills as you like, but only of your one choice of tea. So you need to choose one tea and stick with it for the whole session. No tea sampling here.

From Courtyard Marriot tea
From Courtyard Marriot tea
From Courtyard Marriot tea

Afternoon tea at the Courtyard Marriot hotel is relaxing. It’s low key and no frills and very affordable. Afternoon tea without it’s pretentiousness. Endless cups of tea, yummy food, and no time limit. A pretty delightful experience. After about 4 hours of tea, we stayed to enjoy their 300yen glasses of wine.

From Courtyard Marriot tea
From Courtyard Marriot tea

Ginza is always a buzzing, glamorous district. The lights all come on during the evening, and Christmas illuminations will soon be up. After spending over 6 hours at the hotel, I walked then from Ginza to Tokyo station (about a 25-30min walk) through the cool, crisp Autumn night, slightly buzzing from the three glasses of wine. Courtyard Marriot Hotel, Ginza – Oasis Lounge Website in Japanese is here. The discount applies to their whole menu. More photos here

Autumn afternoon tea at the Shangri-la Hotel, Tokyo

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Of all the seasons to do afternoon tea, Autumn would have to be the best. The cooler weather and the changing leaves is the ideal climate to enjoy hot cups of tea and comfort foods like scones, sandwiches and sweets in a nice warm lounge room whilst sinking into plush comfortable seats. A lot of hotels take advantage of the autumn season and offer a special seasonal menu showcasing typical autumn produce like pears, chestnuts and persimmons.

From Shangri-la High Tea

It actually also occurred to me that it has been one year since I started doing high teas in Tokyo. This exact time last year (in 2009) was my first high tea in Tokyo at the Peninsula Hotel – which coincidentally has also been the best place to date, in my opinion, to do afternoon tea in Tokyo. I racked up venue number 8 over the weekend on my High tea Tokyo Project (my quest to do every high tea available in Tokyo). By the time Sunday rolled around, Saturday’s typhoon had passed, and whilst it was still overcast, at least the rain held off. This time the occasion was Tami’s birthday get-together. Inspired by the mad hatter’s tea party in Disney’s Alice in Wonderland, she wanted to have a fancy tea party for her birthday. High tea is becoming a thing peoples! Become a part of the high tea movement! She settled on the Shangri-la hotel (which is the one I had hoped she would decide on, and the one that I had suggested). The Shangri-la was offering a special Autumn Afternoon Tea set only until the end of November, so I am glad I got the chance to try it. Being an autumn afternoon set it made use of of a lot of chestnuts.

From Shangri-la High Tea

The Lobby Lounge of the Shangri-la Hotel is on the 28th floor of the Marunouchi Trust Tower building, right outside Tokyo station (North Yaesu/Nihonbashi exit). The details to decor at the Shangri-la is exquisite with an elegant oriental touch. The layout of the room reminded me a lot of the Mandarin Oriental tea lounge with it’s window seating, and counter bar.

From Shangri-la High Tea
From Shangri-la High Tea
From Shangri-la High Tea

The food here was delectable (a new adjective to my food repetoire). I was most impressed by the sandwiches which were savoury delights to the palate. These were fancy appetizers. I also loved the patterned tea set and tea cups. The food here was so rich and decadent that I didn’t even finish all of the desserts tier, a first ever for me. They also had some very interesting fancy teas. I tried the Shangri-la hotel blend which was basically an assam and darjeeling blend – can’t go wrong there. I also had the Darjeeling Blend (darjeeling is apparently know as the “champagne of teas”), and I also tried the almond chocolate tea. This was more bitter than sweet. It was like the coffee of teas. Not being a coffee drinker, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would. Probably one of my favourite teas on the menu was the Autumn Alascian Garden tea, which I got to try a sip of, but ran out of time to order a pot of. This was a real interesting herbal tea blend consisting of mirabel, rhubarb (!), centaurea and calendula. I don’t know what half of those ingredients are but it was fine tea indeed. I am interested in getting my hands on some of that Alascian Garden tea – not sure if it’s a hotel blend, or whether it’s a real tea available on the market.

From Shangri-la High Tea
From Shangri-la High Tea

Service was good, food was excellent, decor detail stunning, views pretty good too – we could see the Sky Tree nearing construction, and live music from a pianist added a nice touch. The downside was that the tea session was limited to only 2 hours which was definitely not enough time. I felt hurried. I felt rushed to get through the tea and food without really eating slowly and savouring everything. 3 hours minimum needed to enjoy high tea. No debate about it. The tea lounge though was very busy with pretty much all seats occupied, and pending reservations after our session so they needed guests to be in and out, which was a shame.

From Shangri-la High Tea
From Shangri-la High Tea

Gourmet food and tea quality was top notch though, and so is the price tag. It was the most expensive high tea to date, at 4290yen. For that amount of money, you could have gotten a decent 3-course meal and not have been hurried out. This venue is going to be a tough one to rank. I am undecided which I liked better – the Park Hyatt or the Shangri-la’s high tea…on seconds thoughts I think I liked this one. It’s fine dining high tea, on the classy elegant side and should get the credit it deserves. Kudos to the pastry chefs at the Shangri-la. Fine job. In terms of food, tea and details, it kicked arse over the Park Hyatt. Although I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at the Park Hyatt it wasn’t on the merits of its afternoon tea.

From Shangri-la High Tea
From Shangri-la High Tea

The complete photo album can be viewed here. The Shangri-la afternoon tea information: English Japanese Read their Dining Events for up-to-date dining and seasonal afternoon tea specials. 5192692 2010-11-03 03:12:11 2010-11-03 02:12:11 open closed autumn-afternoon-tea-at-the-shangri-la-hotel-tokyo publish 0 0 post 0 food High/Afternoon Tea: Tokyo Japan Tea Tokyo Tokyo Dining _edit_last 253158 _wp_old_slug 1609 BottleLobotomy bottlelobotomy@gmail.com 118.109.101.20 2010-11-05 14:19:29 2010-11-05 13:19:29 Aleisha, My wife and I always look forward to reading your new reviews of Tokyo’s afternoon tea locations. Please keep up the great work! Have you thought of venturing into Yokohama for afternoon tea? BL 1 0 0 1611 Alei aleishariboldi@gmail.com 118.8.143.209 2010-11-08 03:08:51 2010-11-08 02:08:51 Thank you for reading, and leaving a comment. I love high teas! And yes, I am definitely interested in venturing into Yokohama for tea and cakes, time permitting. There are actually a few venues that I want to get around to in Yokohama that I’ve had my eyes on so perhaps in the New Year… 1 1609 253158 Sailing on the Nile http://memoirsofaleisha.blog.com/2010/11/04/sailing-on-the-nile/ Thu, 04 Nov 2010 02:59:17 +0000 aleishariboldi@gmail.com http://memoirsofaleisha.blog.com/?p=5192693 So one of the things that I did in Egypt was do a 3-night/4-day luxury cruise along the Nile River. I started from Aswan and sailed north to Luxor. After having spent a week on my own in Egypt, I met up with Bex from the UK for the cruise part. In Aswan we sailed on a felucca (an Egyptian sailing boat), which was most relaxing, and then we boarded our luxury cruise as we spent the next couple of days cruising down the Nile with some sightseeing stops along the way. The heat in Aswan was intense. Between 35-40 degrees celcius everyday. Cruises, generally aren’t my thing but along the Nile River it was actually really relaxing. It didn’t feel like the cruise liner was moving. Something like this I can handle. A cruise on the open high seas would be another thing altogether as I’m apt to be seasick. This cruise though was calm, and relaxing. It was nice to sit and do nothing. We spent the mornings sightseeing, and then the afternoons indulging in tea and afternoon snacks with a book, and dip on the deck pool, watching the sun set. Ah t’was the life indeed. All meals included – buffet breakfast, buffet lunch and buffet dinner. Thou shalt not go hungry on a Nile River Cruise.

From Nile Cruise Day 1
From Nile Cruise Day 1
From Nile Cruise Day 1
From Nile Cruise Day 1
From Nile Cruise Day 1
From Nile Cruise Day 1

More photos available here. 5192693 2010-11-04 03:59:17 2010-11-04 02:59:17 open closed sailing-on-the-nile publish 0 0 post 0 Egypt Travel travel _edit_last 253158 _wp_old_slug Enchanted with Enchan-thé http://memoirsofaleisha.blog.com/2010/11/08/enchanted-with-enchan-the/ Mon, 08 Nov 2010 03:06:11 +0000 aleishariboldi@gmail.com http://memoirsofaleisha.blog.com/?p=5192694 Enchan-thé – Is that not the best name for a tea store. Ever. It totally kicks arse over the name that I have in my head if I was to ever own a tea store/salon. In my blog review of the Shangri-la tea, I mentioned that I was interested in the tea that was called the Autumn Alsacian Garden Tea. I did some Internet research on it, and all I could come up with, was that Alsace is a name of a small region in France. I could find nothing in relation to tea. The description of that tea at the Shangri-la said that it was a blend of fine tea from China and Sri Lanka with mirabel, rhubarb, cantaurea and calendula from Alsacian Garden. Alsace being a region of France, I discovered.

From Shangri-la High Tea

I emailed the hotel last week asking them for any information at all on the tea, in particular, where I could buy it. I asked them whether they would either sell me some of the tea directly or if they could tell me their supplier. To my excitement I received a very well-written English response from them the very next day. This particular tea is purchased through a supplier, so not a hotel blend, and she gave me a direct link to their website. www.enchan-the.com “The Art of French Tea”. How awesome is that for a tea store name. I do love and appreciate a good pun! “Enchante” in French, an introductory meaning “a pleasure to meet you”, and then “thé” – French for ‘tea’ being added to the end. Pure genius of a name for a French tea store. This supplier specialises in French tea (フランス紅茶専門店). And the tea which I like, is actually called ‘Petite France’ through the supplier, and was renamed by Shangri-la for their tea menu. The Enchan-thé website is pretty cool – a blend of Japanese and French, and lots of interesting gourmet exotic tea blends, which can be purchased through their website. They also sell a range of coloured teapots, accessories and gifts – all tea-related of course. When one thinks of tea, they do not think of France, so this website is quite fascinating as it specialises in the Art of French Tea. I will now also be able to get my hands on some of that ‘Petite France’ (Autumn Alscian Garden tea) which is actually one of their new tea products . You can order direct online (they deliver throughout Japan), and read the staff blog, and the owner’s blog. Will be nice to actually read stuff in Japanese that I will actually enjoy reading about. (Site is not available in English). From the website, it does not sound like they have a cafe/restaurant or a shop (they mostly import and supply, rather than retail sales), but the listed business address is in Tokyo (Komagome area). Will be bookmarking their website for sure.

Tea at the Park Hyatt, Tokyo

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Thanks to the movie “Lost in Translation”, the Park Hyatt Hotel has been the “go to” place for a fancy night out. A cocktail at the New York Bar and Grill on the 52nd floor, the scene where Bill Murray and Scarlett Johanssen cross paths, is now an obligatory drinking spot for tourists visiting Tokyo. I’ve been there and done that a couple of times now, albeit a few years ago. I was back at the Park Hyatt Hotel over the weekend, this time, to enjoy high tea. The occasion – Skye’s birthday. I had said I would organise her 30th birthday soiree. She invited a small group of friends, and I arranged the venue. The Afternoon Tea at the Park Hyatt takes place in the Peak Lounge located on level 41 of the Park Tower in Shinjuku. The Peak Lounge is a lounge restaurant/cafe by day and bar/dining by night. It’s a bamboo themed lounge with a glass atrium. It commands a 270 degree over Shinjuku, Tokyo and beyond. Even a glimpse of Mount Fuji on a clear day.

From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea

I had booked well in advance for the occasion as we wanted to guarantee ourselves window seats to enjoy the views from its huge glass windows. The Park Hyatt is one of the few high tea venues in Tokyo with a view. Groups of 4 are ideal for window seating. A table for 6 required a bit more dialogue back and forth with the hotel. Of the 6 people in attendance, three had dietary requirements, so best to let the hotel know in advance. They were most accommodating. We had 2 vegetarian afternoon tea sets, and 1 semi-vegetarian set (meat ok, no seafood), and three regular afternoon tea sets. (The sandwiches usually contain meat and seafood such as salmon or prawns.)

From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea

It was a lovely afternoon for a birthday afternoon tea on an autumn Saturday. We were blessed with great weather so that we could actually enjoy the view from our window seats. We glammed up for the occasion. I wore a dress and heels – a very rare occasion where I wear either. I scrub up quite well when I put in a little effort. I’ll take jeans and sneakers anyday though. I much prefer to dress for comfort.

From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea

I do love high tea, and as far as high teas go, the Park Hyatt was pretty good. It won points on reservation service (they were most accommodating to all our requests), food was very good (sandwiches were probably my least favourite though), atmosphere and views were outstanding. It lost points on extremely slow service. Order your pot of tea half an hour before you actually want it because it will take that long for it to be brought out. But then it got bonus points for all the extra sweets and hor’d’eouvres that you get. So the way that afternoon tea works at the Park Hyatt is that you order the afternoon tea set which is your three platters of sandwiches, scones and sweets. You can then choose as many different pots of teas as you like from the menu. In addition, throughout the day/afternoon, waiters walk around to your table delivering trays of extra sweets and appetizers from which you can choose whatever you like and have as many as you like, and it’s free. The afternoon tea session is however limited to 3 hours, and you will be gently reminded of that. I thought the tea selection was very limited and not at all creative. There was a limited handful, and nothing really exotic. Just regular assam, darjeeling, earl grey, and some Asian/herbal teas. I didn’t think the teas were very special. In fact, quite ordinary. The afternoon tea costs 3200yen but with service tax etc added, it totals to 3520yen which is standard for high tea. The extra food platters that come around during afternoon tea is a nice touch though.

From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea

It was a girl’s day out, although Skye’s bf did join us later for a late dinner and drinks. After afternoon tea which ended at 6pm, we then switched from cakes to cocktails and headed to level 52 to the New York Bar, a la Lost in Translation style. If you are not a guest of the hotel, entry after 8pm costs 2200yen. Prior to 8pm there’s no seating charge, however if you stay past 8pm, you will be charged. So you need to be in and out before 8pm to avoid the charge. We lounged around in the Bar enjoying the night lights of Tokyo with cocktail in hand. We then headed into Shinjuku proper for a late dinner and drinks at an izakaya. I’m such a high tea nerd. But it’s such a relaxing hobby. Throughout the year I have been keeping a spreadsheet of every venue that offers high tea in Tokyo and keeping notes on them, and ranking them. I realised that I’ve only done about 7 of them. Feels like I’ve done so much more than that! Still got so many to go.

From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea

Skye had a great birthday, so mission accomplished. I already have my birthday high tea planned for next year. Very excited. It’s the only thing I am looking forward to about turning 30 – it’s going to be the creme de la creme of high tea extravagances. Enjoy the fancy pics!

From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea
From Park Hyatt High Tea

 

Zabou: high tea at the Cerulean Tower Hotel, Shibuya

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Zabou: My new word which captures the essence of tea. So another high tea venue in Tokyo crossed off my list – Cerulean Tower Hotel in Shibuya. The Garden Lounge at Cerulean Hotel is called Zabou. My translation of the word was “Sit and forget” (a direct translation of the two kanji which make up the word) which is exactly what you want to do in a lounge drinking tea and eating scones. Sit, relax and forget about everything else. It’s a most appropriate name for a tea lounge, don’t you think. My interpretation wasn’t too far off. Let me quote the concept of Zabou as defined in the Zabou menu: “Zabou is a Japanese expression for the serene state of mind that one achieves at the height of the traditional Japanese tea ceremony. The mind is cleared and all unpleasant thoughts are cast away so that the soul can relax and take in the beauty of nature. We hope that your visit to Zabou will relax you and fill you with calm and enlightenment.”

Wow. That for me sums up the joy of tea and the pleasure of high/afternoon tea. Some people get massages, some people pray. Me, I drink tea.

The afternoon tea set at Zabou needs to be booked in advance. The set is called the Tour d’ensemble and it is pretty darn delicious. The food is gourmet, and is is definitely one of the better tasting afternoon tea sets around. I think this creeps up within my top three in Tokyo. The savoury tier is really good. It’s lighter on the sandwiches and consists of other appetisers instead. There was a pumpkin mousse, marinated mushrooms, a mini quiche, ham on baguette, and a bread stick. It was all very good. Definitely a winner. The vegetarian set they prepared for Skye was also very impressive. (Let the hotel know in advance of any dietary requirements. They are very accommodating.)

On the scone tier – there were 3 scones – plain, brown sugar and, and one other one. These were good scones, a lot better than some others that I’ve had. I especially enjoyed the condiments – cream, and the lemon butter was extremely nice. Not a raspberry jam fan.

As for the sweets, these too were quite divine. All-round, this was an excellent afternoon tea set in terms of taste. Tea here was also very good. From the tea menu you can try and have as many different pots of tea as you like. I had about four pots of tea. The teas come out in different shaped teapots, and the chinese teas come out in a little terracotta pot. I had Assam tea, white peach tea (surprisngly very good), African morning tea (a bit too creamy), and a Chinese tea called Oriental Beauty.

We whiled away about 3.5 hours here, drinking endless pots of tea. The Lounge is located on the lobby floor so there’s no view but it’s good for people-watching as people come in and out of the lobby, wedding receptions etc. The Lounge is nice and elegant but lacks a bit of character and not as comfy seating as the Westin Hotel.

Excellent value at 3200yen for a delicious afternoon tea set, endless pots of assorted tea. Convenient location – 2 minutes from the West exit of Shibuya station (cross over the big intersection footbridge and it’s the tall tower that you see. And in case you were wondering, Cerulean is a colour. It’s shades of blue ranging from sky blue, deep blue to green-blue. Embrace Zabou. Details for afternoon tea at the Cerulean Hotel in Shibuya can be found here Full photo album can be viewed here

High Tea at the Westin Hotel, Tokyo

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Last Sunday was not spent competing in an open water swim race. Instead, I spent it indoors enjoying a glorious summer Sunday in Tokyo. First, it was to the Tokyo Metropolitan Photography Museum, followed by High Tea at the Westin Hotel. Both are within metres from each other in Ebisu. According to my research, I have so far found approximately 38 places in Tokyo to do high tea at. I’ve already been to about 6 of them. I am aiming to do one a month, but at that rate, it’s going to to take a few years! Might have to make it a fortnightly thing. So it’s been about 2 months since my last Tokyo high tea. Most of my weekends throughout the summer have been consumed by OWS races. It was nice to take a day off and indulge with pots of tea and food treats. The Westin Hotel in Ebisu, is a very nice hotel. Grand lobby and a great Lounge, where the afternoon tea is offered. I had made advance reservations and was glad I did, because there quite a few people. We got lucky and had window seats. We were on ground floor so not much of an aerial view but it did look out into a courtyard with a water feature. It was a very standard high tea set. The 3-tiered platter, complete with desserts, scones, and sandwiches. The vegetarian option for Skye came with salad sandwiches and a vegetable sticks with dips (in place of the quiche). I thought the desserts were quite nice, but both the sandwiches and scones were disappointing. I didn’t realise how difficult it is to get decent scones in Japan. Really, they’re not that hard to make but by golly, my goodness, I am yet to eat decent scones in Japan. The sandwiches were also so-so. I did enjoy the quiche. Service here was good, as is the decor and ambience. The sofa chairs were so comfy. And it’s an easy venue to while away time. That’s probably why they set a 3hour limit. The food wasn’t up to par as some of the other venues I’ve been too. The tea selection whilst not overly expansive, was still very decent. They used great leaves and most teas were served in glass teapots. The great thing here is that you can order as many pots of tea as you like and try any of the teas or coffees on the menu. Both Skye and I consumed four pots of tea each during our 3.5 hour tea session. Mind you, each teapot got you 2-3 cups of tea. So after drinking about 10-12 cups of tea each, after two hours in, we were pretty much playing tag team for toilet runs. We overstayed the limit by an extra half hour but we weren’t harassed out at all. In fact, after 3.5 hours, we left on our own accord, only because we kept running to the toilet back and forth that we decided we should leave. I still have to admit that the best High Tea in Tokyo is the Peninsula Hotel. That has become the standard, the yardstick by which I measure all other highs tea by (in Tokyo anyway). St Christophers Tea Garden also rates up there in the top 3. The High Tea at the Westin is a flat 3500yen per person which is standard and good value for the all food and unlimited tea (extra with an alcoholic beverage). Afternoon tea is served between 12-6pm (3-hour time limit). It is also a very convenient hotel to get to. Take the JR train to Ebisu station. Take the East Skywalk exit which will take you out to Ebisu Garden Place which is like a big forum, square. Walk right through the Garden Place past the French chateau and it’s the hotel clearly marked on the left hand side.

High Tea at the ANA Intercontinental Hotel, Tokyo

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Another Sunday, another high tea in Tokyo. I’ve been going at a rate of one per month. This time we headed to the ANA Intercontinental hotel in Akasaka (accessible from the Nanboku metro line) Spending a few hours in an luxury air-conditioned hotel eating cakes and sweets with a cup of tea is a perfect way to escape the heat and humidity of Tokyo in June. Skye and I each brought a friend to join us for a ladies afternoon tea – spreading the love one cuppa tea at a time. The ANA Intercontinental hotel serves afternoon tea between the hours of 2-5pm in the Atrium Lounge, although you can lounge about for as long as you like. It was surprisingly very busy. There are a choice of two afternoon sets – the bread set or the sweets set. We all decided on the sweets set. As usual, there are an assortment of teas to choose from, with free hot water refills. Most places that offer afternoon tea should give you pot refills. The biggest disappointment with this venue for afternoon tea was the absence of scones!! The height of rudeness. How blasphemous to exclude the humble scone from an afternoon tea. The scones are the best part. Big points lost right there. It was still a lovely set though. I also wasn’t a huge fan of the sandwich. It was just the one sandwich but it was triple-decked so the salmon mixed with the ham wasn’t really to my liking. Much prefer when the sandwich fillings are on separate sandwiches. Oh well. As lovely as it was, it wasn’t a very “traditional” afternoon tea (no scones!). The sets are 2950yen per person (3 tiered platter plus tea) plus tax. If you make an advance reservation for the weekend, you will get 10% off the bill. It cost us 3000yen per person with the discount. The Peninsula Hotel and St Christophers Garden remain my two favourite places to date in Tokyo for high tea. But there are still many more places to review. All the details for afternoon tea at the ANA Intercontinental hotel can be found here