Monday 16 March 2015

24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea

24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea
Afternoon tea is my guilty pleasure, but when you add 24-karat gold into the mix it certainly becomes a more opulent indulgence.

So when I heard that St James Court Hotel London had broken with tradition and created a decadent afternoon tea, inspired by Luxor Pure Gold 24K Brut Champagne I couldn't wait to give it a try. 


The hotel grounds are a beautiful oasis of calm from the hustle and bustle of London. 
St James Court Hotel London
Walking in you can instantly feel yourself relax. The hotels afternoon tea is served in the Kona restaurant which carries on the comfort and cosiness with luxurious and indulgent furnishings. 

Sinking into my lovely cosy chair, I begin to feel the busy working week melt away. 

The best afternoon teas begin with a lovely glass of champagne and this afternoon tea is no exception. Well maybe it is, guests have the choice of Laurent-Perrier Vintage 2004 (£15 a glass) or half a bottle of Luxor gold leaf champagne (£85).
St James Court Hotel London
Yes it really does have gold leaf in the champagne, you can't taste the gold but it does give off a wonderful shimmer in a glass whilst you drink it. 

The continuation of the gold theme runs to the cutlery and plates which is a lovely touch. 
St James Court Hotel London
We happily peruse the menu for our tea selection to accompany our afternoon delights. 
24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea
We opt for Earl Grey Blue Flower, Bergamot flavoured black tea and cornflowers. Our second choice is Jasmine Chung Feng organic green tea. 
24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea
There is something really refreshing about Jasmine tea. I can happily drink a whole pot. 

When the sandwiches arrive we just sit in silence to admire the beautiful presentation. 
24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea
How gorgeous is the golden quail's egg and free range egg mayonnaise. 
24 Karat Afternoon tea
Highlights for me had to be the 24 month aged Prestige Comte cheese and chorizo. Smoked salmon, caviar and mascarpone. 
244 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea
Service until this point was acceptable but it seriously took a nose dive from this point on and became a comedy of errors.  

When we were part way through our sandwiches the waiter asked if my other half would like a refreshed pot of tea. Swiftly removing the pot and milk from the table little did we know that he wouldn't be back. 

No seriously over twenty minutes later and we are still without tea, in the end we had to ask someone else. This became a common theme. 

The waiter kindly comes and replaces the tea without an offer of any milk. Oh and then decides to pour Earl Grey in my jasmine tea and then proceeds to spill some on my handbag and doesn't even wipe it up. Are you kidding me. No I am serious.  

We decide to turn our attention to the beautiful pastries. 
24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea
The Champagne and gold leaf jelly was amazing in taste, with the addition of the strawberry foam it was definitely my favourite. 

Pastry Chef Nikhil Vyas has worked his magic to create a foodies delight of edible gold.
24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea
White chocolate delight with gold leaves. Oh this was good, sweet, chocolatey and with hidden popping candy.   
24 Karart Afternoon tea
24 Karat Afternoon Tea
Nikhil is seriously very talented. The variety in the pastries is the best I have experienced and I have eaten my fair share of afternoon teas. 

We had two types of scones served with the afternoon tea: plain and raised scones. 
24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea
The scones are meant to be served with clotted cream and jam. Yes you guessed, our cream and jam is no where to be seen. There is also no waiter to be seen. I kid you not we waited thirty minutes chatting with a lovely mum and daughter next to us from Chicago. Still no one. 

Now what follows is a first we have to physically get up and go looking for a waiter. 

The service was beyond appalling and what is sad is the food served was superb.  Hopefully the above was just an off day. Despite the hiccups we had a lovely time.  

One thing to share about the hotel is how it is perfectly located between Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament. 
24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea

If you fancy living like a queen, quote "What's Cooking at Taj" to receive 24% off their afternoon tea. Guests are requested to make bookings 24 hours in advance.
24 Karat Gold Afternoon Tea
To take advantage of being in town and to finish off a lovely day, we headed to the theatre district to see "Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time". 
Curious Incident of the dog in the night-time
I would highly recommend seeing this theatre show if you enjoyed reading the book. The staging is superb and very entertaining. 
What is the worst service you have every had? Share your stories? 

Thank you very much to St James Hotel and Zomato for a tasty afternoon tea. Our afternoon tea was complimentary for the purposes of a review, but this is an honest and fair reflection of the restaurant and our experience. 

Square Meal

 photo foodieforce_32.jpg

28 comments:

  1. Whoa! They need to sort that out. You can't be having 24karat cake and shoddy service. The two things just don't go together. I would like to get some of that edible gold and just plonk it on everything, though ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What is a shame is the afternoon tea is one of the best I have tasted, I would be so cross if I was the pastry chef working away in the kitchen to have it ruined by poor service. The gold dust is cool Lucy x

      Delete
  2. OMG I love the gold theme, the food looks absolutely stunning - I've never seen anything like it!

    Such a shame the service was a let down though, why serve such a gorgeous afternoon tea in such a beautiful hotel and then provide rubbish service?! :(

    x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The hotel and the food was amazing. To be honest it wouldn't out me off going back I am still dreaming about the cakes Lucy x

      Delete
  3. I've heard such good things about the tea, everything looks incredible, especially the popping candy cake! It's a shame about the service but I still really want to visit, it's so close to my flat!
    Lots of love,
    Angie
    SilverSpoon London

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The afternoon tea was superb, don't be put off going but be realistic you are not going to get great service Lucy x

      Delete
  4. That food and the hotel exterior look amazing, though no excuse for such bad service. So annoying when all the rest is so perfect to be let down by that :(

    Rosie xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As someone who puts your heart into cooking you will appreciate how cross I was. An amazing pastry chef has spent hours crafting to have it ruined by poor service Lucy x

      Delete
  5. The 24 carat champagne and pastries look amazing, shame that the service left a little to be desired. I recently went to Bistro 51 at the Taj and we did have a bit of a hiccup with the service at the beginning though the food was good and they were apologetic

    Suze | LuxuryColumnist

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The food is wonderful that is the frustration. I have stayed in the suites and the service was impeccable maybe it is just a training need Lucy x

      Delete
  6. Oh, I always "dread" reading your tea reviews, as we have nothing here in the US to compare. But crappy service I think is universal. Nothing like bad service to ruin a lovely meal. Sorry you had to endure that, but the food looked AMAZING!!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You will have to keep a note of all those that you want to do when you visit. This is probably the nicest afternoon tea I have had so the service was frustrating Lucy x

      Delete
  7. Your afternoon teas leave me swooning everytime, haha! The food here looks incredible, especially the popping candy dessert and that salmon(!), it's just such a shame about the service as it really does make a huge difference to the overall visit. I'm pleased you still enjoyed it though and I really want to go and see that show! :)

    Style Sunrise ☀

    :)
    x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The White chocolate with popping candy was lovely and the show brilliant such clever staging Lucy x

      Delete
  8. It's such a shame that the service was so bad because this all looks like total luxury, the food looks incredible! I love all the little touches of gold :) xx

    Toasty

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The service dos let it down but it wouldn't stop me going back as the food was delicious Lucy x

      Delete
  9. Wow that all looks amazing! So fancy! It's a shame that the service didn't match though, you'd expect something better for such high class afternoon tea :) xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I must admit the service was horrendous but the tea was gorgeous Lucy x

      Delete
  10. That must be the most amazing afternoon tea I've ever seen! How swish! The presentation looks amazing.

    Corinne x
    www.skinnedcartree.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The pastry chef is seriously talented Lucy x

      Delete
  11. incredibly fancy!!! the food is making me super hungry!!! such a luxurious experience, for sure!

    Have a Great Day!
    Animated Confessions

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The gold touches do add additional glam Lucy x

      Delete
  12. I love your photos!! The cakes look so delicious and the quail's egg is so cute. I recently stayed at the Taj hotel, thought the downstairs area was much nicer than upstairs which needs refurbishment.

    Ash | Liakada Travel


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, personally prefer 51 gate to the Raj the rooms are beautiful Lucy x

      Delete
  13. Oh wow, it all looks so decadent! What a beautiful place too, doesn't even look like it belongs in London. Such a shame about the service though.

    I really want to see that play, I loved the book so much! x

    Josie’s Journal

    ReplyDelete
  14. My dear Lucy,

    I love reading and I do enjoy all your cheery tea afternoon posts. Have a lovely Friday! Love, Liuba x

    ReplyDelete
  15. Wow the afternoon tea looks incredible but that is some truly shoddy service! I hope you fed back to them afterwards or that they see this post. It really can make or break a place! x

    ReplyDelete
  16. It's a shame you had bad service Lucy. The food looks pretty spectacular though! You can't beat a bit of afternoon tea!

    Marie X
    titchytombie.blogspot.co.uk

    ReplyDelete