October is all about chocolate week in London (and cocktails in case you didn’t know!). Wellington Lounge at Intercontinental Park Lane brought back their chocolate themed afternoon tea this month and I was really excited to give it a go. As much as I love chocolate, I was afraid there may be a chocolate overload but to my surprise it was balanced out very well and turned out to be one of the nicest afternoon teas I’ve had.
When entering the hotel there is such a nice smell in the air. I can’t place it but it’s very flowery and instantly puts you in a good relaxed mood. The afternoon tea area itself is so bright and airy. Ask for a window seat as it’s great for tourist watching. London is such a beautiful city and coming to Park Lane reminded me how much I used to appreciate it when I first moved here.
The chocolate afternoon tea costs £42 but the traditional Royal Tea is priced at £32. I normally find Afternoon Tea food and pastries quite bland (being Swedish, the bar is set very high). The stand at Wellington Lounge however was very interesting and definitely full of flavours! First up we got a Champagne cocktail each served in the most beautiful glasses. Look at how tall these are, so sexy! Be careful though, they knock over easily.
The cocktail tasted like sparkling dessert wine. I ordered a Jasmine tea which was very nice although it got cold quickly. It would have been good to provide the tea on a heated platform to keep it warm while you’re eating.
Once we had some sips of the cocktail and tea, we were brought pear pearl drops and a dark chocolate plaque (which is served more for decoration purposes, it’s too thick to eat). The pear drops were very interesting – the pear juice is covered in very thin jelly which pops in your mouth when you eat it.
Finger sandwiches included: Honey roasted ham, Rocket pesto and cheddar/Crayfish mayonnaise and watercress/Cherry tomato and cucumber on curry flavoured bread/Chicken and mango wrap.
My favourites out of the 4 were the chicken and crayfish, the other two were nice but had lighter flavours.
The scones came in two types: the standard one and a Chocolate chip, marshmallow and butter milk scone. Along with the scones we got the traditional strawberry jam and Devon clotted cream but most importantly Chocolate croquant. This literally tasted like Ferrero Rocher in a pot.
By dessert time neither of us had much space left! Luckily you can get the leftovers in a takeaway box. I still did have a go at all 3. Chocolate dome pistachio and lemon surprise/Milk chocolate mousse, coconut and chilli confiture/Blackberry bavarois dark chocolate frangipane tart
I’m hard to please when it comes to desserts as always, so although they were definitely nice and my mom loved them, they didn’t quite hit the spot as much as the Ferrero Rocher pot did!
Overall it was a lovely relaxing afternoon tea experience and I’d highly recommend Wellington Lounge to those looking for a traditional afternoon tea.
One Hamilton Place, Park Lane
London, W1J 7QY
+44 (0)20 7409 3131
I found out that you can get £10 off i.e.,£32 per person when quoting ‘Chocolate Week Offer’ at time of booking. Valid until 21st November 2015.
We’ve been a couple of times, so it’s really interesting to see the new tea specials – and I’m consumed with fascination for the Chocolate croquant!
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Ah it was my first time there and really enjoyed it :) the croquant was amazing, has to be tried!
This looks amazing – the chocolate croquant is something I need to try! x
While I’m quite traditional when it comes to tea, those chocolate chip scones look deliciously attractive! As does that Ferrero Rocher pot… mmm