So here I am again, in the slightly strange but undoubtedly privileged position of being invited to sample afternoon tea and write a review of my experiences. Only too happy to oblige – with thanks to Macdonald Hotels!
I bought my family along to experience the tea in the surrounds of the vibrant lobby bar which is located on foot in less than 5 minutes from the city’s main train station, Piccadilly.
The bar featured a nice mix of leisure and business guests some of whom were working on laptops, others merely passing the time between appointments – and then me, with my family – wolfing into this monumental afternoon tea, with a few hungry looking onlookers probably wishing they’d pushed the boat out.
The pots of tea and coffee arrived first and my kids were less than impressed that the food wasn’t delivered instantly by a Merlin-like waitress– I’m sure children these days have less patience than I did at that age. Possibly.
When the tea arrived a few moments later I genuinely thought that 2 servings were on the one presentation unit. But no, it was one unit each. Oh my Goodness. Doggy bag at the ready, methinks.
A lovely mix of delicious finger sandwiches featuring egg mayonnaise, ham and tomato, cheese and pickle and chicken with salad and mustard mayonnaise were devoured in a matter of seconds. Mainly to pave the way onto the main attraction: the cakes.
Once the children had fingered each and every one (much to my disdain), ruining the general appearance and somewhat blighting the delicate and visually impressive spectacle on show - it was time for the adults to indulge. Chocolate wedge, mini pecan pies, traditional Manchester tart and cream cakes all surrounded the daddy scone with clotted cream and Bonne Mama jam. Amazing.
The scones were a big improvement on the last time I sampled afternoon tea in the Lakes. I always think scones need to look homemade. If they are too perfect in shape, it sets alarm bells ringing. These were baked to a crisp finish on the outside and fluffy and tasty on the inside. Bravo.
The venue seemed like a nice destination to relax and unwind, being fairly accessible for everyone – but with the air of a 4* business class hotel underpinning proceedings. Hence regular parental interjections of ‘sssh’ when the kids started to behave like they were apes at the zoo.
The staff here were welcoming and friendly and someone even popped over to check everything was to our satisfaction as we were midway through the tea. All in all a very positive experience and certainly good value, especially looking at their revised price of £14.95.
Thanks to everyone at the hotel for their hospitality.
