The White Horse Hotel - Hertingfordbury

Welcome to my second afternoon tea review. This time it is for a small country hotel and restaurant in the little Hertfordshire village of Hertingfordbury...

Name: The White Horse Hotel

Address: Hertingfordbury Road, Hertford, SG14 2LB

Price: We attended this afternoon tea using a groupon voucher that we were given as a gift. However, the website states that a normal afternoon tea would cost £12.95 per person for afternoon tea or £19.95 per person with a glass of champagne (with a minimum of four people).

Dress Code: No strict dress code. 

Drink:

A glass of prosecco was included with our groupon voucher, but this is not normally included. 

Tea:

There was no choice of tea given, but we asked for english breakfast. This was refilled at our request for no extra cost.

However, the tea was over stewed and undrinkable.

Cake:

There were three types of cake: Lemon drizzle, a nutty carrot cake and a chocolate cake. These were all lovely, however the presentation was poor, as you can see below the chocolate cake was messy and had other types of cake attached to it...

Scones:

Both plain and fruit scones were served. However, they were very small and extremely misshapen. As you can see below, they were knobbly and dry and not very appetising at all.

Sandwiches:

A small range of sandwiches were served: egg mayonnaise, cucumber, and ham. However the cucumber sandwich was only plain cucumber which was very unappetising.

Presentation:

The afternoon tea was presented on a cake stand. However, the overall presentation was poor, with messy cakes, knarled scones and bits of jam in the clotted cream.

Extras:

The only extra was a glass of prosecco each, which was included in the groupon deal but usually would be charged as extra in their afternoon tea.

Service:

The service was good once we were seated in the restaurant. A couple arrived after us and were shown into the restaurant before us. In the end we had to ask to be taken through to the restaurant for our tea. The server was fairly attentive, although we did have to ask for tea refills at points.

Atmosphere:

Quite and subdued on a Sunday morning, but nice and relaxed.

Decore:

Smart and clean. Served in the restaurant which had lovely large doors leading onto a terrace which would be nice in the summer.

Perfect For: 

If you happen to drive past and fancy something sweet

Tea Cup Rating: 

1/5

Summary:

A lovely little hotel in a pretty village, but the afternoon tea left a lot to be desired. For the price, the tea is meagre and of a low quality, and there were too many faux pas' so we will not be visiting again.

The Ritz...

Welcome everyone to my first afternoon tea review! And I am starting with one heck of a humdinger!

I was recently lucky enough to be treated to afternoon tea at The Ritz.

(Each review will include the following areas of note...)

Name: Palm Court - The Ritz London

Address: 150 Piccadilly, London, W1J 9BR

Price: Starts from £42 per person for the simpliest tea, through to most expensive at £64 per person for a celebration champagne tea.

Dress Code: Formal (very). Men must wear ties and jackets. No jeans or trainers.

Drink:

A glass of champagne is included in the more expensive options. It also says online that coffee or hot chocolate are also available but we didn't know so we didn't ask!

Tea:

A huge range of delicious teas is available. We sampled the earl grey, Ritz Royal blend and the Rose Congau. Your tea is replenished on request and we were able to sample more than one type of tea each throughout our stay.

Cake:

The range of cake was amazing! Included were four small cakes - a small dark chocolate cake, a mini lemon meringue pie, a miniature millefeuille and a gorgeous macaroon! We were so full that we struggled to finish them, but the macaroon especially was the best I have tasted! Better than lauderee! 

There was also a trolley of extra larger cakes that was brought around. Our two choices were an apple loaf cake and a bakewell tart. Again we were so stuffed that I only tried a tiny morsel of the bakewell tart, but it was delicious!

Scones:

The scones were both fruit and plain varieties. They were brought out later than the rest of the tea so that they were still lovely and warm. The clotted cream and jam were scrumptious also.

Sandwiches:

My fiance had pre-warned when booking that I was vegetarian and so I was brought my own separate plate of sandwiches, which included two extra different flavours. All of the sandwiches we sampled were delicious including the classic egg mayonnaise, cucumber and cream cheese (which also contained dill which was an added delight), ham and mustard. The extra vegetarian options were a delicious cheese and chutney, humous, and tomato & rocket.

Presentation:

Absolutely beautiful! Stunning china, silver teapots, and lovely attention to detail such as the Ritz icon on top of the teapots.

Extras:

Our celebration champagne tea included a special birthday cake, which was brought out with a lit candle to the string quartet playing happy birthday. My fiance had chosen which type of cake and it was personalised with my name in writing. It was a delicious chocolate mousse cake, but you could also choose a fruit cake!

Other extras included a creme caramel dessert and an extra dessert trolley from which there were two further choices of cake - a delicious Bakewell tart and an apple cake we didn't have room to try.

Service:

The service was impeccable! The waiters paid real attention to detail, and were very fast at providing to your every whim. The waiter was kind enough to take our picture when we asked, and we didn't need to prompt for any refills or replenishments. 

Atmosphere:

Well, it's the Ritz! Fine dining, but with a relaxed and celebratory edge! Everything is stylish and sophisticated. The string quartet playing in the background make for a very romantic setting, and the layout of the Palm Court means each table has a little seclusion.

Decore:

WOW, Unbelievably beautiful! My jaw dropped! The room is stunningly decorated, beautiful mirrored walls, stunning ceiling and marble staircase. Even the powder room is decorated in a beautiful pink with victorian styling. More than I expected, even of the Ritz - oh and the pictures just don't do it justice!

Perfect For: 

A very special occasion!

Tea Cup Rating: 

5/5

Summary:

Well I don't think anything will top this! I may have started with the best and the rest will just be a disappointment - but by far the Ritz is THE BEST place to go for afternoon tea! I have never had better and as you will see over the course of this blog (which will begin retrospectively) I have experienced a fair few afternoon teas! 

However, this isn't the place for a family celebration and it certainly isn't cheap, so I would not recommend it if you are on a budget or want to include small children.

Otherwise I cannot recommend the Ritz more highly! It literally is PERFECT!

Welcome To The World of Afternoon Tea...

My name is Jewel, and I am an afternoon tea-aholic!

This blog will guide you through all the lovely places that I am lucky enough to visit for afternoon tea so that you can see the best (and the worst) places to visit.

I hope to give you all the information you will need to make the perfect choice for such a lovely treat.

Please feel free to suggest where I should try, what my reviews should include, and your own reviews!

Happy Tea Time!

Jewel x