Tea…check! Tiny savories…check! Mini desserts…check! Fascinators and champagne…ummm, yes, please!!
This past weekend, I was treated to Tea in the Taschen Library in the Joule Hotel! It was a swanky delight and something that I would totally recommend! It is a small, intimate space that is surrounded by books by Taschen…art, architecture, design, photography, film, fashion. Beautiful floor to ceiling shelves of books! Each table was set with tiered trays of sweets and savories while we were greeted with a sparkling glass of rose champagne! Truly a royal treat that even the Queen of England would approve!
You are given a small amount of time to mingle and sip your champs before, like any good British tradition, you must follow a schedule…pronounced “shed-yule” if you are truly feeling like getting into character. 🙂 We were dressed in our beautiful dresses as any lunching ladies should, and our heads were adorned with darling cute fascinators.
What is a fascinator you might be asking yourself? Back by popular demand because of Kate Middleton, a fascinator is a style of millinery…or a beautiful head-piece! Not to be confused with a Kentucky Derby hat…although it would be appropriate there, as well, but this is a much more petite version that sits just atop your head like a bird perched on the top of a gable! It adds the finishing touch of adornment to our delicious delight of a Saturday afternoon! If you know me, you know I love a little DIYing in my life, and I made mine from items I bought at Hobby Lobby. It took about 15 minutes to construct, and there was no glue gun involved…although I had it on standby just in case. 🙂 Here is a link to my fascinator process and product!
Back to our “shed-yule,” our host closed the doors while a hostess discussed the first tea course and the small bites that paired favorably! Our first tea was a wild strawberry that was poured over a fresh lemon slice dropped in the bottom of our teacups. Did I mention that mine was a pretty pale yellow…kind of like that lemon slice! We paired it with a ham and cheese puff and a duck rillette. We were left to visit and enjoy our tea.
And then there were more champs!
The next tea was an Orange Blossom Oolong tea. It was not my favorite, it was delicious with the goat cheese brioche and the salmon mi-cuit. And did I mention the Joule Egg? This was so delightful!! It was an empty egg shell that had been filled with a classic deviled egg piping and finished with egg white foam and a snippet of a chive. So pretty, so elegant, and even more delicious!!
And then there were even more champs!
Our last tea was more of a desert style tea as it was paired with our deserts! It was dark chocolate pu-erh, and it was meant to be served with honey and a little milk. I opted out of the last bit of that, but the tea by itself was yummy and definitely had hints of chocolate! Our deserts were a huckleberry scone, apple cobbler, chocolate cherry pot de creme, and tres leches….and, of course, birthday cake! Enter sugar coma here! 🙂
So fun! Such an amazing time. You can reserve the entire library if you like! Tea is served every Saturday at 2:30 and is $59 per person. It includes tea, valet, and gratuities. Such a great value for a great amount of fun!! It would be perfect for a wedding or baby shower!
I wore a floral maxi dress with a pink blazer, wedges, a tassel necklace, and some cute bracelets!…oh…and a fascinator, of course! Shop my look below!
Dress (similar here) / Blazer (similar here) / Wedges (similar here)
Necklace (similar here)
