Where art and tea collide
Text by Kerry Vincent
Photography Courtesy of The Rosewood Hotel
I boarded a rumbling train on London’s Underground Piccadilly Line and sped my way to a much-anticipated afternoon tea in the Mirror Room at The Rosewood Hotel. This special contemporary afternoon tea was voted London’s best for 2017, and as an added bonus, an old friend, distinguished master baker, author, and television presenter Dan Lepard would join me. Together, we would evaluate this tea with a twist.
Afternoon-tea doyenne, the late Caroline Rose Hunt, daughter of oil billionaire H. L. Hunt, owned and founded The Rosewood luxury hotel line until she sold her interest in 2011. She also created Lady Primrose’s thatched cottage tearoom and glittering silver-filled antiques shop once located within The Crescent Hotel complex in Dallas, Texas. Being oh-so-familiar with The Rosewood’s Dallas flagship hotel, The Mansion on Turtle Creek, there was not a doubt in my mind that this tea would be spectacular.
Formerly the Chancery Court Hotel, The Rosewood’s powerful façade exuded a sense of royal residence. It was easy to feel just a tiny bit aristocratic as I made my grand entrance through the black wrought-iron gates that led the way through an arch, revealing an enormous Edwardian courtyard.
Dan appeared promptly, and we made our way to the Mirror Room. Soon he introduced me to Rosewood partner and Holborn Dining Room Executive Chef Calum Franklin, who launched into an intimate explanation of each pastry as it was presented. Calum is a firm believer in knowing the provenance of ingredients, so as to ensure the freshest and most unique additions in the overall menu lineup.
Rosewood’s Art Afternoon Tea was the brainchild of talented Executive Pastry Chef Mark Perkins. Not your standard offering, this avant-garde interpretation touted a few unusual surprises inspired by an international cross section of five talented, recognized modern artists who have all contributed to London’s extraordinarily vivid art scene—American artist Jeff Koons, who loves to transpose commonplace disposable pop culture objects into mirror-finished stainless steel; French fantasist Hubert le Gall; Russian theorist Wassily Kandinsky, a master of vibrant artworks; American abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock, known for drip painting, a technique that coincidentally lends itself well to chocolate applications; and finally, anonymous British-based graffiti artist Banksy.
First to appear were piping-hot glass teapots filled with robust Darjeeling tea by the French house Mariage Frères, which sat center table with sides of sugar and steamy full-cream milk. The tea captain then arrived with flat trays of mixed crustless sandwiches—an eclectic mix of free-range chicken and tarragon mayonnaise, smoked salmon and lemon butter, brown egg mayonnaise and mustard cress, and the layered flavors of celeriac rémoulade, horseradish, and crisp Bramley apple. Scones with crumb as soft as silk followed, accompanied by strawberry-elderflower jam and clotted cream. Next, came the artsy pastries. This was one time when I really felt it a shame to eat them, beautiful works of contemporary pastry art created to emulate the works of each of the “fab five” designers.
Dan’s overall impression was the same as mine—perfectly clean artistic presentations with delicious flavor profiles. At the very top of his list of best on the day was the extraordinary cake inspired by the British graffiti artist Banksy.
“What a work of art! Utterly flavor-packed,” Dan declared. “It’s such a tricky feat to construct thin wafers of Belgian white chocolate to form a decorated box on the plate. The chef shows astonishing skill and boldness filling those boxes with layers of vanilla choux pastry, a hazelnut caramel, cherry gelée, and chocolate mousse. Definitely a dessert to die for and worth a return visit!”
I couldn’t agree more. From start to finish, The Rosewood Hotel is a class act!
The Rosewood Hotel is located at 252 High Holborn, London, WC1V 7EN, a short walk from the Underground’s Holborn Station. For more information or to book a table for one of Rosewood’s art-inspired afternoon teas that change seasonally, go to rosewoodhotels.com/en/London, or ring +44 203747 8620.
Award-winning cake designer Kerry Vincent is a television host and a global traveler who seeks out interesting places for tea wherever she goes.
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