fashion afternoon tea | cheriecity.co.uk

Hotels, London

A Wonderful Afternoon at The Berkeley

July 4, 2016 by cheriecity

Sometimes an afternoon of luxurious pampering is just what you need – and where better to blissfully unwind than The Berkeley?

I was kindly invited by the girls at Farfetch for a spa date followed by the hotel’s famous fashion-inspired afternoon tea in the new look Collins Room. As a small group of six, it was a great opportunity to meet new bloggers and really enjoy this lovely treat.

Bamford Haybarn Spa

We met at The Berkeley’s Bamford Haybarn Spa and quickly robed up for a 25-minute neck and shoulder massage. I love Bamford botanical products and was pleased to have a choice of massage oils for different health benefits – I went for balancing, invigorating geranium oil.

My friendly therapist made me feel very comfortable and gave me the most blissful, effective massage. I left the plush treatment room feeling re-energised and supple – not wanting it to end, but knowing more was yet to come.

The Rooftop Pool

I’ve wanted to visit The Berkeley’s rooftop pool for ages, so I was delighted that my therapist told me that my fresh ginger tea would be waiting for me poolside. We spent some time chilling in our fluffy robes by the heavenly pool, chatting all things Farfetch, fashion and blogging. On warmer days, the roof fully retracts and there’s also a pretty, tranquil garden to enjoy the sun.

Prêt-à-Portea

Then, it was down to the Collins Room – The Berkeley’s bright and dreamy new dining room – for a leisurely Prêt-à-Portea. I first tried this heavenly fashion-inspired afternoon tea when Steven took me there for Valentine’s Day many years ago, so I knew it was going to be quite an event.

We started by selecting our teas and marvelling at the stunning table setting complete with bespoke china by Wedgwood, pink peonies and pretty lilac menus.

Sandwiches & soup shots

We were soon served a plate of tasty finger sandwiches and savouries such as red pepper and goat’s cheese chilled soup, carrot and cream cheese muffin and ceviche. Prêt-à-Portea curiously doesn’t include the typical afternoon tea staple of warm scones, but with so many different bites to taste, I didn’t really miss them too much.

Fashionable Desserts

The desserts really wowed us with their elegance, creativity and riotous colours. The beautifully-crafted selection of cakes, iced biscuits and elaborate mousses reference key pieces in the Spring-Summer 2016 collections by designers such as Balmain, Prada, Emilia Wickstead, Nicholas Kirkwood and Heidi Klein.

I loved the DVF bourbon vanilla cream and creme brulee tart and the super-light Stella McCartney tower of joconde sponge with pistachio and lime supreme, but my absolute favourite was the Christopher Kane neon chevron cake with yuzu and pineapple compote, beriolette and raspberry bavarois, topped with a yellow chocolate ring and apricot pâté de fruit. All of us were also charmed by the dainty red velvet Prada handbag that managed to be so tiny yet so rich.

It was rather fun to look up the pieces on Farfetch following our afternoon tea, as many of the designers feature on the website.

My afternoon of fashion and pampering at The Berkeley with Farfetch was such a delight. I was thrilled to finally discover the Bamford Haybarn Spa and Prêt-à-Portea was just as magical as I’d remembered – it’s definitely one for the top of your London ‘to do’ list.

Photos by Chérie City and The Berkeley

Designers, Fashion, London, London Fashion Week

London Fashion Week: Orla Kiely AW12

February 19, 2012 by cheriecity

The Orla Kiely Afternoon Tea Dance was a delightfully civilised antidote to the frantic pace of London Fashion Week on day one. What better way to show off the charming new collection than watching coquettish ‘debutates’ sashaying around the dance floor with their beaus to the sounds of a live band.

The collection features an ox blood leather pinafore dress worn over a chiffon blouse with frilled collar, a navy wool and gold high-waisted full skirt worn with a gold sequin blouse with silk patterned back and sweet day dresses with abstract retro and cat prints. Not to forget, those high-waisted scarlet shorts paired with a demure silk printed blouse, worn by the best dancer in the room – an elegant, willowy model with legs up to the heavens!

One of the stand out pieces was a full-skirted nude and black panelled prom dress with an over-size black bow at the waist. Other favourites were a maroon skater-style dress with a black trim and exposed zip and a delicate cream silk dress with a beige butterfly print and gold sequin peter pan collar.

I loved the fresh, innocent styling – side-parted tied-back hair with dewy skin and a strong lip and girly dance shoes with lurex bobby socks. It was like the girls had stepped out of a shoot in Lula and appropriately editor and founder Leith Clark (who has styled previous Orla Kiely presentations) was present at the tea dance.

Of course, the new collection of Orla Kiely accessories was on show and featured some ladylike clutches in neutral shades and a stunning red patent leather chain handle bag with Orla Kiely’s trademark pattern embroidered on the back.

As the models performed the foxtrot, tango and the Viennese Waltz under the giant disco ball in Orla Kiely’s pop-up 1940s dance hall, we were served champagne in vintage-style glasses and rounds of mini Victoria sandwich cakes and bakewell tarts.

It’s a fair assumption that everyone left the tea dance on a fashion high and wanted to be an Orla Kiely girl!

Thank you Orla Kiely for such a memorable presentation and for sustaining us with lovely cakes and champagne on the first day of London Fashion Week.

For more info, visit: www.orlakiely.com

Afternoon tea, Hotels, Hotels - Design, London

Zandra Rhodes Fashion Afternoon Tea at The Mandeville Hotel

April 16, 2011 by cheriecity

Zandra Rhodes is one of my all-time fashion heroes and meeting her at a Fashion & Textiles Museum private view just a few months into living in London was a dream fulfilled.

One of the most treasured guardians of English Eccentric style, Zandra brings her creative spirit to a very stylish afternoon tea at The Mandeville Hotel.

In an enviable location, just a few steps from Selfridges and Marylebone High Street, the four star deluxe Mandeville Hotel offers delectable afternoon teas served on stunning Royal Doulton china designed by Zandra Rhodes in the deVille restaurant.

Steven and I tried the Fashion Ladies Afternoon Tea and a Gentleman’s Afternoon Tea, although the gender boundaries were somewhat blurred as we swapped a few sandwiches here and there (well, the gentleman does get meat skewers, after all).

We started with a glass of Pommery Champagne and chose our pots of tea from an extensive list – Whole Rose Buds tea and the Mandeville Special Blend (a mix of English Breakfast teas).

When you think of Zandra Rhodes, vivid shades of fuschia, turquoise and purple leap to mind, but her tea set is a surprisingly subtle mix of sugar almond pastel colours with butterfly motifs.

The Fashion Ladies Afternoon Tea comes with a traditional selection of mini sandwiches cut into squares and a raisin scone that comes with clotted cream and two pots of jam.

This was followed by an indulgent selection of patisserie – Zandra’s Pink Meringues, chocolate macaron, chocolate éclair, lemon cupcake, chocolate and walnut ganache cake and a chocolate brownie.

The Gentleman’s Afternoon Tea arguably came with the best savouries – Roasted Sirloin with Red Onion Thyme Jam in Foccacia Bread, Beef and Chicken Satay with Chilli Crème-fraiche, Grilled Mediterranean Vegetable with Tallegio on Black Olive Ciabatta, Crab and Shrimp on Basil Bread and Gentleman’s Relish (anchovy pate) with Toast.

Some of the patisserie was the same as the Fashion Ladies Afternoon Tea but additions included a Blueberry Cheesecake, Coffee macaron and a Fig Chocolate Beignet.

The steak sandwich wedge was absolutely delicious and all of the cakes were exceptionally good. The Fashion Ladies Afternoon Tea is the quintessential afternoon tea, but I would welcome a few of the chicken and beef skewers, as they were so tasty.

The Fashion Afternoon tea at The Mandeville Hotel and perfect for a post-shopping treat, as Selfridges is just around the corner.

There are a handful of chic cafes in the neighbourhood, but few have the relaxing atmosphere of The Mandeville where you can kick back on plush sofas and sip tea to a jazz soundtrack – absolute bliss!

The Fashion Ladies, Gentlemen’s and Chocolate Afternoon Teas are priced at £26.50 (£32.50 with a glass of Pommery Champagne). Afternoon tea is available at deVille from 3pm to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday.

For more information and booking, visit: www.mandeville.co.uk

Chérie City was a guest of The Mandeville.