Afternoon Tea, Tiffin, Grand Hyatt Hong Kong

 

An Afternoon Tea That Goes Above and Beyond Expectations

Words by Ann Krembs

Photos by The Yum List (Monica Tindall)

My Saturday with Monica was beyond decadent! Monica is the food writer and founder of The Yum List; that means she has to, as in it’s mandatory for her to try, sample, taste, no experience food! Can you imagine the divinity of this? Well I did for one afternoon. It was pure bliss. Monica invited me to join her for a tasting at the Tiffin in the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong. This a very beautiful atrium café with expansive windows looking out at both the city and harbor of Hong Kong. Greenery amongst the concrete creates a shade from any of the city’s bustle. Live music and happy merriment filled the air. We were there to indulge in the Tiffin’s afternoon tea set, and oh, we did! What an experience!

It started with this beautiful center piece of five tiers. For a moment look beyond the food and examine the actual piece of silver setting. It’s so intricate and perfectly simple all at the same time. I am not an expert at afternoon tea, but Monica is, and she stated that most afternoon teas consist of three tiers, so just the fact alone that this one was five layers tall was impressive.

Grand Hyatt Chefs and Management

The gentlemen chef came out to meet us which makes the whole experience feel more important. What a pleasure to meet the crafted hands behind the experience. Each individual was so kind yet more importantly so proud of the art they had created. Our sincere enjoyment of their food was all that mattered. Passion is contagious. It’s so important for all of us to find our passions, embrace them, and then share.

The afternoon tea at the Grand Hyatt isn’t just tiered goodness. Oh no! There is a homemade ice cream bar, decked with homemade ice cream cakes as well as a freshly made waffle bar. All the ice cream is made in house and is tailored to the season. For example, Chef David recommended the chestnut ice cream made with chestnut paste direct from France. Out of the ice cream cakes, the mixed berry with cream is still lingering on my palette. It was like a gourmet creamsicle with a meringue top. Alongside all of these frozen goodies, was a simmering pot of poached pears–they were berry in color and delicious in flavor. I topped mine with a dollop of fresh whipped cream and a few raspberries. Emmmm…..Of course an ice cream buffet would not be complete without homemade candy as well. The caramels were so chewy with a flavor lasting for many moments to come. In terms of calorie intake, that caramel of the whole afternoon was the best bang for your buck. It lasted and lasted and was perfectly sweet and salty plus chewy and crunchy. It’s a winner!

On to the tier specialties…of course savories were included, and two that stood out were the foie gras and smoked salmon. All the salmon is smoked in house. Plus they plotted the fresh fish onto a fresh pancake. It was perfectly smokey and the sprig of dill provided an excellent compliment to all the flavors. For someone who usually shies away from foie gras, I was amazingly surprised. It was seriously delectable. The texture was creamy, the prosciuuto added the correct amount of salt, yet it was the slice of fig that sent me into bliss. It was so good! If all foie gras tasted as good as this one, I’d be eating it all the time. We’ll see….

There were many sweets on the tiers–as there should be. The berries topping this mousse were like little miniature balloons bursting with tang in your mouth. What an experience! I still don’t know the name of these berries–or were they grapes, but I will find out. They were pure sweetness exploding in the mouth! The chocolate aside the mango with a hint of mint need to be wrapped up and savour with just a bite after each meal. It’s quite known that I’m a dark (the darker the better!) chocolate kind of girl. When I exclaimed to Chef David about these “chocolate sticks,” he said, “Oh, it’s just chocolate and cream.” Just chocolate and cream! Wow! If life could be so simple!?

Save the best for last, right? Well, these scones were amazing! Seriously! I don’t think I’ll bother with scones again unless they are like this. And to top them with clotted cream and homemade jam? I mean really! It was comfort food at its best. And then, this little crunchy nugget of goodness covered all the textures. I believe it was a profiterol. It had the chewy outer sponginess with a delicate cream center, yet it didn’t end there: it was then covered with straw like hardened candy causing all sorts of textural experiences for the mouth.

I cannot forget about the tea! I mean that’s what it’s all about right?! This one being poured is a strawberry yogurt tea. Once in your mouth it was super tangy, yet after a few moments it calmed down and turned creamy. It was quite soothing with a beautiful color–excellent for sipping the afternoon away alongside all the layered goodness.

Monica, I dare say, I’ll go tasting with you any time! What an exciting, excruciatingly pleasureful experience! Thank you! Thank you very much for including me!!