I had high expectations for Afternoon Tea at the Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto and was not disappointed.
First time tea-goer, Danielle, seasoned sipper Pam and I took the subway downtown on the beautiful Saturday afternoon. Our reservation was for 1pm and since the hotel is located in the lovely shopping area famously known as Yorkville, the three of us went down a little bit early to window shop.
A few minutes before 1pm, we headed to the lobby area of the hotel. We were seated within minutes in the pretty and modern lobby bar. The chairs were very comfortable, the tables were well spaced and set perfectly. So far, so good. The only downfall to this point was the tea cups. They were actually small coffee cups. When doing afternoon tea, I prefer traditional thin tea cups, but each to their own.
Our reservation was made well in advance and a note was included indicating a nut allergy. Without reminder, once we were settled in, a server came over to our table prior to our tea order being taken and asked us what we would like as a substitution for the nut laden desserts. This was a real plus… a great attention to detail.
Shortly after that, our waiter came over and took our tea preference. Despite the ample tea selection, we each ordered a traditional black tea – I ordered English Breakfast, Danielle selected the Earl Grey and Pam picked the Orange Pekoe. The waiter really knew his tea and had suggested some alternatives to our selections, but we stuck with our favourites… and were glad we did – the tea was delicious.
Our tea was served promptly to our table as well as the three tiered treats. On the bottom tier, beautifully presented sandwiches. The first, Apple and Aged Cheddar with Chutney. This sandwich had the apple and cheddar inside and the outside was garnished with the chutney and sprig of parsley. It tasted even better than it looked.
The next sandwich was an open faced chicken salad with mixed herbs… also garnished beautifully. It was very tasty, but the apple cheddar was a hard one to beat. Then the Asparagus and Roasted Pepper Pinwheel… so pretty. I am not a fan of asparagus, but this sandwich was absolutely incredible. The asparagus was perfectly crisp and the roasted pepper spread was so delicious I wanted more.
The next option was the traditional cream cheese and cucumber – with a twist. The cream cheese and cucumber were deliciously tucked between the white bread, but then on the outside of the top slice was a bit more cream cheese and thinly sliced cucumbers perfectly lined up on the top – to me it resembled large fish scales. The taste was great and the presentation was a real hit. The final sandwich was a Lobster Salad Profiterole. It was displayed beautifully, but the flavour was a letdown. It was a bit fishy and not much else.
The next level cradled our scones. The still warm raisin and plain scones packed a lot of flavour. Served with Greaves strawberry and raspberry preserves, lemon curd (yum yum yum) and whipped Devonshire Cream, this definitely was a real treat.
Our server was completely on the ball. Whenever we needed something, like magic, he was there. When we requested more Devonshire cream and lemon curd, it was brought to us in seconds. This was probably the best services I have ever received in the years I have been attending afternoon tea – very prompt, attentive and addressing our needs almost before we knew we had them.
The final tier was the dessert tier. Thankfully we were already pretty full, cause this was a weak offering. The Chocolate Caramel Frangipan Savarin was so small you could barely taste it. The Raspberry Rose Bavarian Tart was very pretty and surprisingly tasty – generally tarts aren’t a big hit with me. The Spring Berry Financier didn’t look like much at first (resembled a tiny Twinkie). I took a bite of it and all I tasted was sweet. I waited a bit, cleansed my pallet with a bit of tea and gave it another shot. The delicious caramelized outside with the large fresh raspberry on the inside was much better on the second bite. The final dessert was the Almond shortbread cookie. This ultra-thin cookie was beautiful – a long triangle shape covered with sliced almonds, but the flavour was bland. It was undercooked and didn’t have that snap that shortbread should have. A few more minutes in the over would have fixed that.
Overall, the experience was as close to perfect as I have seen to date. The location is great for shopping and celebrity spotting (we saw Michael Landsberg), the food was good and you could not have asked for better service. If you head to this location, don’t forget to head upstairs and check out the washrooms before you go. Nice private stalls, impeccably clean, cloth hand towels and a great area to touch up your make-up and check out your outfit before hitting the streets for some more retail therapy.
Four Seasons - Toronto Website
LOCATION: Yorkville, Downtown Toronto
AMBIANCE: High End, Modern, very bright - great for celebrity spotting
TABLE: In the lobby bar area - great seating
SERVICE: Amazing - very responsive
FOOD: Really good - desserts could be a bit better
TEA: Delicious with many options
PRICE: $38 plus tax and gratuity
RATING: 4 cups
