Food blogger get togethers are fun. But a variation of this is a girl’s only food blogger get together made up of a smaller group of us where we can unashamedly gossip about weddings, shoes and other girly things. So where better to do this at a Champagne High Tea and luckily the We Love Sydney card gives us 2 Champagne High Teas for the price of 1 (2 people for $45). I’m Champagne High tea-ing today with my fellow High Tea lovers Karen, Suze and Reem. Planning this, through a suggestion from Karen was no meat feat entailing over 70 facebook messages. A military style operation if ever I heard of one!
Selection of sandwiches clockwise from bottom left: Smoked Salmon; Cucumber on malted bread; York Ham with mustard mayonnaise and cheddar and vine tomato
We’re given our flutes of champagne soon after we are seated and a plate of sandwiches. We’re sitting at a table right near the window overlooking a small garden. The sandwich selection is: ham & mustard; smoked salmon; cucumber and tomato & cheddar cheese. The smoked salmon is, I feel compelled to add, quite unevenly filled, some sandwiches chock full of smoked salmon while other only have a thin slice. However despite this they are thoroughly delicious (I had one of the thinner sandwiches).
The ham doesn’t find favour with some although I like this. The cucumber isn’t great with the seeds making the bread a bit wet and bizarrely cottage cheese pieces are spread instead of the traditional cream cheese. I find the bread too thick for the tomato and cheddar sandwiches. It should probably be added that the buttering on these sandwiches might be considered verging on the heavy handed (you can see how much butter is used in the smoked salmon sandwiches above with the yellow edging against the coral salmon being butter).
Ronnefeldt’s Earl Grey loose leaf tea
After we wait for about 1.5 hours we enquire whether we are getting tea with our sandwiches and Champagne and it is brought to us. I have Ronnefeldt’s Earl Grey which is absolutely delicious.
We then ask if we could have the sweets and the waitress tells us that the sweet buffet is actually around the corner and gestures us towards the display. Hmm someone could have told us about this about 1.5 hours ago! It’s now 4pm so we make our way there.
It’s not brilliantly merchandised – incongruously a tv screen featuring Jim Belushi lies behind the display somewhat spoiling the look, and there’s a chocolate fountain, strawberries, macarons (yay!) and a range of cakes and pastries.
Clockwise from left: Caramel slice, cinnamon cake, chocolate brownie, cannoli
We collect a selection of the more tempting morsels and bring them back to the table to photograph. The gold leaf topped caramel slice should come with a warning. A tiny corner of this would do most as it’s as sweet and thick as a caramel lolly. I take one bite and can’t do any more and neither can the rest of us except for sweet toothed Suze who has the rest. The brownie is fairly moist but not particularly gooey or remarkable. The cinnamon cake is heady with fragrant cinnamon. The cannoli is crisp and full of sweetened custard cream and finished with dessicated coconut.
Clockwise from left: Mini pavlova, chocolate dipped strawberry, caramel slice, mango mousse cake, lemon meringue tart and assorted macarons
The chocolate dipped strawberry is luscious but what I’m most interested in is the macarons. All are filled with jam rather than buttercream and my favourites are undoubtedly the citrus flavours. The Orange is vividly shaded and tastes burstingly strongly of citrus. The lemon is a delicious doppelganger for the Lemon Crisp biscuit. The raspberry macaron is like an Iced Vovo but the darker purple blackberry and blackcurrant have a strong marzipan taste which I don’t particularly like. Overall they’re fabulous and well made though. The intriguing one is the brown coloured fruit topped cake. Despite its unappealing look, it has the taste of a delicious mango mousse pudding cake.
Clockwise from left: Lemon meringue tart, cannoli, chocolate dipped strawberry, mini pavlova, custard tart and assorted macarons
The individual pavlova, one of my favourite desserts, is very good. The custard tart Reem reports, is just a plain custard tart. The item that divides us is the lemon meringue tart, Reem and Suze find it salty whilst I don’t mind it although I don’t like the soggy pastry case.
Clockwise from left: Triple chocolate mousse cake, cream, jam and scones and madeleine
The three tiered chocolate mousse is lighter than air and airily floats and disappears as vapour inside my waiting mouth. Some of the the scones appear undercooked and doughy when split so we don’t try these and the madeleine is thick, dense and soaked in syrup which is not how buttery madeleines should be.
And just for good measure, another look at the delicious macarons…
Reem modelling the chocolate fountain dipping process
The Blogger taking a photo of the blogger taking a photo of the blogger…this could go on forever.
And just because he was wearing a funny shirt, on the way home we saw this guy.
Not sure quite where the Champagne high tea fits into it but there are other options also available
Shangri-La Hotel
176 Cumberland Street, The Rocks
Tel: +61 (02) 9250 6123
We Love Sydney offer available until the 28th of February
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30 Comments | Add your own
I can’t believe you guys ate sandwiches for 1.5 hrs….
The sweets look good though!
Jealous!!! I’m sitting here freezing because it was dumping snow today in London… would love a glass of champagne
Looks like a nice setting but the tv in the background looks bad hey! Still I love high tea and thats a great price.
Am I juvenile if I say I sniggered at your description of organising the get together as “no meat feat”? If it’s an intentional vowel substitution it’s very witty, and if it’s not it’s still pretty funny considering one doesn’t associate meat with high-tea … or maybe it’s just Tuesday morning and I’m trying to waste time instead of working!
Those sandwiches are so cute! Perfect tea sandwiches!
I didn’t realise Shangri-La had modified their high tea to a buffet-style offering. The desserts look quite tempting for a buffet, and what a bargain at 2-for-1 (altho’ they should have told you earlier about the location of the sweets!).
The dessert buffet there looks pretty good. How was the hotel service (apart from not being told about the sweets)? My last high tea experience, at the Swissotel, was a disappointment (junior staff, ordinary food).
Everything looks scrumptious! I’m inspired to break out the chocolate fountain that I purchased from Williams-sonoma and never used.
i had a lovely time munching away with you guys!
and ah how i loved the caramel slice it was like one giant slab of dulce de leche!
Mmm I have not high tead in aggesss and you guys are making me want to go really badly haha! I like the chain shots of ppl taking photos of ppl taking photos of ppl taking photos of ppl…
The citrus macarons sound lovely. Earl Grey is my favourite tea, good choice.
I was in with the photo of the champers up the top! Looks like a fab outing. I am especially enamoured of the macarons and the lemon meringue tarts. And love the old guy’s shirt he, he …
Lol it was a military-type operation wasn’t it, co-ordinating everybody together! Those scones were a travesty but I loved those macarons!
Had a fab time Lorraine…hope we didn’t scare Suze too much with the wedding stories!
oh how i wish i could join u guys…
love high tea!
u guys hd so much fun…its been long I had a girly outing
Hi Kathy-It was just that plate of sandwiches for 1.5 hours-along with a lot of chatting
Hi Christie-Would have loved for you to have come along, but you need to be here!
Hi Brianna-Yes the TV in the background was just strange
It is a great deal indeed.
Hi SydneyGal-Haha not intentional. I feel like I shouldn’t edit it so everyone else can have a chuckle
Hi Blond Duck-I always, for some reason, love it when other people make me sandwiches.
Hi Helen-I wonder if they’ve changed it for the We Love Sydney event. I do like the 3 tier stands though but at the same time, there’s nothing quite at gloriously gluttunous as a buffet. It was a bit of a rush in the end!
Hi belle-I wouldn’t say that the service was exceptional mainly because we had to ask for tea and we had to ask for the desserts. They were polite but very few words were exchanged-and essential ones at that!
Hi Brenda-Great idea! Nothing says party like a chocolate fountain!
Hi reemski-it was lots of fun and how funny was that guy? I wonder what other shirts he has?
Hi suze-LOL at you being the only one that could eat the caramel slice! I could only have a corner of it. But if anyone could, it’s you
Hi Ffichiban-You should go before the offer ends! Hehe if we had some others it could’ve been a never ending chain, although i think they thought we were crazy enough as it is.
Hi Arwen-I could definitely go for some more of those Orange and Lemon macarons. The Ronnenfeldt Earl Grey is particularly good I have to say.
Hi Cakelaw-I was fascinated with the lines of bubbles
Haha the old man is a star!
Hi Karen-It was event planning blogger style
I had a great time too, thanks for organising it. I think she took it well, better than any surprises on the day!
Hi Navita-A girly outing every now and then is so necessary!
goodness me! the management over at the Shangri-la need to be taking a little look at this post. there’s a bit of fine-tuning to be done.
great post though Lorraine, i felt that i was practically there with you all!
I also had the champagne high tea a few weeks ago – god bless the We Love Sydney card
My boyfriend and I arrived at around 3:30 on a Sunday and the lounge was quite packed. There were only two waitresses the entire time we were there, and needless to say service was really slow – having worked as a waitress myself, I felt really sorry for them!
Your photos make the desserts look AMAZING! Unfortunately ours didn’t look or taste that great, and there wasn’t much of a selection either!
Our sandwiches were lovely but we had to wait about half an hour for them. And I agree with the television – why??
(I also went to the buffet at Cafe Mix twice – but that’s for another time
)
I would have been happy with just the champagne
You’re right, the TV behind the dessert buffet killed the mood entirely. I’m surprised they didn’t take a bit more pride in their merchandising. Oh well, any excuse for a blogger meet-up is a good one, whether it’s perfectly executed or not.
shangri-la-di-dah! this looks like one of those places where i’d stick out like a sore thumb. HOWEVER, i’d barge in anyway, because chocolate fountains rock my world. oh, and CINNAMON CAKE.
We had a similar problem with timings at the QVB Tea Room just before Christmas when I took my clients out for a Sparkling High Tea. We all ordered our choice of tea or coffee at the start, but then 2 hours later we had not received them. When I finally managed to get the waitress’s attention, she said that they don’t serve them until we finish our sparkles! Crazy when there were people at the table not having a glass.
Hi the projectivist-That’s never a bad thing!
Although I have to wonder who thought a Plasma tv was necessary behind a buffet!
Hi Bubz-Our waitresses did seem a bit flat out but it didn’t seem that busy? Especially since they only brought the drinks and sandwiches. Some of the sweets weren’t bad (I really liked the macarons) but some of them were not great. We saw the lolly display for Cafe Mix-interesting!
Hi Sandie-Hehe I can’t imagine anyone watching the tv either. I don’t think they had the sound turned up. It’s there every afternoon so I don’t know why they don’t put it away. It’s probably a remnant from breakfast service (hehe not a great one).
Hi grace-Awww I’m sure you wouldn’t! And yes the cinnamon cake was really cinnamoney!
Hi cath-Oh dear, that’s just strange! 2 hours is a long time not to have tea too for an afternoon tea!
Oh that just looks decadent! I wish there was a good high tea around here like that.
The meringue looks like it’s sticking its tongue out hehe!
Hi Red Neon Hearts-A good high tea is always a thing to treasure indeed
Haha it does doesn’t it! 
hi NQN
is desert part of the high tea deal
that’s the main thing i look forward too!
Hi lyn-It was for us although I’ve read another blogger went there after we did and she had a very different experience which was very disappointing for her. Just to be sure, I’d ring to check beforehand
It’s my favourite part too!
I was at the Shangri-La for a teddy bears picnic high tea yesterday and must go back for an adult version (was searching for details of it and KNEW you would have been!). Although the kiddie version was just a toned down version of the adult version it seems – the chocolate cake even had gold leaf! And the adults in attendance still got champagne, we just had facepainting to go along with it lol
Hi Emma-Oh how cute, a kid’s version! I had no idea
I’ll be sure to let my friends know about it as it sounds absolutely lovely.
Lorraine, guess what! Have been invited for (high…)tea by the Shangri-La here on Tuesday -can’t wait and find out all about their famous pink chocolate eatable lipsticks! I surely will be thinking of you, promise. Ciao, Carina. Xxx
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