There's a new afternoon tea in town and is one is a new concept. This Friday, the Sheraton Grand Sydney Hyde Park will launch their cheese high tea in collaboration with cheese expert Will Studd and The Studd Siblings. This cheese high tea includes a cheese platter as well as cheese desserts and savoury dishes. All paired with a tea, coffee or wine. Come along and see what the cheese afternoon tea is like.
It's a chilly almost winter's Friday when Mr NQN and I arrive at the Gallery Tea Lounge on the ground floor of the Sheraton Grand Sydney Hyde Park Hotel - perfect weather for a cheese high tea. Their "High Cheese" afternoon tea launches on the 5th of June to coincide with National Cheese Day. It will be held every Friday between 11am-4pm, bookings recommended with at least 24 hours notice.
Sam and Ellie Studd, the "Studd Siblings", who share their father's love of cheese, selected their favourite cheeses to be used and then worked with the Executive Chef Sudhanshu Nirmal. "What's that saying? Cheese is milk's first step towards immortality. This is into the psychoactive realm," says Sam. They first tested the idea of a "High Cheese" at The Westin Hotel in Melbourne.
The price of the cheese afternoon tea is $75 per person and you also have the option to add on wine for $20 for two with a glass of Tyrrell’s Estate Grown Chardonnay or Shiraz which are both great prices as 5 star hotel afternoon teas usually start at $95 a person.
The two tier stand arrives with the cheese plate on the top layer and the sweets and savouries on the bottom tier. Another dish of baked camembert, fruit bread and scones arrives shortly after. We order tea; Sam explains that one of the best teas to serve with cheese are oolong and that sencha tea is a good match for the manchego cheese. He also explains that whisky is also a good match for cheese and that red wine and cheese don't go as well as they are said to because of the high fat of cheese and high tannins of red wine.
We start with the savouries - the fried Aphrodite halloumi sticks come two to a serve and are crumbed and deep fried and drenched with saffron habanero honey and are sweet and spicy. The delicate whipped Galotyri crostini is served on a thin beetroot cracker with a slice of fresh fig, honey from the Sheraton on the Park's own beehives and Tasmanian Shiraz salmon caviar which add a satisfying pop and brings the flavours together.
The baked camembert is also tasty and filling and each serve is designed to share. Scoop some of that liquid gold onto the raisin bread or split a feta and chive scone and slather it on. You can also add some honey or roasted hazelnuts from the cheese platter on the top tier for crunch or sweetness.
Next is the cheese course and there are three cheeses: Roquefort, Brillat Savarin and Manchego served with buckwheat lavosh, Sheraton honeycomb, quince paste, charcoal water crackers and grapes. The paper thin, crisp crackers have a light nuttiness to them and go well with all cheeses. I particularly like the Brillat Savarin with the quince paste and the Manchego with the Sencha tea.
Last but not least are the cheese inspired desserts. Normally I'm not a huge dessert person at afternoon tea but these desserts prove the exception. The Basque Galotyri cheesecake is made with sheep's milk galotyri cheese and a blueberry agrodolce in the centre and is creamy, mild and fruity. The La Dauphin Double Creme Profiterole with vanilla almond praline crumble is sheer decadence with the intensely rich cream.
My favourite is the manchego and orange blossom mini bundt friand. It's very moist and made with roasted almonds, orange blossom and a manchego cream on top. I love the light saltiness that the manchego gives it and I think the rich creaminess and the balance of saltiness is what I love about these desserts.
So tell me Dear Reader, what is your ideal pairing with cheese: tea, wine or whisky? Do you like the idea of a cheese afternoon tea?
Sheraton Grand Sydney Hyde Park
Address: 161 Elizabeth St, Sydney NSW 2000
Phone: (02) 9286 6000
www.galleryonthepark.com.au/high-tea
Reader Comments
Loading comments...Add Comment