Afternoon Tea at Marco Pierre White Birmingham - Mother's Day Father's Day and even Easter

The good folks at Marco Pierre White's in Birmingham have seriously upped the afternoon tea ante. Afternoon tea as you know it is all about sandwiches, scones and cakes. However, MPW has come up with not one, not two, but three variations on the traditional afternoon tea. As well as traditional afternoon tea, the team has dreamt up a Mother's Day, Father's Day and Easter afternoon tea.

Gentleman's Afternoon Tea

I was kindly invited the try out all three, and as always, as a gluten free blogger, my experience was a little different from everyone else's. As well as offering up the three different afternoon tea's above, I was treated to a special gluten free version.

To start, we have the Mother's Day afternoon tea. Mother's Day is on 6th March this year guys so don't forget!!

Here's what's included:

Sandwich Selection
Mini Brie & Spinach Quiche
Beetroot Gazpacho
Mini Fruit Pavlova
Petit Fours
Sponge Cakes
Macaroons
Shortbread Finger

In chronological order, Easter is next on 27th March. if you're thinking of getting friends and family together here's what you can enjoy:

Sandwich Selection
Scotch Quail Egg
Rabbit Ballotine
Scone
Hot Cross Bun
Chocolate Egg
Petit Fours

Finally, Father's Day is on 19th June. MPW has created a gentleman's afternoon tea for the occasion. Sadly, I didn't have a gent to try this out for me but I do have pictures!

Tamworth Streaky Bacon Sandwich
Open Roast Beef on Ciabatta
Fishfinger Sandwich on Ciabatta
Homemade Scotch Egg
Homemade Sausage & Stilton Roll
Welsh Rarebit on Cheese Scone
Baked Guinness Pudding with Brandy Cream
Bottle of Crafty Dan 13 Guns IPA or Purity Longhorn IPA or Purity Lawless Lager

Onto my special gluten free version. My afternoon tea was a little bit of a mix between the Easter, Mother's Day and traditional afternoon tea and included:

Chocolate egg and raspberries
Plain scone, clotted cream and jam
Meringue nests topped with cream, kiwi and raspberries
Almondy cake
Sandwich selection

It was so kind of the chefs to put this together for me :)

The sandwiches were lovely, and the scone in particular was fantastic. I loved the addition of raspberries with the chocolate egg, it made me feel a little bit healthier!!

Which afternoon tea is your favourite? Personally, I love the look of the Gentleman's Afternoon tea and the guys amongst us seemed to really enjoy it.

Are you taking your mum or dad out for a special treat? All the above are available to book for £29.99 including a glass of champagne for Mother's Day and either the above beer or a glass of champagne for Father's Day. Available daily from 12-5pm. Further details here.

Marco Pierre White Wimbledon Themed Afternoon Tea

Wimbledon is just a few days away, and for those of you who want to take part in the festivities without having to leave the city, Marco Pierre White Birmingham has created something special.

Famous for the Level 25 Terrace, host to many parties, events and glittering gatherings, the terrace is a beautiful spot to enjoy views of Birmingham and beyond and soak up the summer sun.

This is exactly what I did along with a few fellow bloggers where we were able to bask in the June sun and enjoy afternoon tea, a glass of champers and the finest British strawberries to boot.

To get into the spirit of Wimbledon, Marco Pierre White has launched a Strawberries and Cream themed drinks package. You can enjoy a basket of strawberries and thick, clotted cream and a glass of Lanson Champagne for £15pp based on two sharing. Alternatively, you could purchase a bottle for £70 and receive the strawberries for free. The standard afternoon tea is also available so you could stick to fruit or indulge in sweet pastries and delicate sandwiches too to make it extra indulgent.

We were so lucky to be able to enjoy a lovely sunny evening on the roof terrace in prime position on one of the outdoor sofas. I was able to try out the gluten free version of the afternoon tea which is available when booked in advance, My favourite part was the indulgent desserts and the apple crumble cake in particular!

The spot is perfect for people watching, lounging and generally relaxing, and I can't recommend it enough, especially for a special treat.

Will you be at Wimbledon or are you planning on staying out on the terrace?

Food Review: Festive Afternoon Tea at Hyatt Regency Birmingham

It's officially feeling a little bit like Christmas. The John Lewis advert has aired, the German Markets are back in Birmingham and this little invite popped into my inbox.

Festive Afternoon Tea Tier - Gluten Free 

Situated on Bridge Street, just opposite Symphony Hall and the NIA, the Hyatt Regency is offering a Festive Afternoon Tea for a limited time only from 1st-31st December.

A stunning hotel, the main entrance hall is a grand glass roofed atrium complete with water features, columns and marble.

This stetely setting is where we took afternoon tea and along with Lil Miss Chickas and Emily from Emily's Recipes and Reviews, we sat down to take in a very English experience.

When offered a choice of tea, coffee or mulled wine, I opted for coffee first before the main event. We were then sold on the mulled wine and took a little to try in our authentic copper mugs.

Mulled Wine is served

Then, in perfect synchrony, the afternoon tea tiers arrived, three tiers of cakes, scones and sandwiches.

Plain and Raisin Scones with Clotted Cream

As a gluten-free foodie, I did share my dietary requirements with the hosts before I came, and was so pleased that they could accomodate me for the afternoon tea. However, when the food arrived I could see that this wasn't just a quick fix, there was real effort that had gone into creating a gluten free feast that rivalled the gluten-full option.

A trio of desserts

Not only did I get six mini sandwiches in 6 different flavours, I also had two types of gluten free scones and three gluten free petit fours.

This was no hastily assembled gluten-free solution, but a carefully thought about and arranged selection of cakes that included gluten free pastry and had been made from scratch.

Here is the menu for both the standard and gluten free Festive Afternoon Tea:

As is tradition, I started off with the sandwiches, moved onto a spicy scone and finished off with 3 desserts, yum!

Spiced Apple in a shotglass

The desserts were my favourite part of the meal and the Vanilla Sponge topped with chopped crystallised ginger and plums was light but festive. The Chocolate Orange Truffle on a shortbread base was rich in flavour, but airy in texture thanks to the delicate mousse and topped off with a fresh mandarin segment for added zing. Finally, the Spiced Apple with Calvados whipped cream in a shot glass was heavenly. I love to feel like I'm eating something healthy but tasty, and the fresh apples were finished with some luxuriously decadent cream.

Spiced Apple and Calvados Shot

I cannot thank the chef enough for creating such a thoughtful and flavoursome afternoon tea.

What better way to ease yourself into Christmas with this indulgent afternoon tea? Whether you make a day of it or want to break up a busy day of shopping, why not sit down and relax at your leisure in this stunning setting?

With thanks to everyone at the Hyatt and Natalie for hosting the tasting.