With my latest pregnancy craving being afternoon tea, along with a much needed getaway from the work week drab, we decided on the Lobby Lounge at the Shangri-La. See, I just can’t seem to stay away from a few good scones and clotted cream! Joseph and I were also pleasantly surprised to find an Easter menu available for two weekends only, from March 28 to April 6 😀 . Woohoo!
They had an extensive tea menu with over 70 different teas to choose from! Each different tea selection may have an additional cost on top of the set menu price of $42 per person.
I was completely in awe with the gorgeousness of the servers in their Ming porcelain-inspired qipao dresses designed by Sunny Fong. Both elegant and sexy at the same time, I would seriously love to own a piece in my closet!
One thing that sets the Shangri-La apart from other establishments are their matching delicate Asian-inspired tea sets, complete with little lions on the teapots. NO chips, cracks, or mismatches seen here. The servers also pour your first cup of tea for you, which we had never encountered before (except at Asian restaurants), and they even kneel down beside you as they thoroughly explain the entire experience. Talk about top notch service!
I went with the Snow Maple (left), while Joseph selected the Snow Rose tea. Both were white teas that contained very little caffeine and didn’t bother baby boy in my belly at all. I would definitely recommend the Snow Maple tea. It had notes of maple syrup and was subtly sweet. The Snow Rose, although fragrant, was just average.
The lobby was very spacious and comfortable. There was a roaring fireplace in the middle, and a custom Fazioli grand piano off to one side. On the walls hung giant Chinese calligraphy works of art. If possible, you should either request to sit in front of the piano, or by the fireplace as those seem to be the best seats in the house. There were many people having afternoon tea, and more coming in and out of the lobby, so it made for a very festive atmosphere. I think we were all waiting for the piano performance to begin from 3pm to 5pm, as live music is so customary in Asian hotels.
I’ve always wanted to sample the sounds of a Fazioli, and I fell in love instantly! For only $100,000 to $300,000 it can be yours 😉 .
Afternoon tea is served with desserts, scones, and sandwiches.
Poached Atlantic lobster with citrus creme fraiche on a brioche roll.
The remnants of a spiced hot cross bun with bits of citrus peel inside.
A cute little scone for the clotted cream.
Left to right: carmelized white chocolate, strawberry jam, and cornish clotted cream.
I wish the scones were larger so I could put more cream on them! However, when we asked for more scones the kitchen had ran out! 🙁
The dessert tier: religieuse profiterole, simnel cake, tropical easter egg, milk chocolate and raspberry verrine.
The Religieuse Profiterole was injected with a white chocolate orange blossom cream and coated with a lemon glaze. Look at that delicious cream – it just melted in our mouths.
The Tropical Easter Egg was a light meringue with a layer of coconut cream on top, and a “mango curd” (which tasted like mango pudding) with an edible gold leaf. This was my fav of all the desserts, and quickly satisfied my love for anything coconut. A real treat!
We truly enjoyed our afternoon tea experience at the Lobby Lounge because of the ambience, the sophisticated Asian aesthetics, and the excellent service. Shangri-La is now among our favourites, along with Annona and Prince of Wales. Without fail, the food was delicious of course, but we only wish there was more of it. The live piano music during the service was a real delight, and gave off such a cool afternoon vibe. We would definitely recommend the Lobby Lounge for your next event, but always be sure to book ahead!
Cheers,
Melissa
Lobby Lounge
Shangri-La Hotel Toronto
188 University Avenue
Toronto, ON, M5H 0A3
(647) 788 8281
We have more! Click here for our other Afternoon Tea posts. 🙂
Disclaimer: The opinions and claims reflected in this blog post are my own and not those of Shangri-La Hotel Toronto. No compensation was received to write this review.
This is very interesting. Thank you for such a thorough review. A friend has had afternoon tea at this hotel, and he said he found the lobby setting to be quite loud. Between the piano and the voices of people talking over the music, he did not find it to be relaxing. Did you find the noise level was a bit much there?
Hi Stanley,
Thanks for your comment! 🙂 At the time of this post (for Easter High Tea) I recall having an enjoyable experience and not having to talk over Joseph. The piano was actually very relaxing (think contemporary music and modern jazz), and we didn’t encounter any loud nor obnoxious guests. However, yes, compared to other venues for high tea there tends to be more foot traffic here and the noise level can be higher because it’s tea in a hotel lobby afterall.
Have a great weekend, and hope you’ll enjoy some delicious tea! 🙂
Cheers,
Melissa