The Honeybee Centre in Cloverdale includes a quaint farmhouse, with a restaurant named the “Beestro” (so cute) and a store where they sell many different types of honey and beeswax products.
At the Beestro, they serve a full afternoon tea that you can order at anytime between 10:00 and 5:00, which are the Beestro’s hours of operation. They suggest that you call to reserve a spot, but they are also able to accomodate most walk-in patrons.
The afternoon tea is quite affordable at the Honeybee Centre, with a reasonable price of $22. There is also a gluten-free option, as well as a regular and gluten-free children’s option. We sampled their standard adult high tea.
To view the full menu click here.
Drinks
The tea selection is not extensive, but it does give a few options in each standard category: Black, Green, and Herbal. We tasted these flavours:
Classic Earl Organic Black Tea (A favourite black earl grey tea. Smooth, tasty and flavourful with a beautiful finish). This is a typical earl grey tea, with the added bonus of being organic.
Honeybush Herbal Tea ( A South African Tea, similar to rooibos with a mildly sweet taste and a hint of honey). This is a delightful tea, it has a smokiness but is not bitter or too strong. It pairs well with the afternoon tea.
Savouries
Chicken Brie and Red Pepper Jelly Panini: This savoury is delicious and each person gets two small sandwiches of this kind, which is quite a bit. The panini is served warm and with the melting cheese and perfect spicy and sweet combination of the jelly, this sandwich is a delight.
Artichoke Ciabatta: Served on a ciabatta bun, this sandwich is filled with sundried tomatoes and pickled artichokes. This is a vegetarian sandwich, but its delicious flavour can be enjoyed by anyone.
Egg Salad Roll: The egg salad roll tasted quite good, but it was a bit bland. The addition of some extra salt and pepper, or possible some dill or alfalfa could elevate the sandwich to a higher level.
Scones
Each person receives one Honeycomb scone. They are served with devonshire cream that is mixed with honey. The scone is well made and the addition of the cream and honey makes the flavour pop.
Sweets
Salted Honey Tart: The dark chocolate shell is the perfect accent to the sweet honey mousse. We both thoroughly enjoyed this sweet.
Honeybee Cupcake: The cupcake was well made, with yummy buttercream frosting.
French Macaron: We are not sure if the macarons are baked in-house but they were tasty nonetheless. We received a strawberry and a vanilla macaron, I believe. However, the flavours were not listed.
Ambiance, Service and General Experience
Ambiance: The Beestro is very casual. The decor has a bit of a tropical feel, with a pond at the entrance to the restaurant. There is an industrial quality as well, due to the exposed ceilings and piping, concrete floor and metal chairs.
Service: The service is very good. The servers were quick and efficient. We were most struck by the warmth and carisma is of the servers. They are very friendly and make you feel welcome.
General Experience: If you are looking for a fancy tea service and elaborate decor, this is not the place to go. However, if you want a very casual, affordable, and tasty tea experience, this is a great place for you to try. It would be a particularly good choice for those bringing children to afternoon tea. The kids can eat their very own afternoon tea and then look at the bees and do other children’s activities while you shop for some delicious honey. We enjoyed ourselves and felt very welcome and taken care of by the staff. At such a great price point, why not give it a try yourself?
A few more images:
