We had the pleasure of tasting TWG’s newest afternoon tea offering on Sunday: The Lunar New Year Tea. This tea menu will be available at TWG until the end of February, so make sure to try it soon.
To read more about TWG, see our first review here: TWG ORIGINAL REVIEW
Here are a few new things that we learned on our latest visit:
Afternoon tea is available ALL DAY LONG! You can order it from the moment they open in the morning to when they close at night. That is very rare and wonderfully flexible.
They also have an extensive breakfast, lunch and dinner menu. They are a full service restaurant, and they are launching a NEW MENU this week! The pictures of the menu items alone will make your mouth water. All of the items on the menu are infused with their signature tea blends, so you get a tea-centred experience no matter what you order.
They also have SET DINNER MENUS for special occasions. We were treated to their Festive Set Menu at Christmas time and it was delicious! They just finished their Valentine’s Set Dinner offering and I am sure that they will be launching their next one soon. Once again, all items are infused with their teas!
Drinks
This time we tried three different teas:
Milk Oolong: This was a soft and sweet oolong, with a hint of creaminess. This tea was my favourite of the three.
Pacific Route Tea: A black tea with mango and apricot flavours. This was Rosanna’s favourite tea. It had a strong black tea flavour, but you could really smell the fruit flavours.
Castleton Darjeeling: This tea is a full bodied but slightly sweet Darjeeling. A good pairing for the Lunar New Year Tea.
Scones
This tea set does not come with scones but it instead has two tiers of savouries.
Savouries
Bottom Tier:
Breakfast Yuzu Tea infused miso, sake and mirin paste glazed roasted sablefish. This fish is roasted to perfection. It is tender, buttery and beautifully favoured. We loved this item!
Duck magret cured with orange and Imperial Lapsang Souchong accompanied by turnips, carrots, and celery and served with an Apple Tea infused duck broth. I am not a big fan of duck in general, but Lily is and she said that it was very nicely done.
Middle Tier:
Cauliflower and parsley soup with Water Flower Tea infused sponge cake topped with a parsley chip brushed with gold powder. This soup was warm and hearty and perfect for a winter’s day. We could have eaten a whole bowl. It was delectable and also very beautiful to look at.
Nori tofu strips infused with Sencha served with a light wasabi mayonnaise. Wow! These were truly delicious.They were crunchy and the coating was very flavorful. The wasabi mayo was not too strong and worked as the perfect dipping sauce for the tofu strips.
Scallops and prawn tatare, Pink Flamingo Tea infused grapefruit jelly and shiso with a lime and grapefruit dressing filled in a beet shell. We are not accustomed to eating seafood this way, but this combination of flavours was quite good.
Sweets
Chocolate and coconut powder bar infused with Coconut Tea. A perfectly sweet and creamy bite-sized treat.
Vanilla infused soft tofu panna cotta with Weekend in St. Tropez Tea infused blackberry confit and caramelized puff pastry sticks. This is a very well executed dessert. The blackberry pairs nicely with the vanilla and gives it a beautiful flavor without being too sweet.
Hazelnut praline red bean and Darjeeling Nouveau infused crémeux choux pastry. The pastry was baked to perfection and the filling was delicious.
Chestnut and mandarin tartlet infused with Ami de Thé. This was probably my favourite sweet. The fillings were fresh, light, and creamy and the tart was buttery with the right amount of crispness.
TWG infused macaron. We had the chocolate earl grey, which is a favourite of ours and we highly recommend it.
Ambiance, Service and General Experience
As usual, we had a lovely experience at TWG. Sunday at tea time is definitely a busier time for the restaurant, so you will want to make sure you reserve in advance. We highly recommend TWG, as they consistently provide an pleasant and elegant international journey for the palate.
To read more about TWG make sure to read our ORIGINAL REVIEW here.
A few more images:
