High Tea At High Noon

I chose the Grand Pacific, because it is so convenient sitting as it does a short walk from Leeds Station and easy to get to. I arrived a little early and whilst waiting for my rendezvous I sat in the Grand Pacific lounge, a fascinating experience. It is ideal for that wonderful pastime which we all enjoy - people watching; hotel guests mingle with business folk and those like me wanting to meet up with a friend, to those just looking for a well-deserved place to refuel and put their feet up after a busy day shopping.

The ambience is conducive to a relaxing experience and once my friend arrived, we moved through, albeit early in the day, to sample High Tea. As the yardarm had passed and it was high noon we knew, looking at the menu that it would be an ample substitute for lunch to satisfy our needs; High Tea typically includes fare such as finger sandwiches, cakes, pastries, scones, and other such delights.

Walking though to the dining area we were shown to a lovely little table with two wonderful, hooded porter chairs to sit in. The atmosphere was exactly right, and it felt like being in a film set in the 1920s/30s, all that was missing was a grand piano or a small jazz trio, which would have been a more authentic experience over the monotonous and intruding beat of 21st century pop culture. It is a shame but a sign of the times.

Sally succinctly and eloquently explained the nuances of the menu. There are two courses with tremendous selections: A High Tea Savoury Selection a treat for our taste buds with a selection of gourmet appetising treats and a high tea sweet selection, where we were encouraged to indulge our sweet tooth with flavours of the exotic and memories of home. There are many optional extras, such as something for a special occasion where you can add a special cocktail or a glass of Kaiken Sparkling, even a mini bottle of Vitelli Rose Prosecco or just a nice glass of Moët, when doesn’t champagne tick all the boxes?

As we settled down, we opted for a cocktail and a glass of champagne. Of course, high tea or afternoon tea comes with a fair share of chitchat, which the Grand Pacific recognises with a relaxing environment in the nice restaurant that pays homage to the hotel’s rich history. The Grand Pacific Restaurant and Bar is a 21st reincarnation of the golden age of opulence, and ideal for catching up with friends.

Sally brought us our drinks. Having opted for the Rose & Lychee Martini, a gin-based cocktail with lychee, rose liqueur with lychee and lemon I was keen to try it and was not disappointed by this smooth colour drink. My friend chose the champagne.

My cocktail had the most beautiful rose bouquet and was sweet without being to cloying and sickly, it was, in fact, quite refreshing with the lemon complementing the sweetness of the rose syrup, a nicely balanced drink.

When Sally brought the well-presented three tired sandwich stand our immediate reaction was to gulp. There seemed to be quite a lot and then we remembered it wasn’t afternoon tea but high tea. There was an oddity with a medley of variable sized items: a smorgasbord of dainty meets substantial.

We had both opted for the non vegetarian option and among the treats were two sets of sandwiches: Coronation chicken and egg and cress, although the greenery seemed to have been cut back just a little too much. The Coronation chicken was perfectly flavoured with nice portions of meat, and we began to reminisce about childhood. Was the bread a little too fresh? It proved to be a little too spongy and the filling therefore made it feel wet. A prawn cocktail vol au vent was delicious although it would have been nice to see a prawn rather than a puree and the salmon and tuna tartare was refreshing, rather like a salsa. The elegant goat's cream cheese & hibiscus tarts looked pretty, although the goat’s cheese was quite strong and then the piece de resistance, a rather big duck and hoi sin sausage roll. They were tasty and delightfully warm but because of their size needed a little more sauce or to be cut into two halves or quarters.

With the first course over we needed a breather. Sally brought us our tea which we had chosen from the extensive selection. A Chai Spiced tea and for me, keeping with the floral theme Red Berry & Rose. Both were excellent choices, lovely and refreshing, in fact we had to ask for some hot water to replenish the teapots as we were enjoying the loose-leaf tea so much.

If our eyes had popped out at the sandwiches, the cake stand made them stand out on stalks. A feast of assorted calorific, indulgent, scrumptious cream infused delights which, for the sweet toothed would more than satisfy.

The petite lemon tarts with cream were a perfectly judged size, the passion fruit Brûlée served in its fruit casing was delightful and the rose jelly & cream, Grand Pacific sherry trifle was enjoyable. The jasmine tea bread didn’t quite hit the mark, but nevertheless nice and the fruit scone with strawberry jam was on par with the size of the sausage roll and yet more cream, certainly made it filling, thank goodness for the tea, The liquid jam was poured over the cream which could have been presented differently and, just when we thought it was all over we noticed two fantastic looking truffles, if the second stand had been rich nothing could quite meet the richness of this sweet.


Replete we decided to have more of the delicious tea before departing.

On reflection the cake stand had too many cream-based sickly-sweet items on it; a piece of Battenburg or chocolate cake, even a small torte would have been welcomed.

With a few refinements: the bread for the sandwiches, extra hot water for the tea, less cream and it would have scored ten out of ten.

But we enjoyed it, managed a good chinwag in a lovely setting where Sally also made us feel special, and for those looking for something different High Tea at the Grand Pacific would be an excellent diversion from the hustle and bustle of life.