The Promenade Restaurant, Stamford Grand Adelaide
2 Jetty Road, Glenelg
May 7, 2016
Pinkies out everyone – it’s time for tea!
The Promenade Restaurant at the Stamford Grand Hotel in Glenelg has been serving high tea for many many years. With its sophisticated finishes and picturesque beachside views, it made for the perfect setting for Tasting Australia’s Simply South Australian High Tea event on May 7th.
Greeted with a refreshing glass of Bay of Stones sparkling wine from the Barossa Valley, we were seated at a spacious table with uninterrupted views of the Glenelg foreshore boulevard. The table settings were simple and elegant, with plain white Australian Fine China and a small vase containing two faux roses.
Accompanied by my Grandmother, I was certainly not the only one making use of the timing of the event for a Mother’s Day celebration. As we sat and sipped our bubbles, we enjoyed discussing the tableau of people relishing their weekend as they passed by our large picture window.
The cheerful hum of people around us indicated that the various surrounding tables were also appreciating their experience and made us eager for our high tea food to arrive.
When it did, it did not disappoint.
The South Australian Prawn cocktail with baby cos was a standard prawn cocktail but fresh and tasty, as were the traditional double-smoked ham and Gruyère cheese sandwiches.
The homemade mini premium Angus beef pies and carême pastry mini vegetarian quiches were fresh out of the oven and the quality of ingredients was evident in the juicy flavour.
As a self-confessed sweet tooth I had spent much of the afternoon eyeing-off the final plate of petit desserts with eager anticipation.
With our sparkling finished, and our tea cups now filled, it was time to delve into the sweets.
The miniature cherry ripe cheesecake was smooth, creamy and as delicious as it was pretty.
The devilishly rich chocolate mousse tart packed immense flavour into a small package but was nicely balanced out by the seasonal Adelaide Hills fruit and custard flan which was surprisingly light and fresh.
We finished off our tea (or coffee in my Grandmother’s case) with some crunchy wattleseed and macadamia shortbread.
While every aspect of the high tea had unquestionable quality and delicious flavour, our mutual favourite dish though was the ever classic scones. Both plain and fruit scones were served, along with sweet Beerenberg Farm strawberry and apricot jam and fluffy freshly whipped cream. But the highlight of the whole afternoon, and what set the high tea apart, was definitely the maple syrup thyme butter. Light, fragrant and deliciously moreish it paired with the scones in perfect harmony.
It was with reluctance that we eventually had to leave the Stamford. It was an utterly lovely Saturday afternoon filled with decadence and deliciousness and made us not only want to return for another high tea experience but to also explore the other great events on offer at Tasting Australia!
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