afternoon tea

The weather is finally cooler, so it’s definitely chocolate season.

Saw this afternoon tea (AT) on IG and since I don’t have friends nearby, asked Satoshi if he would go with me

This AT runs from September 4 until November 20 in the Lobby Bar at The Tokyo Edition Toranomon.

Minimal Chocolates which I tried pre-pandemic, collaborated with Tokyo Edition Toranomon and came out with this chocolate AT.

The AT is a two hour affair that started off with a glass of Ruinart Blancs des Blanc champagne, a fruity yet dry champagne

Tasting of tablets, NUTTY (75%), FRUITY (65%) & SAVORY (73%)

These chocolates would be used throughout the AT

Let's start!

Savory: smoked duck foccacia orange peel, sweet potato potage, marinated salmon toast, hogyoku egg quiche, egg sandwich

Sweet: gateau chocolate prime, madagascar chocolate mousse, SAVORY chocolate cake, NUTTY chocolate canele, FRUITY & cacao pulp chocolate mizuyokan

Scones: chocolate & plain scones with chocolate dip & clotted cream

If you wanted, you could ask for more scones...we were so full!

You could order teas or coffees off of their menu (forgot to take a photo of the choices) until they called for last orders.

I had an espresso and coffee, Satoshi had coffee and a caffe latte

The view of Tokyo Tower and the city was nice despite the rain.

Everything was delicious.

The chocolate mizuyokan was different but delicious, the cacao pulp was like pear puree.

It was Satoshi's first AT and I think he enjoyed himself.

I'm glad we tried this.

Lobby Bar Tokyo Edition Toranomon

Kamiya Trust Tower 31F

4-1-1 Toranomon

Minato, Tokyo

ps more photos here

the veranda

Got together with BFF and S for high tea at The Veranda. We were seated looking out at the ocean, it was really nice.

The waiter brought out their selection of teas and let us smell each one as he explained them.

I chose a white tea that was infused with peach. Loved the aroma of this.

We were also served a cup of white bean and garlic soup. I liked this because it wasn't overly garlicky.

Then came the finger sandwiches--can't remember what he said but they were all very good!

Chocolate Macadamia cookies and cream puffs--wished they had filled the cream puffs with custard instead of whipped pastry cream.

Mango scones with devonshire cream and mango curd....mmm!

Mango cake with a rich mango sauce and fruit tart...I liked the mango cake over the tart.

Lemongrass sorbet to cleanse the palate.

It was a gorgeous day, lots of chatting...perfect to share with friends.

afternoon tea at kahala

Today, BFF and I went to the Kahala Hotel & Resort. This year, we are celebrating milestone birthdays, so we decided to treat ourselves to the Afternoon Tea service at the Veranda.

We both got the Classic Tea Service (US$28 + tax). This includes a lot of different items plus your choice of Mariage Frères Tea. I was first introduced to Mariage Frères by another blogger, whose blog as of 2012 is no longer, and now love their teas. I decided to choose a "flavor" that I can't find in Japan...Bouddha Bleu, a green tea sprinkled with blue cornflowers. The fragrance is light and very relaxing. BFF chose the Wedding Imperial, a golden Assam kissed with a hint of chocolate and caramel. With a splash of milk, she really enjoyed this one.

On the top tier, was the hotel's scones--cranberry scones and chocolate chip scones. Since BFF bakes, she wasn't impressed by these. Actually they reminded us of the local stone cookies. Kind of dense and more like cookies.

The middle tier had the "traditional" high tea fair--Goat cheese and apple crostini (cheese from Maui's Surfing Goat Dairy), Maui Onion tart (caramelized onions, fresh thyme on a savory pastry), Confit of Tuna Sandwich (with fresh basil mayo and lemon), Smoke salmon mousse (piped into a cucumber cup topped with tobiko)

And the bottom tier had several tea treats--Pavlova tartlet (passion fruit cream, meringue & fresh fruits), Mai Tai Eclair (pastry shell filled pineapple & rum cream then dipped in chocolate), Strawberry Shortcake (a light fluffy cake filled with strawberry jam and cream) and Guava Linzer (a hazelnut shortbread filled with guava marmalade).

We really enjoyed the bottom two layers and the time we spent there. (Thanks BFF!)

Kahala Hotel & Resort
5000 Kahala Avenue
Honolulu, Oahu
Phone: 808.739.8888