Tea for Two

Following all the drama last week with my knee, I needed a bit of a break, especially from all the essays and tests that I was busy marking, so HOMSI and I headed off to the Hyatt Hotel in Rosebank for high tea on Saturday afternoon. I had gone to the morning tea which the hotel had hosted for Mother's Day a couple of months ago, and had won a gift voucher for 2 for tea. I hadn't really had a chance to go in the last few months, and I was debating whether to take my mom or HOMSI. The decision was kind of made for me in the last few weeks, as my dad has been ill and my mom is reluctant to leave him at home by himself.

So, on Saturday afternoon, at about 2:30, we arrived at the Hyatt. I had dressed up a little (smart pants, a pretty top and a pair of flat sandals which could accommodate the cankle that I'd ended up with from the knee incident - I had clearly bandaged the knee so tightly that my calf, ankle and foot had all swollen up enormously) and (much to my amazement), HOMSI had forgone his usual shorts+t-shirt+running shoes outfit for his nice jeans (the ones that don't have ink stains on from work) and a smartish shirt. Okay, I will admit that I threatened him before he arrived and told him that I would be very upset if he wore shorts!

We were seated inside, with a view of the patio and fountains, and ordered our drinks - tea for me and pineapple juice for HOMSI. We were just about the only people there, and sat and watched the buffet table being set up outside while we started on our drinks. My tea situation proved to be a little more challenging than the average cup of tea - this being high tea, there were tea leaves in the teapot which I had to strain out using a little strainer and then had to add more hot water as well. It was a bit like a science experiment! The buffet table was almost fully completed by this time, but we were a little too shy to be the first people to approach it (which is a problem when you're really the only people there!). We sat and watched, however, as a very naughty sparrow inched its way towards the table, broke off a piece of quiche, flew about 2m and then sat under the table to eat its prize. The elderly couple who were sitting nearby were just as amused by this. We did decide though that we should probably go and investigate the food because any more birds got any ideas! The pastry chef, Bastian, met us at the table and told us what each of the dishes were (Bastian is from Germany and very enthusiastic about his food - and should be, because it's all utterly delicious! My mom and I have been to 2 other events that he's catered, and if it's possible to be fans of a chef, we are!). There was the quiche, sandwiches, bruschetta, fruit kebabs, a blueberry and custard tart, homemade marshmallows, chocolate and fudge brownies, a strawberry and custard tart, creme brulee, biscuits, chocolate mousse squares, strawberry smoothies and a cheesecake. And, if you were still hungry, Bastian could make you a waffle! HOMSI and I just kind of stared in shock at all this food and wondered how we would ever be able to taste everything! We started with the chocolate mousse squares, the brownies and the strawberry tart (which HOMSI fell in love with). I tried a spoonful of HOMSI's creme brulee, which was about all I could manage after all that sweet stuff, and then we moved onto the savouries. Everything was absolutely delicious and perfectly made. We didn't even almost manage to try everything, and very much wished that we could go for a walk around Rosebank and then come back for seconds. Through all of this, the cellist from the JPO was playing in the background and it was just a beautiful setting.

My favourite part (aside from not having to pay for anything because of the gift voucher) was HOMSI, because as soon as his pineapple juice arrived and the cellist started playing, he immediately said "We should do this again sometime!". I always wondered if my mom and I made too big a fuss about the amazing food and that HOMSI would suffer through the whole thing, but he has clearly been converted to posh high tea - if only because we still have another 40% of the buffet table to try!

PS - the only downside to the whole experience was having tea and toast with cheesespread on for tea on Sunday and thinking about all the amazing food that was sitting on that table. Yes, I'm having trouble adjusting to non-hotel food.