I had the honour to attend a fancy afternoon tea with my bff last weekend at the iconic Fairmont Royal York Hotel. My first experience high-teaing. Quality pastries, superb service, elegant decor, comfy environment, a perfect afternoon to catch up with a friend. I felt like a total noob for this, a  noob coming from a suburban town to a fancy tea in downtown Toronto. At least this gave me an idea of how the Brits spend their afternoon. The whole tea experience lasted approximately 2 hours long. And boy, was I glad that I came with an empty stomach. I was quite full by the end of it.

The afternoon tea is available on every Saturday and Sunday in the Library Bar at Fairmont Royal York. Tea is served on fine china along with a 3-tiered platter of hand-crafted sandwiches and fine pastries.


We started off with selecting our own cup of tea from their loose leaf tea selections. I normally don't drink tea but I can't really say I've enjoyed afternoon tea without actually trying their tea right?  My tea combines flavours of blueberries, blackberries and raspberries with a sweet and fruity taste.

Our first bite was this English crumpet with fresh berries topped with honey that came from their own beehive! Who knew that Royal York owns a rooftop apiary and herb garden? Apparently, they've partnered with Toronto Beekeepers Cooperative and FoodShare to provide their hotel guests with fresh local products in a sustainable way. What a great initiative and fresh honey to start off our tea!



Second to our table was this plate of hand-crafted sandwiches. Various tomatoes with Mozzarella on baquette, roasted turkey with cucumber & apple cider mayo sandwich, Pears, goat cheese, balsamic berry with greens on baquette, smoked salmon with onions sandwich. My favourite this round was surprisingly the tomatoes on a baquette.



And of course, what I had been waiting for, the pastry platter! I seriously didn't know where to start. But since the swan puffs looked too pretty to eat, I saved them for last.


Their freshly baked scones with Devonshire cream were delicious. This was my first time trying a scone so I didn't know what to expect. At a glance, the scones looked a bit dry. But when I took a bite from it, the inside was so soft and moist!


We ate our way to the middle tier  which consisted of Lemon Almond slices, mincemeat tart, Honey white chocolate madeline's, flourless cranberry chocolate cake. My friend called the chocolate cake, "the cake of excellence with a dash of awesomeness". And there was a reason for it. The cake melts entirely in your mouth! The cherries on top was a nice touch and balanced off the sweetness with a fruity flavour. My favourite though, was the lemon almond slices. The slices looked ordinary but they were fresh and "citrusy". The tiny bits added a crunchy texture to the dessert. I devoured this in a second.



We finally made it all the way to the pastry swans but we were both already stuffed. Thankfully, the pastry swans were light. During this experience I learned that tea was really crucial to help digest in between plates and clear off my palette before another dessert. And did you know that I was allowed to doggy bag a few pieces extra home? Score!



The Library Bar
Fairmont Royal York
100 Front Street W
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M5J 1E3
(416) 860-5004