Afternoon Tea

[rreett]

I love the idea of afternoon tea. What is avalible during this time each afternoon. Especially in the non pastery/sandwich category? IS there anything that does not involve bread?

Thanks!

[LHT28]

You get to choose the tea from the tea box of specialty & regular tea and get a proper teapot with HOT water.
Mostly cakes, cookies, small sandwiches, scones with jam and cream are served from trays or the treat trolley!
Not sure what you are looking for!:confused:

[sandbag7]

The afternoon tea was served every day from 4 to 5 p.m. Scones were available every day, together with a variety of small cakes and sandwiches. Coffee was available for non-tea drinkers. The cakes and sandwiches were of consistently high quality, and are served in the attractive lounge in the front of the ship; this was especially nice on the days when the ship was cruising.

[Jane110]

Other than the tea itself, it's all about the bread and cake and clotted creme - lotso carbs "sandwiched" between lunch and dinner.

I honestly never understood why anyone likes the idea of afternoon tea - tis a mystery to me.

Oceania's scones are some of the best I've ever eaten, so if I'm aboard, I'll go up during teatime and get one to bring back to my room to eat for breakfast the next day, since they don't bake them in the morning.

[Three Amigas]

By definition, traditional afternoon tea involves lots of crustless bread, small pastries, and copious amounts of clotted cream and jam. Oceania's afternoon tea service meets this requirement quite nicely.

I recall that the tea sandwiches had a variety of fillings - salmon, chicken salad, shrimp, egg, cucumber and cream cheese, as well as peanut butter and jelly. I have probably forgotten a few, too. If you need to avoid bread, it's possible to eat only the fillings.

Some of the pastries had whole fruit you could probably remove from the pastry or cream. I seem to remember a wonderful mini cream puff with beautiful raspberries. Also, sugar-free cookies were usually available.

I'm a big fan of afternoon tea and think it's a great way to build in a break in the afternoon. I try to find places for tea whenever I travel. Sometimes a very late afternoon tea is my substitute for an early dinner.

[Jane110]

I recall that the tea sandwiches had a variety of fillings - salmon, chicken salad, shrimp, egg, cucumber and cream cheese, as well as peanut butter and jelly. I have probably forgotten a few, too. If you need to avoid bread, it's possible to eat only the fillings.

A 4" sandwich has about 1/4 ounce of filling in it. It's tough to try and just eat the fillings - though I have done it. However, one does end up with a very messy looking plate of pieces of bread. Not the elegance that Afternoon Tea supposedly represents. LOL!

Some of the pastries had whole fruit you could probably remove from the pastry or cream. I seem to remember a wonderful mini cream puff with beautiful raspberries.

So my plate gets left with 10 full mini-pastry's because I wanted 10 blueberry's? I can't waste food that way. I'd rather just eat a fruit salad if I want an afternoon snack.

Again, I'm not making anyone wrong for liking Afternoon Tea, I'm just trying to understand the attraction.

I'm a big fan of afternoon tea and think it's a great way to build in a break in the afternoon. I try to find places for tea whenever I travel. Sometimes a very late afternoon tea is my substitute for an early dinner.

Yes, that I totally understand and I've done the same thing. That makes alot of sense to me.

But on Oceania dinner is so delightful, I wouldn't have the Afternoon Tea in order to skip dinner.

[esther e]

There's no "rule" that you have to eat anything. We just enjoy a cup of tea and listening to the fabulous string quartet that was playing at the time. For us, it was a nice way to relax after a day touring or sunning.
Esther

[nparmelee]

I love the afternoon tea on board, just a nice break. The scones were very good, but as Esther E said, you don't have to eat anything. For us it's just a little snack in the afternoon and a nice way to spend a little time. We try to have just a scone or just one or two of the sandwiches so we don't fill up too much. When we go to afternoon tea we will usually go to dinner a little bit later.

[Sweeterpea]

I love afternoon tea too. Ahhhh, memories of afternoon tea at the St. Regis in New York :)

I agree, you don't have to fill up. Just have some tea, and maybe a pastry or a couple of finger sandwiches and enjoy the ambiance. Just a much nicer way of relaxing and having a coffee or a tea instead of grabbing it at Starbucks or some other place.

[esther e]

Whenever I drove into NYC, I would make sure to have "tea" at the Plaza. Ummmm
Esther

[rreett]

I was wondering specifically about what is offered b/c I am traveling with someone who has a wheat allergy so all the cute sandwiches & lovely pasteries are a no go.
So is there no "fruit cup" or anything such as that which one can but a yummy glob of clotted cream on? Can you make special requests?

[LHT28]

So is there no "fruit cup" or anything such as that which one can but a yummy glob of clotted cream on? Can you make special requests?

Of course you can. Just ask earlier in the day so they will have something for you.
You might also want to chat with the chef for regular meals...they can adjust your friends meals to accommodate her allergy.

[LHT28]

DH tries not to miss Afternoon tea.:D
We may not have a big lunch and we eat later in the evening.
We do not order everything on the menu so it is not a problem.
And of course we walk it off or at least try to!;)

[BeBeReader]

Yes, afternoon tea, was oh, so nice. I miss it. It is best in London, however. I do like my peppermint herbal tea -- too bad it was not brewed but made from a prosaic tea bag. The venue was a bit crowded at times. As an alternative, you can always order tea, fruit, and cheese from room service and eat it on your veranda.

[BeBeReader]

Yes, afternoon tea, was oh, so nice. I miss it. It is best in London, however. I do like my peppermint herbal tea -- too bad it was not brewed but made from a prosaic tea bag. The venue was a bit crowded at times. As an alternative, you can always order tea, fruit, and cheese from room service and eat it on your veranda.

[Jane110]

I love afternoon tea too. Ahhhh, memories of afternoon tea at the St. Regis in New York :)

I agree, you don't have to fill up. Just have some tea, and maybe a pastry or a couple of finger sandwiches and enjoy the ambiance. Just a much nicer way of relaxing and having a coffee or a tea instead of grabbing it at Starbucks or some other place.

I have an out-of-town friend who drags me to afternoon tea as often as I'll agree to go, whenever she's in NYC.

We went to the St. Regis last month. At $50. per person I'm not just going to drink the tea! That would make the most expensive item at Starbucks look like a down-and-dirty bargain! LOL!!!
Fortunately, I had no dinner plans that evening, so it was my dinner - even though a highly caloric one.

On a cruiseship where you're not paying extra for it, I can do that - just have a cup of tea. But at a hotel where I'm paying anywhere from $25-$50 for "Afternoon Tea" I need more value for my money than that. LOL!!

I'd rather go to the bar for a pretty martini and the complimentary little bar nibbles.....now that's relaxation! ;)

[Andee]

When we're sightseeing, we do not usually stop for lunch. When we get back on the ship in time, we like to go to the afternoon tea to relax, rest our aching legs, and have what we refer to as a tide-me-over snack, as dinner is still several hours away. A cup of tea, a couple of cookies, background music, and a view of the port we're just enjoyed. Lovely.

Other days, we order fruit and cheese in our cabin, and have a bottle of local wine we're bought in port. That's lovely, too.

[Sweeterpea]

Jane, totally agree with you on that one!

It's all about the experience for sure. It was lovely and if in NYC, everyone must do it once. We chose to have it as an early dinner, as our waiter kept bringing in the food, kind man that he was:D If anyone is considering it, make sure to pick the Plum tea.

Plus, from the front doors, we watched them filming the movie "The Devil Wears Prada"; caught a glimpse of Meryl and Anne.

[ClaudiaF]

wrote in part:
I honestly never understood why anyone likes the idea of afternoon tea - tis a mystery to me................................................ .....................
.................................................. .....................
and then wrote:

"Oceania's scones are some of the best I've ever eaten, ".............

Jane, you answered your own question!:D You know its all about that clotted cream!...They are the best.
Infact ,we all like them so much when the ship has run out at tea time..we insist they bake us more! Don't we?:rolleyes:

[Sweeterpea]

So these amazing scones are available only at afternoon tea? Could our butler get some if we wanted them at other times? (ohhh, I like saying that.. "our butler")