Mr. Hamilton's Tea Room at Painshill Park, Surrey - A Tea Place Review

As far as tea rooms go, there really is nothing special about Mr. Hamilton's. It will never win any awards for cuteness and you wont find meticulous hand decorated delicacies; in fact it's really not a tea room at all. I'd call it a cafe or even maybe a kiosk. So why am I bothering to write about this place?

It's simple, read on...

Mr. Hamilton's Tea Room is located within the grounds of what we in Australia would call a Botanic Garden or Botanic Park. Painshill Park in Cobham, Surrey is a giant landscaped park that was built in the mid 1700's. This park was built before the First Fleet landed in Australia, just to give you some perspective on its age. Built by nobleman Charles Hamilton, Painshill's landscape architecture was said to be inspired by Renaissance artworks. This park contains man made lakes, wooded areas and 'follies'. Now I'm not expert on the 'folly' but I'd say it's just that, a bit of a novelty. For example there is a recreated ruined abbey and a man made grotto. Sadly we didn't get to see the grotto, it was closed for Santa Claus! This park was for the gentry, the noble people. It was where they walked and socialised, away from the rest of the 'normal' people. Oddly enough the parks Royal Patron is Prince Charles. What is it with me and Charles lately? You can read about my encounters with the prince here and here.

 

We ended up at Painshill as we were visiting this lovely old church in the next village over, Stoke D'Abernon. What an adventure that was. Little did we know that the church and graveyard have been engulfed into the grounds of a posh private school and we just happened to time our visit at the end of the school day. It was chaos! Now it's a bit random to just visit a little old church because lets face it, there are tens of thousands of little old churches in England. What makes this church special was the fact that it is the last recorded, or should that be first recorded, place that my ancestors can be traced back to. A christening record from the very early 1800's states that my 6x Great Grandfather Henry was christened here. He later went on to migrate to Australia and he and his family were responsible for the early establishment of Melbourne's suburb of Brighton. There is even a plaque dedicated to them. They owned the land around where Chadstone Shopping Centre is now located. I knew there was some other reason that I felt so connected to that shopping centre! I scoured the graves but sadly there were no graves with my family's surname that I could find. Some headstones were so old you could no longer read them.

St. Mary's Church, Stoke D'Abernon

When it was decided we were going to England the decision was made that this time I wanted to get out of London and do a little of my own 'Who Do You Think You Are'. For all my research this church and that Christening was as far back as I could go. It would appear that prior to this record keeping was scant. I found it rather difficult finding a marriage record for his parents and couldn't find any record of his mother. On the other hand, there appeared to be a rather well to do big shot with my 7x Great Grandfather's name living in Guildford, a larger town about a 30 minute car drive away, however considering they didn't have cars it would have made it a longer journey. He however had a wife that was accounted for and some children. It did cross my mind that maybe Henry was born from an illegitimate relationship, however with no evidence I couldn't do more than speculate. Perhaps if I had a team of historians I might have had a different story to tell.

So, that brings me back to Painshill. I wanted to visit the area and this park particularly as it would have been there when my ancestors were. They would likely never have visited Painshill as my ancestors were just normal everyday run of the mill people. If only they had known that for a tidy sum they could purchased a piece of Scotland on the internet and then been called Lord or Lady. Oh well, you win some, you lose some!

Driving through the area and looking at the houses and buildings, especially along the main street was really a funny feeling as I knew that Henry had been here. He might have walked past that house or that shop a hundred times and here I was 200 years later having travelled to the other side of the world standing there too. I felt strangely connected in a eerie kind of way.

Back to Painshill and Mr. Hamilton's Tea Room. We arrived at the park a little early, about half an hour before opening time and struck up a conversation with one of the volunteers as we were waiting. She asked if we had come far for our visit today and I said 'yes, Australia'. She was shocked so I explained the story. She was so kind as to let us enter the park early. We were very thankful. It's hard to describe to a British person just how an incredible experience walking through this park was. Parts of the lake were frozen and there were squirrels running everywhere. I guess to a non Australian a good comparison of feeling might be seeing wild kangaroos on a pristine white sandy beach. I only wish we'd had more time to wander and that we'd been able to access more. Lots of the paths were terribly muddy and I wasn't exactly shod for that. If I'd had some wellies we'd have been set.

We popped into the well situated tea room and thankfully amongst their range of nibbles they had some pre-packaged gluten free biscuits. I ordered some chamomile tea and was surprised to get a tea pot. The cafe would be lovely in warmer weather with the doors open onto the courtyard and the park. So whilst the tea room on its own was nothing too special the park and what this area meant to me was. For this reason I would gladly return.

For more information on Painshill please visit their website

The Chelsea Teapot: A Tea Place Review

It’s been a while now since I’ve been in the UK however haven’t even finished writing all my tea place reviews. There were some places I decided to simply not write about however The Chelsea Teapot was not one of them!

We had been having an incredible time in London, indeed it is one of my favourite places to be. The night before our walk down the King’s Road we set out to Leicester Square where we were squeezed into a crowd and stood waiting for close to two hours. The temperature dropped to a level that would frighten most Australians and then I couldn’t feel my toes; I was even wearing my snow socks! My lovely husband suggested it was time to go however I wanted to stay for just a few more minutes and I’m glad we stuck it out as this happened…

Now, many people in London seem to find this ‘normal’ however before this time it is likely that the most famous person I ever had an encounter with was a local news reader. Now I was rubbing shoulders with Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter and Hugh Jackman at the world premiere of Les Miserables. I have to say there were some crazies in that crowd. A group of young girls were standing next to me at the fence consistently shoving me and shouting ‘who’s that!’ I’m not really sure why they were there! After I had a selfie with Helena Bonham Carter they said to me, ‘who was that!?’ (but you have to imagine it in a rather ocker British accent). Then they continued on to ask who Stephen Fry and Isla Fisher were. It was at this point that I felt old and turned to my husband who stuck his hand out and dragged me through the crowd to the tube. I was cold and tired.

The next morning I was in need of some tea and The Chelsea Teapot did not disappoint. I must confess that I found this gorgeous little tea room on Google. Unfortunately I am gluten intolerant and whenever I go anywhere I tend to Google ‘gluten free’ followed by the suburb or area I will be in. One of the places that popped up in Kensington and Chelsea was this tea room. That morning I wanted to do some shopping so we set off on foot to the King’s Road when I remembered that a tea room in that locale had popped up on my gluten free search. After the purchase of several, ok dozens of pairs of shoes we found The Teapot and weren’t disappointed. It really stands out with its colourful exterior on what is otherwise a fairly dull stretch of road.

Image courtesy of The Chelsea Teapot website

This tea room is cute with its pastel colourings and vintage shabby chic interiors. I loved the church pew bench seat and mismatched but coordinating chairs. Aside from a lovely range of gluten free cupcakes, of which I selected a beautifully decorated red velvet, they also had some other sweet treats on offer; my worn out husband enjoyed a lovely piece of apple pie. Downstairs, aside from a well kept bathroom it looked like they had a small function area.

I enjoyed a lovely refreshing chamomile tea from a pretty cup and saucer and appreciated the lovely cutlery. I guess if I had to describe this tea place it would be something like modern vintage, it would be what you might expect if you collided my ideas of a tea room with those of my Nana. The result really is somewhere cute and cosy and perhaps even a little posh with friendly service and the most amazing gluten free cupcakes! I even purchased another to take home with me as a snack for later. By the looks of it they also sell lots of tea paraphernalia too.

I’m glad we visited this tea room and if you are in the area then I recommend a visit!

The Verdict

Tea Place: The Chelsea Teapot, King’s Road, Chelsea, London, UK

Contact: Website, Facebook

Rating: 4/5

Comment: A cute interior and lovely gluten free cakes however, like most London shops it was a little tight inside so there wasn’t a lot of privacy however the nice range of teas and treats on offer makes up for that.

I visited in December 2012.

Regency Tea Rooms, Bath: A Tea Place Review

On a recent trip to England we made our first visit to the city of Bath. This wasn't our first time to England however it was our first time to Bath. I'd always wanted to visit even since I was in high school. You see, there was this poster of the Roman Baths in one of my English rooms and I would often find myself staring at it in a dreamy haze while my mind would go to some other place. I wasn't always task focused! I used to think to myself, 'one day I'm going to go there' and that nippy December morning I did. The Roman Baths were even more interesting than I had imagined. If like me you don't know anything about them then I highly recommend you go visit the complex, as it's not just that one big rectangular pool as we soon found out. They had massage rooms; they sure knew how to live!

Anyhow, whilst we were in Bath we visited the Jane Austen Centre and Regency Tea Rooms. I was most unimpressed with our tour of the centre. Our guide spoke to us like we were five years old and proceeded by telling us just how much Jane hated Bath. If Jane hated Bath so much then why is it the centre of the Jane Austen world?!

The good news however is that the Regency Tea Rooms were lovely and the service was impeccable. Let me start by saying they are small as you can probably see in the photo. I'd guess that capacity would be around 20 people however I think this only adds to the atmosphere.

One of this things that admired me the most about this tea room was the range of gluten free menu options. I opted for 'Tea with the Austen's' which consisted of some sandwiches, cake and tea whilst my husband went for some scones with a variety of jams and clotted cream. Maybe it's because we have a lack of traditional style tea rooms in Australia but we had never seen clotted cream before, it rather looked like a huge scoop of ice cream but was very buttery. Usually we get whipped cream with scones. I opted for onion and cheese sandwiches, something I'd never had before either and I also received a lovely huge slice of gluten free ginger cake. They have a variety of teas however I chose the Jane Austen blend. This black China tea blend was similar to that available during Austen's time when the majority of tea was imported from China.

Overall, the tea rooms were lovely for a tea lover and for someone who has never experienced something that I would think of as being a traditional style afternoon tea. The service was great, the food was lovely and fresh and the tea was brewed to perfection. These tea rooms are a bit of a tourist trap and in other online reviews there are complaints that it's too pricey however for what it was, an experience I'll never have again, I thought the price was right on the mark.

The Verdict

Tea Place: Regency Tea Rooms, Bath, United Kingdom

Contact: Website

Rating: 5/5

Comment: When you are a tourist, be a tourist. A petite tea room located on the top floor of a regency terrace house in Bath. Lovely menu option including gluten free food. Nice varieties of tea including blends similar to those available in Regency times.

The Aviary Dessert Kitchen: A Tea Place Review

Over the last 12-18 months the popularity of dessert cafes has risen steadily, probably in direct correlation to the supply. These usually cute, quirky places seem to pop up over night and develop cult like followings. Some are better that others though and The Aviary on Norwood Parade, Adelaide is now high on my list of places to go for a sweet treat and a delightful cup of tea.

First, lets talk about the tea. One of the things I love about this place is the fact they use teas by Australian company Tea Tonic. Tea Tonic produce divine herbal, fruit and green teas. Stay tuned for future tea reviews of Tea Tonic teas. These teas are predominantly organic to suit the ever growing demand for organics in this country and are actually blended by a naturopath. They claim to be Australia's healthiest teas.

My dining buddy and I ordered and shared a pot of Apple Tree Tea. This refreshing fruity blend is predominantly apple pieces. So keen to try to deliciously scented brew was my buddy, the tea was poured before it had been given enough time to brew. Fruits and herbal teas need a little longer than black and green teas for the flavours to truly shine. Regardless, this was still such a refreshing treat. I loved that they presented our tea in a green pot with green cups.

In addition to Tea Tonic they also stock a selection of Marriage Fr`eres teas, boutique teas imported from France. This covers you more than well if you are searching for a nice black tea or a premium green tea.

The Aviary, like most dessert cafes has a seasonal menu and they introduce new items on a regular basis. What appealed to me most was the fact that they also clearly indicate which of their items are gluten friendly (GF) or diary free, and there were plenty of choices. Now I know GF means gluten free but like most places as they have gluten containing products in their kitchen they can't guarantee there won't be cross contamination but they try their best. This is why I use the term gluten friendly! They are happy to have gluten intolerant diners and accommodate them! Their current menu can be found on their website.

I ordered the 'a-lychee in wonderland'. The floral lychee, raspberry and vanilla jelly, macaron ‘mushroom’ and turkish delight were served with a tangy but refreshing mangosteen sorbet and tufts of persian fairy floss. It was to die for. No photo I could take of this adorable presentation would do it justice. The flavours all came together so well. This was the first time I had eaten pashmak, persian fairy floss, and it really was nice. It had a soft, melt in your mouth texture, unlike the grainy clumps you get with regular fairy floss. A special touch was the inclusion of a sprinkle of popping candy through the pieces of meringue and turkish delight. Trust me, it tasted even better than it looked, a perfect balance of textures and flavours.

My dessert buddy ordered the Chocolate Pecking Plate which was a tasting plate of flour-less chocolate cake, fresh belgian waffle with chocolate sauce and a chocolate raspberry mousse pot. There is no photo of this one because it was gone before the camera was ready! The signature dessert here is the Macaron Flower Pot and although we didn't try one, they certainly looked delicious.

This is such a popular place and it's easy to see why. Not only is the food to die for, the surroundings are cute and the service is friendly, efficient and attentive - that is something that is unfortunately becoming less common these days. If you want to visit I strongly recommend giving them a call and booking a table, the phone number is on the website.

The Verdict

Tea Place: The Aviary Dessert Kitchen. Norwood Parade, Adelaide, Australia

Rating: 5/5

Comment: A great range of teas to complement every delicious menu item. Great service and a great atmosphere. Check the website for the latest menu and make sure you call to book a table.

Contact: The Aviary Dessert Kitchen Website, The Aviary Dessert Kitchen on Facebook