They started a new menu in October called the Royal Afternoon Tea. I believe they have a new chef who used to be a chef for the Queen herself and the menu is inspired by favourites of the royal family. Maybe this makes it more authentic, but I thought the food could have been better. The sandwiches were pretty disappointing overall, but some of the desserts were good. Some highlights and disappointments:
TEA
The have a few new tea blends for the new menu. I chose Organic Cream Earl, which was described as a creamy earl grey. It was pretty true to its description.
SANDWICHES
Potted shrimp - I enjoyed this but it was pretty heavy. Only suggestion I have is to provide more Melba toast. There was 1 piece per person but way more potted shrimp... Also the menu says it should be served with warm Melba toast so the butter would melt. Ours was cold so that didn't happen... still enjoyable though
Coronation chicken - this sandwich was creamy and flavourful. My favourite sandwich
Smoked Scottish salmon gravadlax with suedoise sauce - did not taste any suedoise sauce. Literally a thin piece of smoked salmon sandwiched between two pieces of bread. Disappointing.
PASTRIES
Scones - I was a little disappointed with the scones. It was the tiniest scone I'd ever seen and you only get 1 per person. It was pretty average. Not as buttery or fluffy as scones I've had elsewhere.
Battenberg cake - this was my favourite pastry. I love the marzipan that coats the cake. It's just so pretty and pink!
Vanilla bean shortbread - this tasted more like a sugar cookie than shortbread. But hey, I like sugar cookies so fine by me!
Raspberry tartlet - this was too sour for my taste and the crust was mushy. Disappointing because I typically enjoy tarts.
Chocolate biscuit cake - the chocolate was very rich. Definitely needed the tea to wash it down.
Chocolate cake? - we had 2 chocolate cakes and one doesn't seem to be on the menu so not sure what this second is. I liked this one more than the chocolate biscuit cake because it wasn't as heavy and had more "cake" texture to it
Service was quite slow when I went but they were nice enough to not charge us because of it. I made a reservation for noon and want served until after 1pm. Overall, I would go here once for the experience, but not again because I didn't like the food enough to pay $55 for it.