I don’t know whether it’s my white trash upbringing trying to deny my roots, or if it’s an appreciation for the finer things in life, or if it’s a girly desire to play dress up with dollies and such, but I LOVE Afternoon (or High) Tea. LOVE IT!
There are few things in life that float my boat or burn my wickie or what have you, but this High Tea thing is one of them. I’m an Anglophile, you see, so that’s probably part of it. I went to England in 1990 for the first time and stayed with people who just stopped dead in their tracks around 3 or 4pm to have tea and nosh on things.
They called them biscuits, these things that came with the tea, so I was expecting these flat dry crunchies to taste like crackers, but oh my lord in heaven, they tasted just like cookies! Have you ever had a Hob Nob?
When I was a kid, I was never allowed to have sweet junk food after school. “You’ll spoil your appetite,” my Brit-hating mother would explain. I never had Twinkies in my lunchbox either. I was sugar-deprived and always ALWAYS spent my allowance on candy.
You know, I joke about being old and I’m no spring chicken, but I think I’m still kicking pretty good until right now as I confess that my allowance was a whopping 35 cents per week at one point. It’s like I’m talking about growing up during The Depression.
So anyway, being an Anglophile and having an addiction to carbs akin to heroin, it doesn’t get much better than High Tea at a swanky hotel. And what ordinary Brits have at home every day for mere shillings, Americans can go to an expensive hotel and experience the same thing for anywhere from twenty-five to fifty bucks. How can you not pass that up?
I have this friend, Thomas, who has a blog called 101 Things in 1001 Days. He has this list. Of 101 things. That he wants to complete in 1001 days. He lives in New York and I was coming to New York for a blogging conference this past July and I saw his list and cried out with joy when I read Item #4 on his list:
4. Take an afternoon off of work to have high tea at a New York Hotel.
OhMyGodOhMyGodOhMyGod!! And it wasn’t crossed off yet! I immediately jumped on my keyboard and begged and pleaded and asked if I could do that with him when I came to New York. Could I be…..the one?
We hadn’t met in real life yet, so if ever there was a time for him to hesitate meeting a spastic freak who yells while begging for a date, it was then.
He picked the place and I swooned when he told me. Are you ready for this? Are you sure you’re ready for this? The Plaza! (can I get a squee?) We were going to have afternoon tea at The Plaza. Oh, I wanted to die right there. Except that I wanted tea first. And biscuits.
Thomas caught my eye a long time ago as one of the funnier people out there on the internet and he’s also a theater nerd so when I’ve gone to New York in the past I always ask him for recommendations. We’d tried meeting up before, but never connected and now we were going to finally meet at the totally posh Plaza.
Here’s a picture that captures this momentous occasion. Can we please have a moment of silence as we contemplate the awesomeness that is Afternoon Tea at The Plaza…
It was a wonderful experience and Thomas was just plain fabulous. I could totally fall in love with him. If he wasn’t engaged and I wasn’t married and he wasn’t gay and we didn’t live 3000 miles apart, I’m sure it would totally work out between us.
Speaking of Thomas being engaged, he has entered a “Love is in the Air” contest to win a wedding on a plane to Sweden with the reception held at the ICEHOTEL and you simply must vote for him because he’s awesome and it’s easy to vote. Just a click, no registration or anything.
Just go to the Thomas and David Boarding Pass page. When the boarding pass appears, click on it to “tear it”. Tearing the boarding pass is your vote. You can vote once a day until October 10.
If you click on Popular, it shows what place they’re in. At press time, he’s in 4th place so far!
How “cool” would that be to get married in the air and whoop it up in an Ice Hotel in Sweden? And stay in a room like this one called “Rest in the Nest”?
Photo Source: Flickr
Oh, and by the way… Thomas’ list of 101 things? Number 4 looks like this now:
Link to Thomas and David Boarding Pass page.
If your browser doesn’t work for the above link go to the vote for Thomas and David to win the “Love is in the Air” contest and find Thomas and David in the seat in the 2nd row, left-hand side and click that to bring up the boarding pass.
and tell your friends! (You can use the SHARE button in the toolbar at the bottom).
All sorts of awesome works for this Yank! And thank you so much for voting!
Here in England we don’t have English Tea Rooms. Just Tea Rooms. This was all sorts of awesome (did I say that right?) and Thomas, you get another vote from me!
Jeebus! I walk away for 10 hours and you two have already usurped both me and David?
Of course you realize….this…..means war. The room for which David and I have already built. We call it the “Love is in the War Room”. Which is kind of lame, I know, but it’s a working title that will evolve over time.
Yes, I believe the one cucumber sandwich was snarfed down (in a totally posh way, of course) by Thomas.
Okay. But you’re breaking the news to David.
I’ll wait till after we get back from our trip.
ZOMG! I think we are destined to be lovers. Let’s not allow pesky sexual orientation or marital vows to get in our way. I will seal our future with a vote to your “Love Is in the Air” boarding pass (of course, you will be taking me). Can’t wait! XO
Dang! I’ve never been called a hunk before. Seriously. It has NEVER happened. Until now. That is the magic of NGIP. Anything can happen at any given moment.
By the way, I am a rabid fan of your blog. Seriously.
Hobnobs at the reception! Yay!
were there cucumber sandwiches? I think you need cucumber sandwiches…
Thomas is a serious hunk and I LOVE HOB NOBS!
My mom and I used to go to tea in downtown Chicago. Usually after an opera or ballet. I love it, but I always feel they could give you more food. But it is a lovely tradition.
Yay! Thomas – you’re flying me over from London, right? I’ll bring a packet of Hobnobs!
I love the idea of tea. I wish we had High Tea ( the real high part would be fun too but probably not what they meant) and Siesta. Maybe not on the same day because we wouldn’t get anything done but every other day. We take ourselves way too seriously in this country, we need to chillax a bit and have more of the finer things in life.
And I voted for Thomas, I hope he wins that would be soooo cool.
I hope we win, too! That would be cool! But not as cool as a total stranger who voted for us, just because it was suggested, here. So…THANKS!
And while we’re at it, let’s look into that 6 weeks of vacation every year thing too.
Came over from Blogfrog and as a fellow sugar/carb junkie, I am envious of that completely awesome tiered tray of sweet delights.
Don’t be envious. Get thee to a tea room – STAT!
We recently took my mother to an Afternoon Tea for her 70th birthday in Waltham, Mass. It was great! Maybe “having tea” makes us feel sophisticated…the Brits must really think we are whacked since it is standard procedure over there!
The Plaza…WOW! Won’t you be awfully spoiled now?
The British always seem more sophisticated. In everything! They’d make farting seem like first class behavior. If they ever did it, that is.
So when you took your mother for tea, did you stick your pinky finger out whilst sipping?
Right – next time you are in London I’m going to organise a High Tea Tour for you – 7 days, 7 venues (works out at about 30 sandwiches, 15 scones 5 gallons of tea and at least 50 of those dinky little iced cakes). We can get T-shirts made, baseball caps, release a DVD… oh the possibilities are endless!
I’m off to vote for your mate now (and if he and his partner win, I really think they should let you go along to Sweden too – you can be in charge of the tea) and to dunk a few Hobnobs in my brew.
Thanks for voting for us! I think if we win, we should invite all NGIP readers to attend. I don’t know if the airline will spring for that, though…
Di, you’re killing me. KILLING ME, I say!
I look forward to drinking 5 gallons of tea with you the next time I’m in London. And you all know each other, right? So you can introduce me to David Tennant and your other cronies?
Of course I can!
Dr Who/Daleks/Davros/David Tennant (although we are rather liking Matt Smith in our household now) – they are but a page in my over-stuffed address book.
(btw David is a Lapsang Souchong man)
Hi Margaret,
Afternoon tea when you’re in LA the next time sounds great. We have a
few options– The Peninsula and the new Montage Hotel also have Tea.
It would be a real treat.
I strolled through The Plaza last month– In my next life I want to
live there 🙂
Hope you’re in LA soon.
joanna
thefiftyfactor@gmail.com
Have you seen http://www.thefiftyfactor.com
Hurray for high tea – so glad you got to go, sounds and looks like quite an experience. I am thinking about taking the family to Whistler for Thanksgiving and I know the Fairmont Chateau Whistler has a high tea daily – or at least they used to. I may just have to check it out for the snacks! 🙂
Mmmmm, OK that’s it. I’m hopping on a plane to England today.
🙂
I assume you know that after the latest renovations that people do indeed live at The Plaza. Part of the hotel went condo.
How about when I come down to L.A., you and I do tea somewhere. The Four Seasons in Beverly Hills does it, unless you know of another place.
Lots of choices on the tea. They have black teas, such as Earl Grey, or exotic sounding teas I can’t even remember. You can often get herbal teas or jasmine teas or gosh – all kinds!
Not sure if you’ll be able see this, it’s a little small, but it’s a picture (allegedly) of the Plaza Tea menu.
http://whatscookingamerica.net/EllenEaston/PlazaTea/PlazaTeaMenu.jpg
58 comments! I expect they said it all. Scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam are what we have for ‘tea’ when we’tre in the UK. Toasted teacakes are good too, hot so that the butter melts….
If only we could live at The Plaza and have High Tea all the time– Ahhhh. I love that place. It looks like you two had a great time.
The contest is fabulous! I just voted. I hope Thomas & David win.
Cheers, jj
Thank you for voting for us! I owe you tea!
I happen to be English, living in California, and lurve tea. Just love it. When I go home, I just eat cake and drink tea. I’m in heaven. You’ve made me homesick 🙂
Looks like you had a grand time. I may have to try that some day. What kind of tea do they serve?
Thanks for voting for us! If we win the trip, I will chip out part of the wall, put it in a ziploc bag and send it to you!
Thank you, Lisa!
Yes you must! And take pictures! And tell us about it!
ACK!!!
Tea! I’ve never been to England in this life, but I will occasionally treat myself to a high tea. Your Tea looks lovely. The treats and the company. Now I’m going to go click things so Thomas and David can go to the Ice Hotel.
Okay. Fine. But it’s off-list, so I’m going to do it on my newer, lamer blog.
Thank you for voting for us!
And let me ask you, when you worked at the tea room, was there ever a moment when someone lifted up their shirt to pick at a scab on their torso, because that totally happened when Margaret and I had tea. She didn’t mention that part of it.
That’s because ‘High Tea’ is really sandwiches followed by tea and cakes. Years ago, we would have high tea on a Sunday evening. It was an important part of family life but, sadly all those things have disappeared from everyday living now. Tea and biscuits is far more basic, eaten whenever you feel like it, and given to guests when they pop by. Here endeth the lesson on high tea and biscuits 😉
The high tea looks fabulous! Congrats on the two of you meeting up and Thomas being able to cross this off his list!! We have a place here in New Mexico called The St. Joseph’s Tea Room. That is all they do is serve high tea!! I must give it a try!!!
Hugs
SueAnn
OMG – you WORKED in an English Tea Room? Did you get to act all British and snobby and stuff? Too awesome!
This post is freakin’ faaaaabulous!
YOU. CRACK. ME. UP.
“being an Anglophile and having an addiction to carbs akin to heroin…”
Bwhahahahahahahaha!
Hey listen, I love High Tea too! In fact, (you’re not going to believe this) but I use to work as a waiter at an English Tea Room in Florida. It was there that I learned all about High Tea. It was a great job!
Love the photo of you and Thomas! And I am so jealous because in all the years I lived in NYC, I’ve never experienced High Tea at the Plaza.
I’m going to go over to the link you shared with us and vote for Thomas and David.
Hope you win, guys!
Really! I NEED to know!
I, too, recently just met another blogger doing a “dream list”, but she hadn’t heard of the 101 in 1001 thing. I can’t imagine actually staying in an ice hotel. I mean, BRrrrrr!!!! Looks like camping. And I didn’t see any pictures of bathrooms…hmmmm…
If you get any k9nd of goodies with your tea then that counts as far as I’m concerned. Do you get goodies with you tea? If not, maybe they’ll let you bring in your own Hobnobs without charging a corking fee?
They are a little on the large side, aren’t they?
“I would have a lot of unrest in that nest with the big hulking bird feet nearby. ”
Hee hee!!! It kind of reminds me of some Bugs Bunny cartoon or somewhere where somebody wakes up in a vulture’s nest, or maybe that cartoon doesn’t exist and I’m just imagining it because that unrestful-looking room has conjured such an image.
Thank you for your squee, sweetie. And for voting! Woo hoo!
Thank you, Jayne! And I don’t know if any other place will ever top The Plaza for high tea. But I will spend the rest of my life trying to find one anyway.
No high tea in your parts? Well, what on earth do you do for snobbery, my dear?
Your weeks-long dream – BA-HAHAHA!!!!!
This is a perfect example of how blog posts get started. Thomas, you must blog about this now. You’ve got two people already who want to know more.
There’s another blogger who I read who is also doing a 101 in 1001 days challenge.
It’s pretty great that you got to share in an activity on his list!
I’ve seen a couple shows on the IceHotel. It’s pretty amazing!
When my Aunt visits every summer we all go out for tea, my mom, sister-in-law, niece and me. It isn’t high tea but very enjoyable and I look forward to it every year.
I’m so glad it all worked out for you!
Those are some really cool french doors.
Well, you know, spastic freaks stick together. Which is why it’s still unclear to me which of us was doing the begging. I remember it differently. And thanks for your vote!
Thanks so much for the vote! Love your blog, btw!
Why is it that I too like high tea? Maybe it’s the sandwiches. Or being served tea in my own little teapot(that’s how they do it here).
I was just reading about the Swiss airline looking for a gay couple to marry on board so it is really weird that you mention it here and know someone who really wants to win it.
I think the Ice Hotel nest is very scary and I would NOT rest in that nest. I would have a lot of unrest in that nest with the big hulking bird feet nearby.
SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!! And I’m voting for Thomas every day just because he didn’t “hesitate meeting a spastic freak who yells while begging for a date”. What a guy!
What a fabulous photo! And what a perfect place to celebrate High Tea. I’ll definitely vote for your friend.
🙂
I need to know more about this making a flight attendant cry.
That might make you MORE awesome.
Oh Margaret….I’m green with high tea envy! I share your enthusiasm for ridiculously expensive bits of food at posh hotels. Looks like you had a grand time with your bloggy friend. My purse would have been brimming with leftovers: sugar packets, clotted cream, silver, crystal stemware and linen napkins. Thanks for sharing.
I want a bath butler. And a Nigerian Pygmy Goat.
The bath butler comes in, draws you a bath leaves large, warm, fluffy towels. Plus a snack of champagne and chocolate dipped fruit. He puts the most delightful smelling salts in the tub. He lights candles. Lots and lots of candles.
Then he leaves you to your bath.
Then he comes and cleans it all up and asks you if you want more champagne and fruit.
The publicist loved this.
Me? I take dust baths. We goats hate water.
It was my pleasure. I hope you win. Iceland looks very, erm cold. Being a Nigerian dwarf goat I like things warm.
Thomas IS awesome. And I see my blog is working for you now. I have no idea what happened there. THANK YOU so much for voting.
I should, shouldn’t I? To help pay for the tea, anyway.
Plain HobNobs are good too! When I came back to the states after my trip, I scoured my country for those things and they were not easy to come by. In fact, they didn’t even serve them at The Plaza.
Oh crap! I can’t remember. I think I was too excited in meeting Thomas that I got distracted. And this white trash girl wouldn’t know the difference between whipped cream and clotted cream. But as you know, they closed for a while for renovation. Perhaps as part of their remodel, they switched to clotted cream.
Why does “clotted cream” sound so gross?
Kathy – You are awesome! For voting on different computers AND discussing the thought of stuffing leftovers in your purse. I mean, at $47 dollars per cup of tea, I’d steal the sugar packets too.
What? There are lots of gay couple wedding contests? We should start a club like those Protest of the Day people, hold meetings, exchange gay-themed wedding contest info and crowd-vote everywhere.
Thanks for the vote, Pricilla!
What….on earth….. is a bath butler? I’ve never heard of such a thing. I imagine some old white guy in a tuxedo standing there quietly at attention staring straight ahead with a folded towel dangling over his left arm as you splash about in a claw footed tub. I mean, the publicist. Not you. I can’t imagine you in a claw footed tub. You seem more like a shower girl.
The conference was good!
And they do high tea in Hawaii? Oh, I’m SO going to have to check if anyone on Maui does it!
We tried not to leave, as well, but they started wheeling the potted palms out of the room, and, you know, we’re not the kind of people who can’t take a hint.
ps-thanks for voting for us!
Oh, you are so wrong. I’m not awesome at all. I once made a flight attendant cry. But thank you for voting for me. I’m now inspired to mend my evil ways.
Thank you for voting for us! In return I’m following you on twitter, in my google reader, on facebook networked blogs, and in a rusted out mini-van that’s blaring Sly and the Family Stone out the window.
Thank you! In exchange for your vote, we intend to adopt a child and name it Debontherocks!
Thank you soooooooo much. Having the support of not only one, but TWO of my favorite humor bloggers… well, it’s seriously humbling. xo
Oh, oh, oh! You are just eleventy-hundred shades of alsomeness, Margaret. You really are. Thank you so much for having tea with me and helping me with my list.
Even if I don’t win a big fancy freezing cold destination wedding, it’s tremendously gratifying to know that my weeks-long dream of getting married in Sweden has support.
And thank you, Internet People!
Squeeeeeeee!!!! ( Golly gee, it’s almost like callin’ hogs!) What fun this must of been. The High Tea alone but at the plaza baby…..wow!
Loved the picture of you two chattin’ it up surrounded by all the ritz.
Ya’ll have a fabulous day and nibble a ‘biscut’ or two for me. I’d be laughed out of town if I mentioned ‘High Tea’ ’round these parts! :o)
Well Thomas looks and sounds awesome. I will totally vote for him. And I’m thrilled you had the chance to have Afternoon High Tea at The Plaza!
Now look here! I have tea and biscuits all the time, though it couldn’t be classed as ‘high tea’ when I’m sat at my computer. I actually gave a whole carton of those Hob Nobs away the other day, because the chocolate spoiled them for me. I like plain Hob Nobs, dunked in tea 🙂
I’m surprised you haven’t made a charge to read this post, what with your Plaza photo ‘n’ all.
So that’s who I voted for. Good to know.
BTW, are they still serving whipped cream instead of real clotted cream at the Plaza? That is sooooooo American. As is bringing the water separate from the tea bad. Sheesh!
Oh, I just adore that picture of you two. I’m so happy you got to join him for his #4. How awesome and I bet everything was so delicious, you ate it all and didn’t even have to stuff any leftovers in your purse. What? You wouldn’t dream of doing that? Well I would!
Voted for Thomas and David and will bookmark so I can do it every day (from two computers).
I love every part of this! Very happy to meet Thomas through you–and I’ve been wanting to find boys to vote on in that contest (I seriously became obsessed voting for a gay couple who took second in teh Crate & Barrel wedding contest, so..) so off I go to vote
The publicist went for tea at the Ritz in Philadelphia.
She didn’t want to leave.
She actually spent the weekend there. It was a present from her daddy.
She had a bath butler. She wanted to take him home.
*sigh*
This was before she had me.
ps-we voted for your friend.
The photo says it all.
My daughter and I have been meaning to go to high tea for a long time. There is a tea house in Manoa, and the Moana Hotel is known for their high tea too. One of these days…
Hope you had a great time in NY at the conference. I’m sure you did.