Waldorf Astoria: Enjoying Afternoon Tea at King's Court - review

How many of you know that December 15 is International Tea Day, meant to “recognize the long history and cultural and economic significance of tea around the world and the important role it plays in rural development”?

Well, International Tea Day is one of my favorite days of the year, and to celebrate I took my favorite daughter to Afternoon Tea at the Waldorf Astoria. Afternoon Tea is served daily from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. and must be booked 24 hours in advance.

It feels a little like a visit to a fancy hotel in London. When you are seated at the King’s Court, just off the hotel lobby, you are given a menu for the tea, which includes a short explanation of how the custom of afternoon tea began. No spoilers!

Then you choose your tea. There are three herbal-fruit infusions, three types of green tea, and three types of black tea. Rafaella and I both chose black tea – she went with the Indian Chai, and I chose Darjeeling. The tea is served in an individual pot with a strainer that perches on the top of the cup to catch the tea leaves.

But the coolest thing is a little timer with three small hour glasses to measure how long to steep your tea. The green hourglass for green tea is set for two minutes, the brown hourglass for black tea is set for three minutes, and the white hourglass for the herbal-fruit infusions is set for five minutes.

Once you are sorted with your tea, it’s time to eat. I came quite hungry, as I skipped lunch in preparation for the tea.

A spot of Afternoon Tea

Our server, Yazen – who described himself as half-Indian, half from here (east Jerusalem), and half from New York (the math didn’t seem to add up) – brought out a large three-tiered tray.

On the bottom level were sandwiches (of course, with their crusts cut off); the middle level had a line-up of tiny desserts that looked like jewelry (more on that later); and the top level had scones – two with raisins and two raisin-free.

In a separate dish were butter, berry jam, apricot jam, and a whipped cream that was so good, we asked for a refill.

My favorite sandwiches were the egg salad and the smoked salmon tart, which had a good-sized piece of smoked salmon on top.

We moved on to the scones, which had clearly been baked in-house and were especially delicious after I slathered them with jam and cream.

But the real standout was the desserts – each just one bite and each unique. My favorites were the round caramel éclair with chocolate glaze and the honey and lemon madeleine. Worth every calorie.

This experience is not cheap at NIS 380 for two people, but it is less expensive than a ticket to London. It’s a great reason to splurge.

• Afternoon Tea
• King’s Court, Waldorf Astoria
• Phone: 054-950-9092
• Tea served Sunday – Thursday, 3:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. 
• Kashrut: Mehadrin

The writer was a guest of the restaurant.