Waiter, there’s a flower in my tea

THE RATCHAPRASONG Square Trade Association once again celebrates the hottest months of the year by teaming up with eight pastry chefs from leading hotels and tearooms in downtown Bangkok for a High Tea Jubilee on the theme “Blossom Tea Delight”. 
Now in its third edition, the gustatory event is the perfect indulgence with specially brewed tea blends as well as savoury and sweet treats that are being served until the end of June.
Red lotus, which increases blood flow to the heart and lowers blood pressure, is the highlight of the Erawan Tea Room’s Thai-style afternoon tea set. Priced at Bt600-net per person, it features a choice of tea made from butterfly pea, bael fruit and pandan leaf, lemongrass and jasmine.

A pastry chef at the Erawan Tea Room prepares the Thai-style afternoon tea set.

“In keeping with blossom delight theme, we’ve opted for organic lotuses and incorporate the pollen, petals and seeds with both savoury and sweet delicacies. The tea set also plays on the red and pink shades extracted from red lotus, roselle and beetroot,” says chef Achara To-ussami.
The three-tier stand features a variety of savoury treats on the bottom tier including yum tua plu (spicy winged bean and shrimp served on lotus petals), miang gaysorn bua (tidbits made of chopped lotus petals and pollens, roasted coconut and cashew nut with a sweet dip served in crispy pastry cups), thung thong (crispy fried dumplings stuffed with lotus seed and taro), dok khae (batter fried hummingbird vegetable filled with minced pork and shrimp), vol-au-vent stuffed with chicken yellow curry, and chor muang sai poo (steamed flower-shaped crabmeat dumplings).

The middle tier has an assortment of Thai desserts including all-time favourite mango and sticky rice, kanom krok (rice pudding), kanom bueng (crispy bean crepes), look chub (sweet bean paste in colourful fruit forms), mor gaeng (egg custard with lotus seed), and kanom chan (steamed sweet layer cake).

European delights including longan flower honey madeleines, pandan cream mille feuille, durian and passion fruit Jelly, dark chocolate cup filled with hibiscus tapioca, milk chocolate cream and rosella juice, and banana and coconut scones with whipped cream and strawberry jam dominate the top tier.

Novotel Bangkok Platinum Pratunam’s tea set brings seven teas infused with flowers to its set.

Pastry chef Warattha Boonpitak of Novotel Bangkok Platinum Pratunam has responded to the call for blossoms by selecting seven blends of flowery teas from China, namely rose, jasmine, butterfly pea, lavender, chrysanthemum, chamomile and Blooming tea – tea leaves in a pouch that morph into a flower when steeped in hot water. She has also created three savoury and five sweet Thai style treats to pair with the teas. 

The tea set is priced at Bt950-net and includes mango and sticky rice, jasmine aa lua and Snow Skin Mooncake in different flower shapes, bael fruit jelly, and macarons filled with orange, strawberry and pistachio.
The savoury bite comes from spicy salmon salad with Thai herbs, cheesy fried shrimp cake and spring rolls stuffed with edible butterfly pea, rose and red lotus petals.

Strawberry is the star at the InterContinental Hotel Bangkok.

Over at the InterContinental Bangkok, chef Saiful Huda goes wild for American strawberries, using them to full advantage in his strawberry mousse and chocolate cake, strawberry financier and mango mousse, and strawberry macarons. 
“US strawberries have a juicy and fruity flavour, a beautiful red colour and the right combination of sweet and sour. The macaron is filled with real strawberry jam and contains no dairy products,” says chef Huda.

Strawberry also features in the lemon cake and strawberry, strawberry pistachio lychee tart, and strawberry Japanese shortcake. The top tier boasts chicken sandwiches, corn and cheese pie, and puff pastry with sauteed onion and sun dried tomato that can be paired with a selection of teas like Moroccan mint, fruit tea with sunflower seeds, chamomile, and oolong. The tea set costs Bt550-plus for one and Bt850-plus for two.

Rose and French vanilla are two key scents at the Renaissance Bangkok Ratchaprasong Hotel.

Rose and French vanilla are the two scents chef Matt Mittnacht of the Renaissance Bangkok Ratchaprasong Hotel has chosen for his Parisian-style set (Bt750-plus for two). 

Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel serves a pastry set drowning in summer flowers.

Meanwhile, chef Laurent Duffaut of the Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel serves a pastry set drowning in summer flowers with such dishes as rosella panna cotta, spring butterfly pea supreme, chrysanthemum cremeux, and hibiscus smoked salmon with tea gel, all of them paired with three fruit and green tea blends. The set costs Bt850-plus for two on weekdays and Bt950-plus for one on weekends.

Munchies are served in a birdcage at the St Regis Bangkok Hotel.

Beautifully presented in a bird cage, chef Thitiphong Suanborae of the St Regis Bangkok Hotel offers Boston lobster tom yum on bread, truffle puff mousse, Norwegian salmon with honey mustard, orange cannoli, and hazelnut cake washed down with TWG’s 1837 Black Tea. It is priced at Bt1,500-plus for two.

The Centara Grand at CentralWorld Bangkok Hotel pairs Blooming Tea with sweet and savoury treats.

Chinese Blooming Tea infused with the flowers of jasmine, bachelor’s button, and chrysanthemum is the highlight at the Centara Grand at CentralWorld Bangkok Hotel where chef Thawat Prathumpuang also create sweets and canapes in shapes and textures resembling summer blooms. It costs Bt699-plus for two.

1823 Tea Lounge by Ronnefeldt at Gaysorn Village offers two exclusive tea blends with pastries.

Last, but far from least, tea master Nalinthron Triwittayaslip of 1823 Tea Lounge by Ronnefeldt at Gaysorn Village is sticking to his two exclusive blends. The Bangkok Blend is oolong tea mixed with tropical papaya and pineapple while the Gaysorn Blend combines light flowery Pai Mu Tan white tea from Fujian with ripe mango and hints of citrus. These fine brews go with treats like mango sticky rice and strawberry gazpacho with poached prawn, both infused with Ronnefeldt teas. It costs Bt1,370-plus for two.

TEA FOR TWO
High Tea Jubilee 2018@Ratchaprasong continues until the end of June.
Bangkok Bank credit card holders get a 20-per-cent discount at all venues.
Keep updated at www.BkkDowntown.com or www.Facebook.com/HeartOfBangkok.