High tea at Le Cordon Bleu

Four times a year, the students of Le Cordon Bleu Patisserie open their doors and host high tea for members of the public. We celebrated the long weekend with an afternoon high tea. The sessions usually book out well in advance so it pays to get in early.

A selection of T leaf teas or Flight French press coffee were on offer with other beverages available for purchase. We shared a plunger of coffee and had our water glasses refilled by nervous students several times during our afternoon tea.

This high tea was divided into two main sections: savoury and sweet. We began with the savoury offerings that were presented on a separate plate. Each dish had a suitably long, extravagant name and a description to match. Basically put, the canapés included elegant club sandwiches, one with with toasted bread and the other with egg mimosa filling. There was also a spoonful of something resembling beetroot jelly. All went down well.

We were really there for our favourite part: sweets. Described as "a selection of beautiful hand-made delicacies, presented on the classical three-tier bone china tea set", we were impressed with how beautiful each tiny treat looked and tasted. There was a crunchy mini mille-fueille, scones with raspberry jam, whipped cream and whipped butter, a red fruit and basil profiterole, savarin orange with vanilla chantilly, and a petits fours style pistachio financier. I'd definitely saved the best for last: a beautiful coffee jelly and chocolate mousse verrine in a tiny glass.

High tea at Le Cordon Bleu

If this is the standard of future high teas in Wellington, then we'll be in good hands for years to come.