The Ballantyne turns Afternoon Tea into a Wonderland

During your stay at The Ballantyne Hotel, making tea reservations is an absolute must. We’ve gone to multiple teas over the years, but the Mad Hatter Tea is our absolute favorite of the specialty teas. For those of you not in ‘the know’ afternoon tea is served in the lobby at The Ballantyne Hotel from 1-4pm Thursday-Sunday. Reservations are required and spots fill up fast, so plan your afternoon tea experience well in advance.

While this was our second Mad Hatter Tea tea, our first was back in 2016, this was the first afternoon tea that we’ve experienced in the recently renovated lobby. It truly is the perfect location to just relax, enjoy your afternoon tea and do a little people watching.

Looking over the tea selection, even though I already knew that I was going to get the chamomile. It really balances out well with the savories and pastries.

Outfit Details: Dress (J. Crew Factory, similar here), Leah Sweater (GMG Collection), Pearls (borrowed from mom)

Since our reservations were at 1:15 we arrived a little early and had our pick of the tables before the other guests arrived, so we picked a table for three closest to the tv, because I loved the nostalgic feeling of being able to see a film so familiar from my childhood. It also provided the best vantage point for a little people watching. There were three generations of women at the table next to us, and it was so cute seeing the young granddaughter all dress up in her Alice outfit.

If you’re planning on enjoy afternoon tea with the littles, this is one of the best ones to go to, as there is plenty to keep them entertained from coloring sheets with illustrations from the original Lewis Carrol books, to the movie that plays throughout your tea experience. (They played the 1951 Disney animated version of Alice in Wonderland versus the Tim Burton Alice in Wonderland they played during our first Mad Hatter Tea Experience.)

It has to be said that the pastry chef outdid themselves for this speciality tea. All of the sweet treats from the ‘Chesire Cat’ Tarts and ‘Deck of Cards’ Macarons to the ‘Drink Me’ Chocolate Cups with Chocolate Mouse and the ‘Eat Me’ Shortbread Cookies were both on theme and absolutely delicious. Even with three guests sharing the goodies you’ll still have plenty to take home to enjoy later.

These fresh blueberry scones were the best we’ve had yet, and I quite agree that we would have been quite content even if our tea just included a tower of scones and our tea selections.