Hey Y’all! It’s time for another April “Travel to Tea”! This month I went with a friend to The Mansion at Strathmore in Bethesda, Maryland USA.
Strathmore has hundreds of performances each year at a few different locations around Bethesda. Music, dance, plays… all the things. They even have a themed afternoon tea 1-3 times per week which costs $32 per person. There are so many different themes to choose from! Today’s theme is (Old English) British Tea Party.
Usually their tea dates are during the week. But, once a month there is a Saturday Afternoon Tea; only made possible through the help of volunteers. Something else of note is they release tea dates 3 months at a time and they sell out quick. I made my reservation in December. So make sure you’re on top of it!
Anywho, let’s talk about the atmosphere! Piano and harp as our live music?! Oh I’m in love. The guest musician (Meg Baker) was playing her original work. It was beautiful, and the perfect background to our Afternoon Tea. Not to mention she came over to compliment my hat!
Obviously that was a woot! It provided a fantastic moment for me to tell her how much I loved hearing her play.
On to the food! The hosts had us wait outside the dining room until exactly 1pm. We got there a few minutes early, so we walked around to see the artwork in the rooms and visited the well stocked gift shop. Once we walked in, we saw that the Ridgewells caterers had set out the 3 tier tray on all the tables with hot tea. The black tea is a special blend for Strathmore created by Harney and Sons. We could dig in immediately.
They also offered $5 glasses of champagne, mimosas, and red or white wine. The sandwiches were made fresh and were tasty. The apricot scone was good, but even better with the creme and jam. Desserts were good as well, but let’s focus in on the Lemon Blueberry Trifle Dessert Cup. -drooling- Ya’ll….I just need the recipe.
Last thing of note. This was an absolutely wonderful outing for my friend and I to catch up. We honestly did not want to leave. But we got the hint to move out once they started clearing our table. Even then, we spent another 45 minutes talking outside. Such a successful Afternoon Tea, that I would be happy to go back and enjoy other themes they have to offer.
Happy Tea-ventures Everyone!
Rory, Tea & Me 