Tea for Two

Recently I went for afternoon tea at the beautiful Blytheswood Hotel as a little birthday treat. In recent years (and maybe it's part of getting older) I've started to really enjoy going for afternoon tea - the ritual of getting all dolled up, eating cake and having a natter in a fancy setting is one of my favourite indulgences. And let me tell you, settings in Glasgow don't come much more fancy than at Blytheswood.

From the moment my friend and I arrived we were  made to feel very welcome, and nothing was too much bother for the waiting staff. We were seated promptly in a large room up on the first floor, which had a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. Our hostess explained that there were different kinds of afternoon tea available and what each of them entailed. I had booked ours in advance and had chosen the Duchess of Bedford Strawberry afternoon tea, which I thought sounded very Summery!

As well as being brought as much tea, coffee and iced water as we could drink, we were soon presented with our cakes and sandwiches - on a full cake stand each! I have never been to an afternoon tea with such a generous amount of food. Both cake stands were exactly the same - with about 5 different kinds of dainty sandwiches (even the egg and cress one was delicious - and I don't normally eat egg sandwiches), freshly baked scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam, and a full tier of home-made desserts and pastries. Heavenly!

I'm the kind of person that could live on cakes and sandwiches, so I knew it would be no problem at all for me to take on a full cake stand! With so many treats to choose from, it was hard deciding where to start. The food was yummy and tasted very fresh, and our waitress made sure that we were never going thirsty as she topped up our drinks regularly. Then, rather unexpectedly, our waitress appeared with a really lovely surprise - a plate of tablet and mini chocolate truffles with 'Happy Birthday' spelled out in white chocolate icing. She explained that she "had noticed that it was someone's birthday" (my friend had given me a card and presents when we first arrived). How kind! It was a really nice gesture and made the day feel even more special.

Another thing that I noticed about being a guest for afternoon tea was that there was no rush for us to leave after we had finished our cake stands. Our waitress assured us we could sit and have more tea and coffee for as long as we pleased. I really hate being hurried out of the door after I've eaten, I feel like it reeks of bad manners and really says to the customer "you've given us your money, now beat it". Luckily, there was no such behaviour at Blytheswood and we sat chatting over tea for about 45 minutes after the plates had been cleared away.

I really enjoyed my afternoon at Blytheswood Hotel and taking into account the sumptuous surroundings, attentive & thoughtful staff, and the delicious treats provided; I feel that they really do provide a 5-star experience. I want to go back and try the other kinds of afternoon tea available - their Tea Tox (detox themed tea) sounds especially interesting!

Have you been for afternoon tea in Glasgow? What about at Blytheswood Hotel? Could you take on a full cake stand too?

Thanks for reading!