SPOT OF TEA?

Care for a spot of tea? Perhaps diving into those delectable dainty delicacies? You know, those yummy  tiny sandwiches, pastries and scones served on a three tiered server, all the more tastier because they’re miniature. Such a wonderful custom that unsurprisingly faded away  in the United States after that horrible misunderstanding in Boston harbor. Since England owned all the tea in the world, slight exaggeration but not by much,  they didn’t trust this country with a tea bag after that. If it had been anything but tea! But good ideas never truly die, fences have been mended and the custom of tea has been resurrected as an occasional treat served in hotels and tea rooms.

While there may be some dispute as to where tea as a meal began, some have referenced France as the possible origin, there is no doubt that the British took it to national status. You may have heard the term “high tea”  and pondered if this was the hoity toity of tea ceremonies. Can you imagine the Queen having “low tea”? Wouldn’t that be beneath her? Well, actually the answer is “yes” and “yes”. Seems there are two different teas but it has nothing to do with the quality of the china, linens or accoutrements. It’s all about location, location, location and the time of day.

Afternoon, or low tea, is served around 4:00pm and is a light meal to tide one over until the larger evening meal. It’s location is the parlor or sitting room and served on a “low” table (brings new meaning to the term coffee table, doesn’t it?), hence it’s moniker. Since this was essentially a snack, items were limited to tea, scones, jam, clotted cream (sounds wrong, but I would eat it with a spoon it’s that good!) and cake. Today in this country, the menu has expanded to include the above mentioned finger sandwiches and extensive pastries.

So what in the world is “high “tea? It refers to the time (later in the day, think dinner) and consumed at a “high” table as in traditional dining table. This is actually  a combination repast of afternoon tea and the  evening meal. Seems the working class often had to work through lunch and afternoon tea (some things never change) so they were more than a bit peckish  come dinner time. When in a family setting,  it is actually less formal than afternoon  (aka low) tea and can include more substantial edibles such as meats, eggs and fish.

My favorite tea experience was the Empress Hotel, Victoria, British Columbia. Still get a bit misty eyed over it. Traditional English afternoon tea in the most lavish of settings. But you don’t have to travel far to participate in this well honored tradition.  St Louis offers several tea rooms. Look for future blogs listing these various venues. Until then, put on a kettle, open a package of cookies, sit back and reflect on all the reasons why this observance should be daily….a long with the siesta and happy hour!

by Chewy