Afternoon Tea - Willard Intercontinental - Washington, DC

The stately elegance of the Willard Intercontinental Hotel located within walking distance of the White House was the destination for a bus trip organized by the Royal Tea Club, a group of tea enthusiasts established in 2005. The membership has grown exponentially over the years, with the majority of members from southern PA, MD, and VA. They schedule special events at tea rooms and also organize bus trips and overnight trips, including journeys to England. This one day trip took us to the nation's capital.

Our group was ushered to a private dining area where we were served our tea as soon as we were seated. The theme for this tea was the Cherry Blossom Tea, and although we were there on a rainy day, the cherry blossoms were just about at their peak. It was a beautiful spring day in the city. The tea offerings included Organic English Breakfast or Organic African Amber, both from Mighty Leaf Teas.

The African Amber is a flavored rooibos tea with hints of mango, vanilla and hibiscus. The English Breakfast tea a robust black tea.

The sandwich plate included Tarragon Chicken Salad with dried cherries on whole wheat, Cherrywood Smoked Salmon with dill cream cheese and micro greens on pumpernickel, Goat Cheese Roulade with sour cherry and arugula, Egg Salad with cherry tomato on sourdough, and Cucumber & Cherry with cream cheese on Seven Grain bread. The plate shown here is the vegetarian option that featured asparagus and hummus square and roasted vegetables instead of the chicken salad and smoked salmon options. We enjoyed the nice assortment and variety of sandwiches.

The scone course included Cherry & Ginger Bean Scones served with lemon Curd and Devonshire Cream, Cherry Jam and Apricot Marmalade. The wait staff presented each scone individually from their large serving platter.

The Tea Pastries featured a Red Bean Éclair, Lemon Rice Tart, Green Tea Shortbread, Brandied Cherry Shortcake, and Japanese Moon Cake.

We enjoyed our tea in a private dining room. However, if you attend tea at the Willard with a few guests, they serve the tea in Peacock Alley on low tables using tiered trays, and with beautiful background music.

We are happy to link to:  Bernideen's Tea Time Blog: Friends Sharing Tea.