The Palmer House, Chicago, IL

The Lockwood Restaurant at the Palmer House in downtown Chicago, IL offers Afternoon Tea by advance reservation, Monday through Sunday from 2 pm - 4 pm. Ascending the escalator, you are treated to this breathtaking vista of ornately decorated frescos on the ceiling in the main lobby. Once seated, the high back chairs create the feeling of your own personal dining area.

We were offered a selection of teas, from a variety of black teas, green teas, and herbal choices. Once we were served our tea, the tiered tray was presented. Sandwiches on the top, scones in the middle and a beautiful array of sweets on the bottom tier.

The sandwiches included a turkey sandwich with havarti cheese, cranberry mayonnaise, and arugula. There was a chicken salad with Michigan apple and tarragon dijonnaise. The prosciutto sandwich had Mascarpone cheese, arugula, and shaved asparagus. And the white cheddar had roasted tomato with a basil mayonnaise. That lovely combination tasted like pizza! The presentation was simply lovely with the little tuft of shredded lettuce and wisps of carrot in the center.

The scones featured a round buttermilk scone served alongside a Mexican hot chocolate scone. Homemade blackberry jam (yummy!), lemon curd, and devonshire cream were plated beside the scones.

The delicious array of sweets included a carrot cake verrine (in the glass cup) and described as carrot cremeux, white chocolate, and mascarpone. There was a mini raspberry eclair, a key lime meringue tart, hazelnut cube (sponge cake, chocolate mousse, caramel mousse, caramel-chocolate glaze) and pistachio macaron with a pistachio chocolate ganache.

The carrot cake verrine was topped with an edible flower blossom, yellow and purple pansies. It was a pretty little touch.

We enjoyed our visit here!