MATBA Gathering at Tea-For-All, Trenton, NJ

Mike and Debbie Raab, owners of Tea for All in Trenton, NJ hosted the fall seminar for members of the Mid-Atlantic Tea Business Association. Their business is located in the Trenton Farmers Market in Lawrence Township, NJ. The fall decor set the scene for an enjoyable event. The session began with a presentation by Steve Schilling, Fine Arts Photographer. His photographs seek to tell the story of places, the stories of objects, and the stories of people. He presented two topics which included 'Slow Art in The Tea Room' and 'Food Photography hints and tips'. Both presentations were well received by the members of MATBA.

Deb introduced the members of her 'team' and explained that this was their first formal tea event. Members traveled from NY, PA, and MD to attend this seminar. 

Menu boards, placed on each table, noted that the entire Afternoon Tea was vegan, meaning no meat, no eggs, and no dairy. The seasonal menu promised to be a tasty and healthy treat for everyone. 

A hearty Kale Salad was served first, well massaged and tasty with a delicate vinaigrette.

Hearty and warming Butternut Squash Soup served in a China teacup was the next course. Following the soup, the tiered trays were presented to each table.

The tiered tray held the tea sandwiches which included Avocado Cucumber, Carrot Raisin, and Chickpea 'Tuna' Salad. They were all very flavorful, colorful and quite tasty. The top tier held an assortment of teatime sweets which included Chocolate Mousse, Carrot Cake Truffles, Pumpkin Chocolate Truffles, and Coconut Pistachio Bites. A glazed scone served separately rounded out the menu.

Many thanks to our hosts, Deb and Mike Raab. They provided a wonderful assortment of teas to complement the flavorful vegan tea menu. The gathering of members of the tea association always provides the opportunity to share ideas, receive encouragement, promote and honor each other, and share the joy and passion of our profession. It is a rejuvenating experience, and an enjoyable one. With the unknown weather factor, the winter session will be held via zoom. 

Afternoon Tea at Chez Alice, Lambertville, NJ

Our afternoon tea experience at Chez Alice was quite memorable. They offer a range of select French styled teatime experiences. We selected the Versailles which is the ultimate experience. The simple yet elegant place setting set the scene for an enjoyable teatime adventure. Once we selected our teas, the tiered tray was presented.

Teatime at Chez Alice must be reserved in advance. The elegance, the attention to detail, the artistry, it was such an enjoyable experience.

The top tier held the sandwiches. Shown here were the vegetarian options. The middle tier featured an amazing array of desserts, and the bottom tier held scones and breads nestled in a cloth bundle. This spectacular serving was for two guests.

 The Savory tier featured: Cucumber Finger Sandwich with lemon & dill cream cheese, a Mini Croque Monsieur with ham, gruyere, & bechamel, a Roasted Fingerling Potato with smoked salmon mousse and trout roe, Roasted Mushroom Banh Mi Croissant with fresh herbs and pickled vegetables, Peppered Strawberry Caprese Finger Sandwich with peppered strawberries, fresh mozzarella, balsamic, and basil and an Egg Salad Mini Éclair.

Egg Salad Mini Eclair

Roasted Mushroom Banh Mi Croissant with fresh herbs and pickled vegetables

Cucumber Finger Sandwich with multiple layers of lemon & dill cream cheese

This was one of the vegetarian options in place of a sandwich. It was a very tasty, fresh, chopped salad.

Sweet and Savory Scones, and Mini Danish

Lemon Curd, French Butter, Jelly

The Ultimate Dessert Tier

The variety and assortment of desserts was beyond amazing. The touches of gold leaf on many of the desserts, the beautiful artistry of each dessert, just simply outstanding. Too beautiful to eat, but after admiring the tray, we managed to savor some of the sweets and packed a few to come home.

This plate full of delicacies featured a Mini Lemon Eclair 

(lemon cream, crisp meringues, & whipped cream), La Demitasse (a mini chocolate cup with coffee mousse, praline & whipped cream), and Strawberry Fancy (strawberry mousse, strawberry compote & Cremieux). 

The desserts on this plate included a Mini Financier Rocher, a hazelnut cake with salted caramel, Nantais Gateau, an almond cake with fondant top, and Mini Opera, with almond joconde, coffee buttercream and chocolate ganache.

My favorite, simply because of the intricate decoration on the side of the cake, is the Mini Charlotte Royale with vanilla roulade with raspberry jam.

Assorted macarons, French artisan cookies, and tea infused chocolate rounded out the desserts. The intricate desserts with layer upon layer of deliciousness, the gold dust decorating many of the desserts, from start to finish it was a feast for the eyes. Each dessert more delicious than the previous one. Suffice it to say, we may have found our favorite tearoom!

Chez Alice Patisserie, Lambertville, NJ

 The tea experience at Chez Alice in Lambertville, NJ was memorable. Just across the PA border from New Hope is the aspiring community of Lambertville. This was a fun stop on our return journey from our weekend adventure to Boston. This is a combination French style bakery and tearoom where they promise a taste of Paris awaits. Walking past the bakery cases to reach the seating area, was an experience in itself.

The tearoom has a French flair to it as noted in the painted walls and bistro tables. Opposite this wall is seating that overlooks a canal that feeds into the Delaware River. 

Once seated, we were advised to select our tea. There were five signature French tea selections. The French Garden Herbal Tea, Mademoiselle Rose Green Tea, City of Lights Black Tea, French Blue Earl Grey Tea and Citrus Symphony Black Tea. To help with the selection, there was a sample of each tea on the table so you could sniff them and decide which flavor you wanted in your beautiful floral teapot.

Deciding what tea to enjoy was a fun experience and proved to be a difficult decision. We all chose a different flavor and enjoyed sampling the various options we had. 

We preselected our Afternoon Tea option, choosing the Versailles Tea Time experience which was the ultimate tea experience. We were on vacation after all and certainly deserved a special treat. We'll share that memorable experience in the next blog post.