around one-thirty, zach came downstairs to get me, and we walked to the macdonald randolph hotel across from the ashmolean museum. steven made reservations for seven people at two o'clock for high tea, and because it is a very nice establishment, rooms start at £325 a night or around $500, we wanted to be sure that at least a few of us were there early. all in all, zach, lexi. barry, josh, steven, and myself attended tea. high tea is taken anywhere from around two in the afternoon to five in the evening, and it is normally expected that one wears cocktail party attire. the randolph drawing room was where we actually took tea and ate, a perfect setting with an amazing waitstaff and a piano player. our server, mr. sun, was very understanding that steven was late, and his kindness definitely made our afternoon enjoyable. and then our high tea began. we started with tap waters while looking over the very extensive, and gourmet, menu. they offer three types of high tea. the cream tea, the most basic tea package which comes with crumpets, the traditional full afternoon tea, and the celebration tea which virtually is full afternoon tea with a bottle of moet champagne. we decided to order as pairs which not only lowered the cost, but also divided the amount of food one individual was expected to consume. it was definitely a smart idea when we saw the portion sizes. lexi and i shared, our tea of choice being the cranberry, raspberry, and elderflower. zach and steven shared, similarly choosing the tea lexi and i did. barry and josh shared, their tea being lotus tea. it was green tea infused with golden liquor, and for these two gentlemen it was perfect. we were served the tea first, and then the piles of food came. each order had the following things with it. scones with clotted cream and jam, a selection of cakes and pastries, and a selection of sandwiches. the pastries included a fruit tart, a raspberry tiramisu, regular tiramisu, banana bread, and an eclair. the sandwiches had one slice, which was large enough that we halved it, of each of the following. chicken salad with cranberries, egg and mayonnaise, ham and dijon mustard, and cucumber and butter. the entire process took us around two hours to complete, our conversations only deepening our connections with one another. we talked about everything from religion to television programming we watched as children to how amazing the food was. and for around £8.50 each, it was an experience we couldn't have passed up.
and i don't know how i forgot to mention it yesterday, but allow me to fawn over the cheese of the united kingdom. my first cheese experience here was the buffalo ricotta cheese served with a piece of honeycomb at jaime's italian. it was soft, sweet, and incredible. next it was on to the joys of mature cheddar on everything. french fries, cold sandwiches, even alone it is great. nothing has been as amazing as josh and barry's cheese discovery yesterday in the cotswolds though. i wasn't there for the actual testing, which was a shame because i love cheese, but the cheeses they got that i was able to sample were incredible. josh's cheese was crumbly, tangy in flavor, but had cranberries in it to negate any pungent taste of the cheese. barry's was my absolute favorite however. his cheese was extremely creamy and had no harsh taste. it had onions mixed in with it, only enhancing its flavor. if only i could find cheese like this back home! it is the thing i will miss most about this great country.
our day at the macdonald-randolph hotel.
the place settings at our table when we sat. mind you, lexi and i sat on a couch.
our tea after being served. i added a cube of brown sugar to mine.
the assortment of goodies sans the ham and dijon sandwich slice. lexi was already dividing it in half for us to try. we were quite hungry.
finally, a picture of people! our group after high tea.
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