Last weekend a girl friend and I went for a short break in the beautiful city of Edinburgh. We completely lucked out with the weather – gorgeous clear blue skies and bright sunshine the whole time, perfect for a bit of laziness education on some of the Edinburgh Bus Tours.
The Castle and Grassmarket:
Views back to the city (Castle on the right) from Ferry Road:
We’d decided well in advance that afternoon tea was a must for the weekend, and, recommended by the rather amazing www.afternoontea.co.uk , we booked a table at the Tower Restaurant, atop the National Museum of Scotland. I’m pretty sure our decision was made entirely on it having terrace!
The museum itself was well worth a look on the way to tea. It has 4 floors of completely varied exhibits, from Scottish history, to Formula One cars, animals, and a whole heap of interactive stations where you can play games, press buttons, and generally have a play with some amazing things. Plus, there is a great rooftop garden, with all manner of different plants, and amazing views across to the castle.
We arrived at the Tower Restaurant a little early, weary from a days activities, but they were only too happy to seat us early. Having spent a lot of the weekend in the sun already, we opted to sit inside, rather than on the terrace, happily next to some wide-open sliding doors, so we could still see out to the old town and reap the benefits of fresh air.
It was pretty obvious what we were there for – afternoon tea all the way! Our order was taken, and we were then handed the menus:
And as if the food selection was not enough, they had a great range of teas to complement it:
What seemed like a long wait later, but was probably very short (I was hungry!), we were presented with this fantastic solid silver cake stand. A work of art in itself!
And the food! So much! So much choice!
As seems the sensible thing to do, we started from the bottom and worked our way up.
On the savoury layer:
- mini cheese quiche
- smoked salmon and cream cheese bite
- egg mayonnaise sandwich
- chicken and tomato wrap
Next up – cakes and scones:
- plain scone
- fruit scone
- shortbread biscuit
- dundee cake
- chocolate brownie with cream
Scones of course served with jam and clotted cream – wow they were good!
And finally the top layer – belly’s feeling a little full now…
- lemon and white chocolate mousse
- red fruits tart
I had my mousse with the shortbread biscuit on the side – a perfect combination!
We were completely stuffed – but not a crumb left in sight!
A quick amble round before we left, we found the terrace had amazing views of Edinburgh Castle; well we’ll just have to come back, and sit out there next time…
And our review? YUM!
I honestly think it was one of the best afternoon tea’s I’ve ever had. Not only was there a huge amount and selection of food, but every single bite was delicious, even the bits I wasn’t expecting to like.
A definite must next time you are in the beautiful city of Edinburgh!
