Afternoon Tea at the Chateau Laurier

Earlier this week, on a rainy afternoon, we took ourselves off for an afternoon tea at the Chateau Laurier, that lovely "belle of the ball" of a hotel just down from Parliament Hill.

Afternoon tea is served in the elegantly feminine Zoe's, a quiet restaurant with large windows overlooking the hustle and bustle going on outside. We settled in to enjoy our tea from this cozy vantage point, tucked behind large potted plants in a windowed alcove. And what did you have to eat, you ask?

We started with a selection of fresh fruit, while we pondered the tea menu.

Among the many choices, we ended up selecting the same tea: Orange Spice, a mix of black tea, orange and cinnamon.  The perfect choice to add warmth to the rainy afternoon.

The tea was made at our table from an elegant wooden "old world" tea cart, with the water poured from a gleaming silver pot, kept to the boiling point over an open flame.

As we took our first sips of tea, our three-tiered dessert plate arrived, with Victorian and cranberry scones...

accompanied by a generous amount of strawberry jam and Devonshire clotted cream.

On the middle tier were dainty finger sandwiches, and to top off the experience, a slice of almond lemon afternoon tea cake and a custard fruit tartlet.