Memo Paris Afternoon Tea at The Rose Lounge, Sofitel

In the elegant corner of St James, lies stunning Waterloo Place, home to the magnificent Sofitel Hotel which stands as one of London’s most iconic buildings. The neo-classical masterpiece is one of the city’s most exclusive locations, and the perfect spot for an afternoon of indulgence.

The Rose Lounge has become known in ‘afternoon tea circles’ as one of the most exemplary places to take tea. This luxury hotel has a pace all its own and doesn’t feel overly busy or loud – it’s a serene and enveloping space without the touristy crowds of some of the more well-known hotels. As you step into the tea parlour you truly feel as though you’ve found some secret room that only you and few other people know about.

On this visit, we were booked in to experience the new limited-edition afternoon tea in collaboration with Parisian fragrance house, Memo. This collaboration is inspired by the perfume house’s latest fragrance, Portobello Road, celebrating the best of fine dining and fragrance.

The Rose Lounge

As the name suggests, The Rose Lounge, takes inspiration from the fragrant and vivid colours of the rose, with perfectly matched pink and red hues throughout the elegant space. You’ll discover rich velvet seating, fresh flowers, and ornate framed pictures adorning the walls. The room is unabashed femininity, with beautiful decorative flourishes at every turn.

To kick of the afternoon of spoiling, we were first offered a glass of Champagne – an irresistible offer and a resounding ‘yes’ echoed from our table. There are of course, non-alcoholic options to try, as well as a specially themed Rose Fizz cocktail made with Raspberry cordial, dry vermouth, Jasmine Pearl tea, with added Champagne for the ‘fizz’ part.

The Teas

After a flute of bubbles, it was on to the tea selection with a well curated selection of black, white and green teas, as well as fruit and herbal infusions. On a stellar recommendation, we opted for The Rose Lounge Signature Tea, which was created exclusively by Camelia’s Tea House, for the Sofitel, St. James. This is a fragrant blend of black tea, apple, orange peel, hibiscus, ginger and rose buds.

This highly fragranced tea is reminiscent of a perfume, yet it’s perfectly light and refreshing and a delicious companion to both the sweet and savoury offerings. It’s a tea taken without milk, and only needs steeping for a few minutes to capture those highly fruity and floral notes.

Such was the success of this tea we opted to stay with this blend. Also, it’s not a tea blend available for purchase, so we wanted to have as many ‘pours’ as possible. It’s definitely one to try.

If you’re more of a tea purist, you will also find many of the classic options including English Breakfast, Darjeeling and Earl Grey.

The Savouries

Each miniature element of the savoury tea looked appetizing, with a choice of classic crustless tea sandwiches and other savoury appetizers.

I was instantly enticed by the St. Ewe’s eggs with black truffle mayonnaise on brioche bread. The velvety-soft egg mayonnaise, enhanced with the umami black truffle is a decadent sandwich and the sweet, buttery brioche further enhancing the flavour.

The tempting Cornish Crab roll with the addition of the salty trout roe, was similarly demolished. This moreish bite of soft, sweet crab combined with crème fraiche and the pepperiness of chives was a delicious canape-style bite.

A hearty rillette of lentils and butternut pumpkin with an aromatic hit of Provencal herbs is a great vegetarian option with the mixture spread onto a crispy baguette slice.

It always pleases me to see Coronation Chicken on the menu, and this version is given a slight twist with smoked chicken which adds further complexity, combined with sweetness of macerated golden raisins on a lightly toasted croissant. It was utterly delicious, and a recipe I am going to attempt to recreate at home.

You can’t have an afternoon tea without the classic smoked salmon sandwich and this version was elevated with the addition of a tangy horseradish crème, pickled fennel, and a zesty lemon confit.

The Sweet

Perhaps everyone’s favourite part of the tea is the arrival of a sumptuous cake stand, but we’re here to tell you that an even lovelier surprise awaits as the first sweet course is the ‘La Rose’ dessert which has been specially created patisserie by pastry chef, Lerrick Coelho. Adorably, it’s in the shape of a handbag, complete the Memo emblem.

The sweet, rose-tinted chocolate can be cracked with a good tap of the dessert spoon revealing a sumptuous filling of vanilla creme, mandarin, rose petal and Yorkshire rhubarb.

If that wasn’t enough, the the classic cake stand is then presented with rows of fresh patisserie and warm, fresh-out-of-the-oven scones.

At first glance, the pistachio choux buns were an instant favourite: delicate, lightly bronzed choux, generously filled with a decadent pistachio crème and raspberry confit. This is an air-light, dreamy patisserie, which combines the sweet nuttiness of pistachio with the sharp tang of raspberry.

For a slice of decadence, the Gold chocolate and Earl Grey Opéra with the Earl Grey Chocolate ganache is a divine, chocolate-lovers’ dream. It’s super moist too, courtesy of a soft and nutty almond Joconde.

The quintessential afternoon pastry is the too-pretty-to-eat (but we did!) Violet berries and vanilla tartlette. The pastries are exquisitely decorated with fresh fruits and filled with a luscious vanilla crème and a tangy berry frangipane.

For a taste of the exotic, the colourful Yellow carnival passionfruit sphere is a tangy and sweet delight. This creamy mixture of mango and coconut brings you to warmer climes. The sphere is delicately sat on a crunchy biscuit base.

Of course, no afternoon tea experience is complete without the most important component of them all: freshly bakes scones, with clotted cream and homemade jam. Even though we were fit to burst at this point, the scones are worth the push. The jam goes first (in our opinion) and then promptly topped with a generous dollop of clotted cream. If there’s something more delicious than a freshly bakes scone, we wait to hear!