Introduction

I mean, I just couldn’t not try at least one venue for afternoon tea during my stay in Madrid, could I? Madrid proved to be one of the more challenging cities to find a good place to have afternoon tea. Not that many places seem to offer the option, and in some cases it turned out that their websites had not been updated and they no longer offered afternoon tea, even though it was advertised. Eventually, though, my quest leads me straight to the Mandarin Oriental The Ritz Madrid. From previous experiences, the Mandarin Oriental hotels can be relied on to provide a good afternoon tea service.

My reservation for afternoon tea is for 16h00. Before that, I decide to visit the Palacio Real de Madrid, which is still an operational palace, even though it is no longer the official residence of the Bourbons.

From the palace it’s just under thirty minutes on foot to the Mandarin Oriental, which is, admittedly, perhaps not my best idea considering that the outside temperature is 47 degrees Celsius in the shade this afternoon.

Location

The Mandarin Oriental Madrid is located right next door to the lush and lively Parque de el Retiro. From the hotel it’s just a short walk to the famous El Prado museum and Atocha railway station.

The Palm Court Lounge

The afternoon tea is served in the Palm Court Lounge, which is located right next to reception and the foyer. The lounge is covered by a glass dome, and up on the roof a canopy is drawn to protect against the sun and the heat. I don’t know what room perfume they use, but it’s certainly a very pleasant scent that is subtle but still manages to smell expensive at the same time.

The gentleman at reception escorts us to our table and inquires if it’s fine for us to be seated so close to the grand piano, or if we’d prefer something a bit quieter. I tell him that the table is perfectly fine. It’s very nicely decked out and is a good size for two persons for an afternoon tea. The porcelain is in a beautiful floral pattern with colorful flowers and birds on it.

The Service & Staff

Our waiter comes to introduce himself, to let us know that he’ll be taking care of us today. He pours us some still water and inquires if we’d like a glass of cava, which we both decline. He then brings us the menu with the list of teas, which is quite extensive. Throughout the meal, he regularly comes to refill drinks and checks that we have everything we need.

The Afternoon Tea

The tea menu is quite extensive and organised by tea colour into a white, blue, green, and black section. The teas are by TWG from Singapore. I have the Royal Darjeeling Second Flush, which is light and refreshing.

Our waiter informs us that they usually serve the afternoon tea with the savouries and the sweets first, on an étagère, and then the scones separately after that. However, he tells us that if we prefer a different sequence, that wouldn’t be an issue at all. We tell him that’s fine, and a short while later, the étagère arrives.

The savouries are on the bottom tier. There are five different types of finger sandwiches, and our waiter jokingly points out that there are two of each, so that there’s no need for us to squabble about who gets what. We have:

Finger sandwich with guacamole, and blinis with hummus wrapped in a thin slice of beetroot.

Savoury éclaire with lobster and crab, and finger sandwiches of smoked salmon with salmon roe.

And, finally, another sandwich filled with a nice, velvety mushroom cream. All the savouries are quite delicious. I think the beetroot blinis is my favourite, though.

The middle and upper tiers are for the sweets. The ones on the lower tier are chocolate or nut themed, but always with a twist. The small chocolate éclair is filled with a tahina cream, whereas the lighter éclaire is with a pistachio and rose water cream. The square is with hazelnut cream.

The two most extraordinary sweets, though, are on the top tier. And they’re both as lovely as they’re extraordinary. The orange one is a biscuit base with a cardamom infused tangerine mousse in a thin cover of white chocolate, whereas the round one is a short crust pastry cheesecake filled with lemon compote and drizzle with olive oil. And I mean the good stuff olive oil.

Our waiter promptly removes the étagère and replaces our plates and the cutlery. A short while later, he brings out the scones. There are two plain scones and two filled with raisins and pistachios. With the scones, the waiter brings us a large portion of whipped cream mixed with mascarpone and another small dish with lilac jelly, which tastes quite unusual with the cream and the scones.

Once we’re done, our table is cleared and our glasses of still water are topped up. Our waiter asks us if we’ve enjoyed the experience. He also tells us that there’s no rush and we’re welcome to stay as long as we like. We should just let him know if there’s anything else we’d like.

… and what Funky Toilets

On our way out, I briefly stop in the washroom, which is very clean and tidy. More importantly, though, this is one of the funkiest pissoirs I’ve ever seen. Each pissoir is in front of a rounded wall with small, flashy golden tiles. It’s rather dazzling to look at actually, and temporarily makes me forget what I came in here for in the first place.

Conclusion

This was a nice afternoon tea experience at the Mandarin Oriental The Ritz Madrid. Most noteworthy, of course, are the fabulous staff at the hotel, who have impeccable manners and are quite charming. When the étagère first arrived, and after the waiter had left again, I made a joke about having to go to El Corte Ingles department store afterwards to get some more food. However, by the time we were done, I must say that I was certainly not left hungry. Any more food, and I would have been uncomfortably full. The quality of all the dishes was very good, and I like that they did a bit of experimenting with the sweets – combining flavours you normally wouldn’t expect together. I also thought the whole afternoon experience was good value for money.