For my afternoon tea in Hamburg I’ve chosen the legendary Fairmont Vier Jahreszeiten Hotel. This morning I went on a guided tour of the Airbus plant at Finkenwerder, so I’ve worked up quite an appetite.
Location
The Fairmont Vier Jahreszeiten sits on the Neuer Jungfernstieg overlooking the Binnenalster in the city centre. This is also the area where you’ll find most of the glitzy shops here in Hamburg.
The afternoon tea is served in the Wohnhalle, which functions as the hotel’s lobby lounge on the upper ground floor. It’s a nicely decorated room with wood panelling along the walls and heavy chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. We’ve been given a table right by the window, with plenty of natural light.
The Service & Staff
Straight off the bat it becomes clear that this afternoon tea is going to be spectacular, the stuff of legends. The staff are just excellent and their manners impeccable. A middle aged gentleman greets us at the entrance and brings us to our table, commenting that he hopes it will be to our liking. He hands us the tea menu and volunteers the suggestion to have a lighter white or Oolong tea with the savouries and then perhaps something a bit more fragrant with the sweets. Throughout the meal, the staff unobtrusively top up our cups and tidy the table.
Afternoon Tea at the Wohnhalle of the Fairmont Vier Jahreszeiten Hamburg
To start, I have a mild Oolong tea that has been steeped to perfection. This is an excellent cup of tea. I should also like to point out that the tea is served together with the savouries. That is something that, surprisingly, doesn’t always work. I don’t like it when the tea is tepid by the time the food arrives.
We start with the savouries, and I’m positively delighted that we have a very traditional selection of finger sandwiches. You really can’t go wrong with the classics. Starting on the right we have smoked salmon, cucumber and mint with crème fraîche, ham and cheese, turkey, and boiled egg with watercress. Bliss!
The scones and sweets are brought out on a three-tier étagère, with the scones at the bottom. There are two plain scones and two with raisins. They’re served warm with actual clotted cream and a homemade strawberry preserve. The scones are just delicious and so fluffy! With the scones I change from the Oolong to a fabulous French Earl Grey tea.
And then come the desserts, which are really quite spectacular. We start with a mini strawberry bund on a biscuit base, served with a small ball of mango semifreddo.
This is followed by an extraordinary interpretation of a Black Forest gâteau made with chocolate mousse, Sauerkirschen, and peanut cream.
And then on the top tier, we have a choux pastry with pineapple cream and a small slice of Madeira cake with pistachios and rhubarb, which are both excellent. From start to finish, it takes us two hours to complete the afternoon tea at a pleasant, leisurely pace.
Conclusion
The afternoon tea at the Fairmont Vier Jahreszeiten in Hamburg was quite unexpected in that it was very traditional. I enjoy most afternoon teas, but I definitely favour the ones that prominently feature the classic finger sandwiches. Other than that, all the other items that were served were excellent. And both teas I had were steeped to perfection. Add to that the fact that the staff were well trained and friendly and you’re basically looking at my idea of a perfect afternoon tea experience. This is definitely one we’ll be repeating!