A Lovely Tea Party at The Plaza

The classics, dahling: Earl Grey Tea and a Currant Scone
(I'm typing this with a British accent.  In fact, I recommend
reading this entire story with a British accent).

There are few things lovelier in life than high tea.  Donning a beautiful dress and a fabulous hat, I never feel as elegant, ladylike--or British--as when I'm surrounded by scones and strawberries, devonshire cream and soothing hot tea.  In LA, The Peninsula Hotel was a favorite.  Now that I'm in New York, I'm officially on a quest to find the Best Place in New York for High Tea.

The fabulously elegant Palm Court  

But where to start?  So many choices, so little time. I decided to begin at one of my favorite hotels in the city, the classic and gorgeous Plaza Hotel.  And luckily, my fabulous friend Sylvia was in town to join me.

Set across from beautiful Central Park, The Plaza offers gorgeous scenery both inside and outside its grounds.

Palm Court, where high tea is offered on weekend afternoons, is an elegant space, complete with high ceilings, crystal chandeliers, plush velvet chairs, gilded staircases, and a jungle of palm trees.  What a perfect stage for a lovely afternoon tea party.

One of the things I love most about high tea is the high tea stand.  Mini sandwiches, scones, muffins, and petit fours are already fun, but arrange them ever so perfectly on cascading china?  Behold, The Tower of Goodies.

This little egg-filled buttery pastry cup could not be more
adorable (or yummy).

My all-time favorite little sandwich (I asked for 2!)
Smoked salmon with a rich cream cheese and dill.  Divine.

In addition to the standard sandwiches and scones, placed delicately at the top of the stand was a bevy of fabulous little desserts.   The Plaza didn't stop at 2 or 3 choices--this dessert plate offered 6 very different treats- from cakes to macaroons to chocolates to chewy fruit bars.

A warm welcome to you all, my friends.

Well hello little chocolate cake surprise (I'm still not sure
exactly what this was.)

Thank God they're bite-sized or I would have been at the gym for the rest of the day (of course I tried them all).  My favorite dessert was the beautiful little marble sized chocolate button, swirled with beautiful white and red swirls.  Almost too beautiful to eat.  Almost.

Our lovely tea experience was made even more so by the addition of adorable little girls with their mothers, bringing their Eloise dolls, and some even wearing matching Eloise outfits.  If you're not sure who Eloise is, she is the star of a children's story of a little girl who lived in the penthouse of The Plaza.  In fact, there's a lovely painting of Eloise that hangs on the wall next to Palm Court.  It seems to be tradition that when the girls are finished with their tea, they take photos with Eloise and their dolls.  Sylvia and I happened to be sitting next to the painting, and witnessed this cute little scene several times during our 3-hour tea.  Absolutely adorable!

Thank you, Eloise, for making our
tea experience even more enjoyable.

The Plaza Hotel

Fifth Avenue and Central Park South

NY, NY 10019

212-546-5300 

www.theplaza.com 

The Popsicle Part II: Dark Chocolate Mixed Berry with Hazelnuts

The fabulous Irene with
her fabulous creation

I never thought I'd utter "popsicle" and "genius" in the same sentence, but boy, Pop Bar, do you deserve it. 

So gourmet popsicles are kind of a big deal right now.  I make this bold statement based on the fact that in one day, I ran into TWO different popsicle places!  (I tend to exaggerate.  A little.  Ok a lot).  I thought the Doughnut Peach Basil Popsicle was inventive.  Holy wow Pop Bar, you took the popsicle to another level entirely.   

My friend Irene and I had a somewhat disappointing dinner--gorgeous atmosphere but hello Flavor, we missed you.  Needless to say, we were very hesitant to try their dessert.  

That's when Irene brilliantly suggested Pop Bar, which happened to be around the corner.  At first the idea of another popsicle wasn't that exciting to me.  I had just tried a doughnut popsicle that afternoon, and there were sooooo many other dessert places I wanted to try. But when she described how unique this popsicle place was, I couldn't resist.

What's so different about Pop Bar?  You get to customize your popsicle!  Allow me (and Paul, the personal popsicle professional) to walk you through this fun, easy process.

Step 1: So many flavors, so little time!

Step 1: Choose your Flavor.  A wide variety of fabulous freshly frozen flavors are available, made from Gelato, Sorbetto, or Yogurt: Blood Orange, Grapefruit, Mango, Chocolate, Strawberry, Pistachio, Peach...you get the picture. I chose Mixed Berry, a combination of (I think) Blueberries, Strawberries and Raspberries.  Yay for summer fruit!

Step 2: Choose your Chocolate.  White, Milk, or Dark.  You really can't go wrong with any of these choices.  Your popsicle can be fully dipped or half dipped, depending on your preference.  I of course chose to let my popsicle completely submerge in the yummy pool of dark chocolate.

Step 2: Chocolate Time!  I like dark chocolate because
it contains antioxidants.  That makes it good for you.

Step 3: Choose your Nuts.  Almonds, Pistachios, Peanuts, or Hazelnuts.  Decisions, decisions!  While Paul was pushing pistachios, the hazelnuts were calling to me.  Here I reveal my complex thought process: chocolate + hazelnuts = Nutella.  Done.
 

Step 3: It's nuts in here.  Paul was encouraging
pistachios but I was feeling hazelnutty.

Et voila!  The Dark Chocolate Dipped Mixed Berry with Hazelnuts Popsicle, made just for me!

The finished masterpiece!

These little treats were exactly what we were looking for, and completely made up for our dinner misadventure.  The crunchy hazelnuts added a unique texture to the smooth, rich dark chocolate, which elegantly coated the sweet frozen berries.  Refreshing, sweet, and savory-yum yum yum.

To complete the wonderful experience, we headed to the park across the street and sat on a bench, enjoying our tasty creations on a warm, beautiful night.  

Thank you, Irene, for informing me AFTER we left the park that hundreds of little mice were running around our feet THE ENTIRE TIME.  (She wisely concluded that I would freak the hell out.  Which I did, later).   

In conclusion, I highly recommend visiting Pop Bar.  I also highly recommend not eating them in the park.

Popsicles in the park on a warm
New York summer night....bliss.

Pop Bar
5 Carmine St. (@ 6^th Ave.)
New York, NY 10014
212 255 4874