Afternoon Tea At Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort

Afternoon tea at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort was something that I always wanted to try.  I love a good cup of tea, I love finger sandwiches and I think anyone reading my blog knows – I LOVE dessert.  What a perfect afternoon activity this would be for me!

We made reservations the day before and were lucky they were able to take us.  We arrived at the Garden Tea Room and were seated right away.  They led us to our table and I was immediately struck by how pretty and relaxing it looked.

We looked at the menu to decide what each of us would order (there were 3 of us).  Two of us had The Bedfordshire ($35) and one had the Cheshire Tea ($50) that included a Fruit and Cheese plate.

Our Table For Afternoon Tea

My biggest problem with the menu was that I wanted more than 1 dessert (of course!).  Our host was happy to tell me that I could order an extra dessert for an additional charge.  Since I knew I would be writing a blog for this experience, I thought it was a good idea to try more things (that’s my story anyway!).

I have found that it’s difficult to get a good steeped cup of tea in the US, so I was really looking forward to my tea.  I chose the 2nd Flush Darjeeling tea, I love Orange Pekoe tea with milk and sugar.  My sister and friend both wanted to try something different and less traditional – and went with the Superfruity and Mango Ginger.  We were all very happy with our selections.

Tea Pot and Cosy

When our tea pots arrived we each had our own tea cosy that was perfect for keeping our tea hot throughout our entire experience.  I have lots of them at home, but this cosy was GOOD!  The pots were a good size and I think I probably filled my cup 6 or 7 times with it.

Fruit and Cheese Plate

When they brought out our tiers of plates, my first thought was “those sandwiches aren’t going to fill me”.  I was hungry that day (we had skipped breakfast) and was glad I had ordered the extra dessert.  I’m not a big fan of scones or tarts so I figured I wouldn’t eat much off of the second plate anyway.  I’m a bit of a picky eater, and assumed I’d mainly just eat the dessert!

All the plates of goodness!

Boy was I wrong!

First the sandwiches – I ate every one, and every bite!  I was so surprised that I enjoyed them all – the Sweet Curry Chicken had a little kick, I almost wish there had been two of them.   You can’t go wrong with Egg Salad or Cucumber, but the Roasted Tomato was perfect too.  Onion tart?  Sounded weird to me – but I liked it!

Cucumber, Sweet Curry Chicken, Egg Salad, Fire Roasted Tomato With Oregano Goat Cheese, Onion Tart

The second course was the scone and tart.  I don’t like raisins as a rule, but there were only a few in the scone that I could pick out.  I loved the lemon curd (did I just say that?) and the creme – I ate all of it and moved on to the Strawberry Tart.  Tarts aren’t my favourite – but this one was light with just the right amount of strawberry flavour.

Raisin Scone with clotted creme, lemon curd and apricot jam. Strawberry Tart.

I took a deep breath at that point and wondered why I ordered the extra dessert, I was already getting full!  Good thing I’m sure I won’t like the Macaroons!  (I had a bite, not my favourite – I don’t like them normally anyway).

Mousse filled swan, French Macaroon, Chocolate Covered Strawberry, Strawberries and whipped creme.

At this point I’ve had about 4 cups of tea and I’m thoroughly enjoying the relaxing afternoon.  I sat for a minute before trying to decide what delicious part of the dessert I would eat first.

Chocolate Strawberries have to be chilled with the right amount of sweetness… and the one I got was perfect.  The mousse filled swan was light and tasty – but my absolute favourite was the strawberries topped with whipped creme.   As much as I thought I was full, I almost finished the bowl it was so good.

I had read a review online for the Afternoon Tea and almost didn’t book it, I am so glad that we decided to try it anyway.  This is something that I will make sure to do again.

Reviews online may have been mixed, but my experience was wonderful.  We had a leisurely afternoon with great food and a excellent cups of tea!  It was the perfect way to spend some time away from the hustle and bustle of the parks and just sit back and relax.  There were some little ones at the next table who seemed to be enjoying their Mrs. Potts Tea as well – there was something for everyone!

Have you tried afternoon tea?  What was your experience like?