Located on London’s iconic Park Lane, The Park Room at Grosvenor House is an elegant tea room, flooding with natural light and views of Hyde Park.
The stunning venue is currently commemorating His Majesty King Charles III's Coronation with a limited-edition Afternoon Tea. Once we were seated, we were informed that the menu focuses on celebrating the finest produce from the United Kingdom, paying tribute to the King’s passion for provenance.

Whilst the Afternoon Tea was a very traditional affair, there were various unique aspects making it extra special. After looking over the menu, we were invited to not only select our choice of tea, but choice of preserve to accompany our scones. With a wide selection including strawberry, rose petal, rhubarb and ginger, gooseberry, raspberry or blackcurrant, it was a lovely to have the opportunity to personalise your classic scone.

Before the Afternoon Tea itself was served we were offered an English sparkling wine granita. As I don’t consume alcohol personally, the team at Grosvenor House were very accommodating with all my dietary requirements, and presented me with a refreshing alternate amuse bouche. A sharp fruity mocktail was topped with candy floss, adding sweetness to the citrus flavours and was a lovely way to start the experience.

When the three-tiered stand was placed upon the table, I initially noticed the beautiful coronation themed patisserie standing proudly on the top tier and was then pleasantly surprised to see our waiter holding a tray with open canape style sandwiches, serving them individually onto our plates.

The Foreman’s smoked Scottish salmon was placed upon a soft brioche, with piped cream cheese and finished with a prawn and caviar, adding a touch of delicious luxury to an already very regal event. The Burford Brown Clarence Court egg was a very dainty take on a more traditional egg mayonnaise sandwich. This leads us on to the delicate finger sandwiches, of which there were five: with a variety of flavours ranging from roast Aberdeen Angus beef with creamed horseradish, coronation chicken with apricot mango chutney and North Atlantic cold-water prawn with a classic Marie Rose sauce.

Working our way up the Afternoon Tea stand, we then moved on to the buttermilk scones. Each guest is served two – one plain and one raisin with Devonshire clotted cream, and as mentioned previously, accompanied with your choice of British preserves. I went for the rose petal which was beautifully floral and sweet and my guest loved the rhubarb and ginger.

Finally, the assortment of Pastries were designed beautifully to reflect the historic occasion. Placed on an edible cushion the iconic St Edward’s crown is created from rich dark chocolate and the jewel in the crown has strong flavours of orange and lies upon a crunchy hazelnut base. Whilst the selection includes an indulgent lemon baked cheesecake, made using Welsh Perl Wen soft cheese and a traditional Irish apple cake, my two favourites were the English rose and Honey Bee piece.

Representing the tradition of beekeeping, which has long continued within the Royal Family, the delectable mousse has organic honey extracted from foraged heather in the Scottish Highlands and has a tangy citrus cream core. The English rose is a flavour reminiscent of a typical British summer – strawberries and cream! Commemorating England, the pudding uses handpicked strawberries from Kent and natural rose extract from gardens in Berkshire.

With an amuse bouche starter, savoury canapes before the traditional sandwiches and no less than five cakes, we were starting to feel full towards the end of the experience. The kind, accommodating staff were more than happy to pack away our remaining cakes for us to enjoy later on.

The venue was beautiful, and the live pianist playing in the background added to the elegance. This is a wonderful choice of venue to choose to celebrate the upcoming coronation for all the family, as Grosvenor House also create a special children’s menu with their symbolic ‘Mr Grover’ dog created in chocolate. As we left, we also noticed a large toy version of the dog crouching by the exit, bidding us farewell as we headed back out into the heart of the capital.

Coronation Afternoon Tea at Park Room at Grosvenor House is served from 4th April - 11th May. Served daily between 12.30pm and 6pm from £62.50 per person; add a glass of Ridgeview Sparkling Wine from £78.50 per person. Click here for more details.