Tea for you and me

Join me on my epic quest to find the best tea ever

Tag Archives: Berkshire


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Cerise

The Forbury Hotel, 26 The Forbury, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 3EJ

 

Teapots and sandwiches at Cerise

When KD said she wanted to go for afternoon tea in Reading and that it looked quite reasonable at £15 a head I was very impressed. When she mentioned it was in The Forbury I was astounded to realise I’d never thought of checking here before.

 

Cerise is the restaurant inside The Forbury Hotel and we headed there on a Sunday afternoon to sample the afternoon tea. They offer an afternoon tea for £15 – which includes a round of sandwiches each, two scones, a selection of patisserie cakes and tea. If you pay £20 then it includes a glass of champagne as well.

There was no room on the table for the cakes and the sandwiches, so we had a 'cakes in waiting' area.

All the food was extremely tasty and we had problems finishing off all the cakes (though we managed it in the end, naturally). There were some hiccups with the afternoon – bizarrely, we weren’t given any knives (though we each had a fork and a spoon). As we were in a private booth area we couldn’t easily attract the attention of the waiting staff so we improvised with the spoons and everything worked out fine. We also constantly ran out of milk – only two small jugs for six people didn’t seem like enough. The tea isn’t loose leaf but I’ll forgive it that as the food was good and it’s very reasonably priced. This place is more about the food than the tea, I feel.

Once the sandwiches were consumed the cakes made it onto the table. Take a look at the mini mound of scones as well.

I would recommend afternoon tea at Cerise as an end to a hard morning of shopping or a good place to meet friends when you need a proper catch up. The atmosphere is calm and private and the food was very tasty.

Teapot? Yes.
Leaf tea? No, Twinings teabags.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £15 for afternoon tea, £20 for champagne afternoon tea.
Cake? Yes – a selection including blackberry macaroon, fruitcake, strawberry tart, chocolate something, meringue and an eclair. Mini fruit and plain scones too, with clotted cream and strawberry jam.
Go again? Yes, definitely. You should too.



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Boulters Restaurant and Bar

Boulters Lock Island, Maidenhead, Berkshire, SL6 8PE

The tea and the stunning view of the river.

Boulters Restaurant and Bar doesn’t seem to think we need an apostrophe for ‘Boulters Lock’ and so I haven’t put one in, but I feel there needs to be one. Confusingly, the River Thames website sometimes uses one and sometimes doesn’t; I’ll stick to using one when talking about the place and not using one when referring to the bar and restaurant.

Anyway, confusing apostrophe use aside, the river looks beautiful here and the view from the balcony of the bar is stunning. We were lucky enough to have a sunny day with blue skies and to get the last table on the balcony for lunch.

This is not the cheapest place to eat or drink but the terrace bar is much cheaper than the brasserie downstairs. We had a chicken ceasar ciabatta which sounds odd, but was very good and not too dry. The tea was over £2 and yet still didn’t come in a pot, which was disappointing, but the tea bag used was a good one.

Teapot? No.
Leaf tea? No.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £2.05 for tea, £7ish for the sandwich.
Cake? Puddings and scones rather than cake.
Go again? Yes, as the view is stunning.


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Forno

126 High Street, Maidenhead, Berkshire, SL6 1PT   01628 670051

Tea, ciabatta and tea cake at Forno

We were looking for somewhere to drink tea and get lunch that I hadn’t already stuck on the blog and Forno had the dubious honour of being the first place we came to that fitted the criteria.

It all turned out okay though as Forno is an Italian restaurant that has a good choice of things that could be eaten for lunch. There is a list of fillings and then a choice of bread, ciabatta or jacket potato to have them with. I plumped for the tea cakes and was pleasantly surprised when they arrived and turned out not to be hot cross buns. (You’d be surprised at the number of times I have been served hot cross buns when I’ve ordered tea cakes.)

Teapot? Yes.
Leaf tea? No.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £1.50 for a pot.
Cake? Not really, some deserts, some muffins listed (but sat on the counter in plastic packets so I didn’t order any), teacakes and the usual Italian restaurant fare.
Go again? Not for tea, there are other places in Maidenhead I’d prefer, but would come back for lunch or for an evening meal.


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French and Fresh Bakery

No. 2 The Colonnade, High Street, Maidenhead, Berkshire, SL6 1QL.

Tea at French and Fresh Bakery

The French and Fresh Bakery always smells gorgeous when I walk past as they bake everything on the premises and bread cooking is a heavenly smell. The sign above the door says it’s a Boulangerie and Patisserie and it certainly smells like one. Inside there are rows of bread and tarts, cakes, quiches, pizza slices. The cakes and tarts start at around £3 and a baguette to eat in is £4, so I just stuck with my tea.

A pot of tea to drink in was £2 but the tea pot was relatively big  (the cup was huge, making the tea pot in the photo look all tiny, but that’s just a trick of the cup, I promise you) and it was a satisfying and relaxing tea drinking session.

Teapot? Yes.
Leaf tea? No, Twinings tea bag.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £2 for a pot.
Cake? Lots of good complicated cakes, tarts, quiches, salads, etc and biscuits in tins as well.
Go again? Yes.


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Crumbs…

29 Queen Victoria Street, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 1SY   07947 719084

Tea and a Thai chicken melt at Crumbs...

Crumbs… is a little cafe just off the main shopping street in Reading. It has sandwiches, paninis, wraps, salads, jacket potatoes and some cake slices. It also has some outside seating which is a good thing, but it was a bit chilly to sit outside when I went there. The outside seating had normal height chairs but the inside seating was the high table and stool like seating. These make me nervous as I’m not very good at staying on them, but I managed okay so all was well.

I plumped for a Thai chicken melt ciabatta for a very reasonable £2.60 and a cup of tea. The drinks menu states that you can have ‘English Breakfast Tea (proper tea)’ or ‘Earl Grey’. I would argue it’s all proper tea, but I appreciate the sentiment.

A good place to go for a quick bite to eat and a mug of tea.

Teapot? No, it came ready made with milk in.
Leaf tea? Presume not.
Milk jug? No, came with milk.
Price? £1.40 for ‘proper tea’, 1.70 for Earl Grey. My ciabatta was £2.60.
Cake? A couple of varieties of loaf cake.
Go again? Yes, if I wanted a quick lunch.


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Bill’s Produce Store

St Mary’s Church House, Chain Street, Reading, RG1 2HX

Cheerful blue sky at Bill's produce store

Bill’s Produce Store is a new addition to the Reading café scene and one that I was looking forward to visiting. Mum and I headed there after doing some shopping and we were tired and wanted some tea and a sugar fix. The sun was shining and the outside seating area was full, but luckily someone left just as we were pondering where inside to sit and we snagged a table next to some foliage with a pink spotty sugar bowl.

There was a selection of tea on the menu and Mum picked English Breakfast and I chose Darjeeling. We also decided to share some scones as they were only £3.25 and came with cream and Bill’s strawberry jam. The menu said ‘scones’ – plural – but we were wary as it seemed very cheap for two compared to the other prices on the menu (£5.95 for pudding). We wanted to share, but wanted a whole scone each, so when the waiter came to take the order we double checked that there were two and he assured us this was the case.

The tea arrived in satisfyingly big pots with Twinings labels sticking out the side, but then the scone – singular – arrived. It was cut in half but it was a definite single scone. We complained and were told they would sort us out another one and that the menu would be changed. The second scone arrived – complete with another lot of jam and cream, though there was enough there for two scones anyway, and we tucked in.

Dotty sugar bowl, tea and scones at Bill's Produce Store

Now, my Mum is a bit healthier than me and didn’t put very much cream on hers. I’m not, so I stuck lots on. It was not clotted cream but had a lighter consistency, which was disappointing but certainly not the first time I’ve been given whipped cream with a scone so I carried on. The scone was warm but doughy and the cream didn’t taste quite right. I scraped most of it off and put more jam on. My Mum, who knows about these things from working in a catering college, said she thought the scone was doughy as it had been reheated in the microwave. I mentioned the cream and we tasted it some more. It wasn’t off, but didn’t taste right, almost soured, I thought it was crème fraiche.

The waiter came back and I complained about the cream, he took it away and then came back with the news that there had been a mistake and it wasn’t cream at all – but mascarpone cheese! He told us that the scones would be complimentary and said he hoped it wasn’t our first time there. When we said it was he said he hoped that we wouldn’t be put off and that we would go back again when they have settled in a bit more. And you know what? The tea came in a pot and the staff were so friendly and helpful about everything, despite the problems, that I will give it one more try. I’ll let you know what happens when I do.

Teapot? Yes.
Leaf tea? No, but Twinings tea bags.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £1.75 for a reasonably big pot of tea, £3.25 for a scone with jam and cream.
Cake? Yes and puddings, main meals, breakfasts, evening meals.
Go again? I’ll try once more, as they are very new still and the place had a nice feel to it.


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Picnic

5 Butter Market, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 2DP

Tea and a big macaroon at the super duper Picnic

Having reported that Picnic won the ‘Independent Store of the Year’ Reading Retail Awards 2010 prize I thought I’d better head down there quick smart and do a proper review on it.

Picnic is my favourite cafe in central Reading and I go there all the time. They have brightly coloured seats and tables and lots of amazingly tasty and fresh food. It’s tiny but they manage to pack in salads and sandwiches and picnic boxes and coffee and cake and fruit salads and crisps and macaroons and tea and friendly staff and two different types of ginger beer. It’s a warm and welcoming place to be even when packed full of the lunchtime rush. The photo here doesn’t really do justice to it, take a look at their photo gallery for a proper idea.

The only downside to Picnic is that tea doesn’t come in a pot, but the cup it does come in is of a generous size and the tea bags are Clipper (my favourite). Today I had an Earl Grey with milk (and they offered me milk, I didn’t have to ask) and a very nice chunky macaroon.

People who know coffee tell me that the coffee is very good too. I like it so much that I feel treacherous saying that it’s not the best place in Reading to go for tea, but no pot is no pot. However, if you want food with your tea or tea in a great atmosphere then this is the place for you.

Teapot? No.
Leaf tea? No, but Clipper tea bags.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £1.65 for a big cup of tea, £1 for a giant macaroon.
Cake? Yes and lots lots more!
Go again? Yes, and you should too.


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Delicious… wins ‘My favourite coffee shop’

I’m a bit late in reporting on this, but the excellent Delicious… has won the Reading Retail Awards 2010 ‘My favourite coffee shop’ award, as voted for by customers.

Picnic, which I’m ashamed to say I still haven’t stuck on here though I go all the time, won ‘Independent Store of the Year’.

Congratulations to both!

[Picnic now has it’s very own review! Take a look at it here.]


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Workhouse Coffee Company

10-12 King Street, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 2HF.

Ciabatta, sandwich, tea and free cake at The Workhouse Coffee Company

I’ve known that the Workhouse Coffee Company has existed for a long time, but I’ve never made it there, it’s not in the centre of town and sometimes I’m just lazy. As if they knew this, they’ve now opened a second shop in the centre of town so when we went in yesterday I made my way there to see what I could see.

I think they are still getting themselves up and running, as not all the fittings looked finished, but there was a friendly feel to the inside and the staff were lovely. I had my usual fear that any café that blatantly advertises itself as selling coffee will give no consideration to the tea, but I was happily wrong. The tea came in a pot that sat on top of it’s cup, which is always something that makes me smile.

R had an egg sandwich and I had a ciabatta with tomato, chorizo and cheese. It was a very good sandwich – like a pizza, yum. And we got a free sample of cake each as they were trialling their recipes. They are very good, let me tell you! A good cup of tea and one of the few places in central Reading with nice tea pots.

Teapot? Yes.
Leaf tea? No.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £2 for a pot of tea, £11.70 for the tea, sandwich and my ciabatta.
Cake? Yes, only a couple of choices but both very good.
Go again? Yes.


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Mill House Cafe Bar Restaurant

11 Pescod Street, Windsor, Berkshire, SL4 1DT.   07738 867187   01758 751138

A fat pot of Earl Grey at Mill House Cafe Bar Restaurant

I’ve been to many cafes and drunk many cups of tea in my time, but this is the first time I’ve had such a strong sense of deja vu somewhere I was convinced I’d never been before. Mill House Cafe Bar Restaurant is on a busy shopping street near to the train station and the castle, and looked like the kind of place I’d get a decent cup of tea. I went in and ordered and then sat down and that’s where the deja vu started. I could have sworn that I’d been there and eaten brunch, only I could have also sworn that when I ate brunch I was in a Puccino’s, not the Mill House. Anyone know if this used to be a Puccino’s?

The tea came in a nice big pot and I got 3 and a bit cups out of it. Good tea drinking.

Teapot? Yes.
Leaf tea? No.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £2.70 for the pot of Earl Grey, think only £2.40 if want non-speciality tea.
Cake? Didn’t see any, but wasn’t paying much attention (I know – how unusual is that?). Did have Danish pastries and puddings on the menu.
Go again? Yes.