Pink Gin Afternoon Tea at the Melbourne Marriott

Experience the Pink Gin Afternoon Tea at the Melbourne Marriott in the leafy green east end of Melbourne amongst Chinatown and the theatres.

Guests can experience afternoon tea in the Essence Restaurant at the Melbourne Marriott based on the ground floor adorning to the lobby. The Essence Restaurant is not a classic or typical high tea setting with dark woods and leather. Ceiling to floor windows cover the front of the restaurant and on a beautiful summer day would fill the room with light.

The afternoon tea is not a traditional service with no tea stand but a buffet instead. Guests were presented with an array of sweet and savouries delights, which while it isn’t the usual method it definitely did have its perks.

Being able to pick and choose what you enjoyed was great as it gives everyone their own unique high tea experience.

Savoury selection and cocktail

Pink Gin Afternoon Tea at the Marriott

Pink Gin Cocktail

Sausage Rolls

Pink Gin Afternoon Tea at the Melbourne Marriott

To begin with we were presented with a pink gin cocktail. This was delicious and such a light and fruity flavour which was a beautiful addition to the high tea.

I first tried the savouries, there was a handmade sausage roll, egg sandwich with a dark rye bread and a chicken and truffle oil sandwich placed inside a brioche bun. All of these were delicious and had a great flavour. The dark rye bread was beautiful and fresh and had a great texture to it. The definite highlight though was the brioche bun and chicken, it was absolutely delicious and the bun has a great crispy exterior and a soft centre. I would not have usually expected something like this at high tea but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Once again I returned to the buffet for some sweet selections. I decided to try the macaron, vanilla and raspberry donut, jelly slice and the chocolate opera cake. The macaron was looked and tasted like Neapolitan ice cream which I really liked. It was nice to not just have a vanilla or chocolate flavour. The donut had a raspberry jam in the middle which was a surprise but still very delicious and the chocolate opera cake was the perfect combination of chocolate and coffee. The sweet highlight for me though was the jelly slice, for me there is nothing better than a good jelly slice and this definitely was. It showed the clear layers of base, filling and the jelly top. The base too was more of a cake or sponge which I really loved.

Savoury selection

Pink Gin Afternoon Tea at the Marriott

Savoury selection

Pink Gin Afternoon Tea at the Marriott

There of course were plain scones with jam and cream. The scones were quite a large size but still had a good flavour and were quite light. It was enjoyable, but not my favourite part of the high tea.

There was a large selection of teas to choose from, ranging from traditional to more fruity and fun flavours. This was a high tea where I didn’t enjoy a cup of tea, instead just sipped the cocktail throughout.

Overall the standard of the savouries and sweets were very good. I felt like everything was of the same high standard and nothing was disappointing or unenjoyable.

This was a great high tea and I think a excellent option for someone looking to experience high tea that isn’t a traditional setting or environment. The buffet style provides the freedom to enjoy as much or as little as you please

I would recommend this high tea for those looking for a casual setting to enjoy a high tea.