Afternoon Tea at The Grand Floridian (2020)
Back in 2020 I was lucky enough to be one of the final visitors to the beautiful Garden View Tea Room at The Grand Floridian.
The Grand Floridian is stunning. It is themed around the opulent Victorian era seaside resorts of the late 19th and early 20th century. The look is clean with white clapboard sidings and red gabled roofs. The highlight of the interior is the soaring 5 storey atrium with its spectacular stained glass domed ceiling and chandeliers. The furnishing is plush with soft floral fabrics and elaborate detailing. There is a beautiful grand piano where you can occasionally find a skilled musician playing soothing Disney tunes.
For those that are wondering “Where are the Garden Tea Rooms? I’ve not seen that listed on My Disney Experience!”, that’s because it longer exists. Well, that’s not strictly true. It’s still listed but the website states it is “Temporarily Unavailable” There’s no sign of it reopening but we can cling to hope.
The Tea Rooms opened with the hotel all the way back in 1988. It closed with the lockdowns in March 2020, and we were very lucky to have visited in late February of the same year. Little did we know the events that were to unfold.
When we visited, it was offering daily afternoon tea sessions between 12pm and 4pm. There were two options available. The Perfectly Perfect Tea Party (for the little ones) and the more Traditional Afternoon Tea. This was the year that I took my Mum with us on our holiday, she has never been to Walt Disney World before and at almost 70, we figured it’s now or never. I wanted to treat her to something very special, so we did the Traditional Afternoon Tea.
However, there are further choices to be made and the afternoon tea menu splits into four options, ranging from $23.79 (children) all the way up to $150 (for two persons) with the option to add a glass of champagne for an extra charge.
The most expensive option, the Berkshire contained caviar and since that doesn’t really appeal to me or Mum, we settled on the Cheshire Tea. It differs from the Bedfordshire with the addition of a fine selection of fruits and cheeses.
We checked in at the front desk and were seated almost immediately. It was later afternoon reservation, and the tearoom was quite quiet. The table was set beautifully with fine china cups, saucers and small plates. The menu was gorgeously set out in a hard grey, fabric covered booklet with a paned garden window design. Inside everything was set out into pages. The first two being the choice of teas. There were so many fancy teas to select. Mum went for the traditional English Breakfast tea, and I chose the After Dinner Mint. The other pages contained the descriptions of all the sandwiches and cakes that were to follow.
It did not take long for the first offerings to arrive. First the tea! Brought to us covered in fine, embroidered deep red velvet tea cosies. I do l0ove a tea cosy, and the were very effective, keeping our tea hot for ages. This was quickly followed by the sandwiches and cheeses. The sandwiches were well made and fresh. It isn’t listed in the menu but there was also an onion tart and the pastry on this was one of the best pastries I have ever eaten. Incredible! The cheese and fruits were also delicious, but I have no idea what cheeses we ate.
When we had finished all this, and it didn’t look much but we were starting to feel quite full the pudding selection was brought before us. Set on a three-layer cake stand, with macarons, a profiterole shaped like a swan, chocolate covered strawberries, scones and clotted cream and jam. There’s only so many was I can say “these were delicious” so I won’t do it again but to settle any sort of debate, it’s jam first.
By the time, Mum and I had finished, and it took a while we were stuffed. I don’t think I ate anything else then for the rest of the day. It was one of the best “grown up” experiences and it’s such a shame that it is no longer there.
If afternoon tea is a must do while you are at Disney, then there is always The Cake Bake Shop on the Boardwalk. They offer the Roses of Gold Afternoon Tea. It appears to be quite a tough place to get a reservation though so plan ahead and book in advance. It is priced at $95 per person, plus taxes so a little more expensive but the option is there. If the Garden Tea Rooms ever returns though, it’ll be very high on my “Must Do Again” list
