Tea, Scones, and Sugar Overload in Downtown Chicago.
Written: Oct 13 '09 (Updated Oct 13 '09)
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Pros: Nice space, lots and lots of different nibbles.
Cons: Some food is good, some is not.
The Bottom Line: There are better teas in the area, but The Peninsula still makes for a nice afternoon.
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| chelledun's Full Review: The Lobby at the Peninsula |
Every once in a while mr_chelledun and I like to pretend that we're sophisticated, distinguished, and British by attending a luxurious high tea. Okay, the four to five courses of nibbles don't hurt either. This year for my birthday I selected The Lobby at the Peninsula for a tasty celebration.
Know Before You Go
Located at the posh Peninsula, the Lobby is home to afternoon teas, chocolate buffets, light lunches, and decadent brunches. There is very little information online about what is offered when, so your best bet is to call the Peninsula. By doing so, we were able to make reservations for a Saturday afternoon brunch at around 2:00 p.m. with no problem. Quite frankly, I don't think we would have needed them, but it's always better to be safe than sorry in this respect.
Parking is always a trick in downtown Chicago. If you're in for the day and have parked somewhere, you're almost certainly better off not moving your car to drive to and park at the Peninsula. The Peninsula is walkable from almost anywhere along the Magnificent Mile, or you can get a cab for less than $10.00.
Atmosphere and Service
The Lobby is an elegant space befitting an upscale hotel like the Peninsula. Guests sit in cushioned chairs surrounded by decadent floral displays and gold-adorned pillars. This space manages to feel light, airy, and warm, even on a freezing March day like the one we visited. The atmosphere, although elegant, is more casual than one might think. Most of our fellow patrons were in jeans and laden with shopping bags, although I think officially the dress code is business casual.
Our server was attentive, if not overly friendly. The food kept coming and we were offered additional pots of tea on many times. The Lobby did make a little bit of a fuss over it being my birthday, which was nice.
Afternoon tea service runs around $36.00 per person and includes a pot of tea per person, a selection of sweet and savory snacks, and - at least on the day we visited - various other "surprises." True tea snobs can pay a few dollars more to upgrade to a "premium" selection of tea. Champagne is also an option as an add-on.
Food/Tea
Mr_chelledun and I don't know much about tea. I picked a standard Earl Grey Organic, which is what I always choose at these types of affairs. Mr_chelledun ended up with Sencha green tea at our server's recommendation. We both enjoyed numerous cups throughout our meal, poured from individual pots at our table.
The food came quickly at the Peninsula, and kept coming. We started by nibbling on four different types of tea sandwiches - curried chicken salad, grilled vegetable, smoked salmon, and a sausage and potato quiche. The chicken salad was the clear winner, the grilled vegetable the clear loser. Something about cold grilled zucchini is just yucky. Sadly, I don't like salmon and the quiche was a little bit dry, so my overall sandwich experience left something to be desired. I did ask for, and receive, a second chicken salad sandwich.
From the sandwiches, we headed into a bascuit of scones and cookies served with little dishes of jam, lemon curd, and clotted cream. The scones were unfortunately a little dryer than those I have loved elsewhere. Fortunately, the cookies redeemed the whole affair. We received several little triangles of homemade shortbread which was quite possibly the highlight of the meal.
We next moved into the truly sweet portion of the meal, starting with a selection of teensy weensy desserts. These got mixed reviews from us and most of them didn't even stick in my memory enough to comment on. I do know that we enjoyed a little round key lime tart (delightfully refreshing) and a cheesecake square with chocolate base (what's not to like?). We did not like the anise-based bite (too gross) or the wee panna cotta (too gooey).
We thought we were done eating when our server brought yet more sweets in the form of a cherry "soufflé of the day." The soufflé was okay, although the portion size was larger than necessary and the texture was a bit firmer than I would typically expect from a soufflé. Truth to be told, I question my objectivity at this point in the meal as we had fully hit sweet overload after each indulging in four or five of the dessert bites and were less than enthusiastic about the process of something else sugary.
Finally, we ended our meal with one extra course. Our server brought out a beautifully decorated plate containing a chocolate mousse dome dessert and "Happy Birthday" carefully written in hardened chocolate. We squeezed in as much additional chocolate as we possibly could before heading on our way to sleep off our sugar coma with an afternoon nap.
Overall . . .
Our tea experience at The Lobby was a bit of a mixed bag. I liked the airy, elegant atmosphere and the way the food kept coming. However, the food didn't quite come together for me. The menu could use a bit more balance, as the vast majority of items were extremely sweet and what savory offerings there were tended toward disappointing. Additionally, some of the desserts looked better than they actually tasted. For the money, I'd rather head down the street to the Drake where the sandwiches and desserts are better and the atmosphere is just as nice.
*Still thirsty for tea? Check out my review of the Palm Court.
Recommended:
No
Vegetarian Friendly: Yes
Best Suited For: Friends
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