Cheyne Walk Brasserie & Meringue Girls – Afternoon Tea with a French twist – Review
Cheyne Walk Brasserie is on the Chelsea side of the river front between Battersea and Albert Bridge, has attempted to sprinkle some French magic on the afternoon tea experience by partnering with Hackney’s Famous Meringue Girls. Updating the British centuries-old ritual with little Provençal touches alongside a selection of mouthwatering meringue kisses that look almost too good to eat. London Life UK were invited along to Afternoon Tea at Cheyne Walk to try out their new concept and in the main it works.
Afternoon Tea comprises of three tiers of delicate fancies inspired by the Brasserie’s French heritage, accompanied by an optional glass of Champagne Thiénot Brut and 12 different teas to choose from. This is an Afternoon Tea for those with a sweet tooth, Though it does includes a selection of finger sandwiches; Ham hock and dijon mustard, Mediterranean vegetables with pesto and Smoked salmon with chive cream cheese.
Scones and sweet pastries, have been given a french twist with freshly prepared Brioche with strawberry jam and pain aux raisins. Chocolate éclairs and apricot and almond tarts were also a tasty addition. While the final serving of unique meringues from the Meringue Girls which included ‘Cheyne Chocolat’ (chocolate), ‘French Martini’ (raspberry) and ‘La Vie en Rose’ (pistachio and rosewater) flavours, the latter being our favourite.
The finger sandwiches while OK, felt like a bit of an afterthought with the main event of course was the selection of desserts, in particular the ‘Kisses’ as the Meringue Girls like to call them.
To put it plainly, if you’re a savoury person this is not for you, we doubt there will be enough to keep you happy. But if you have a sweet tooth, you should find your needs well catered for and at £19.50 it’s not badly priced considering how sort after the Meringue Girls ‘Kisses’ are at the moment. It’s when you add in the extra £10 for a glass of Champagne or £13 for the Rosé Champagne it starts getting rather expensive. To put it into perspective, Prêt-à-Portea Afternoon Tea at the Berkeley Hotel, which is arguably London’s best comes with a glass of Champagne for only £19 more and it is money well spent.
However one thing the Berkeley Hotel can’t match is the views, as guests who book in advance will be seated upstairs with a lovely view of the River Thames, which also makes it perfectly located for a post afternoon
stroll along the river to burn off all those calories.
Conclusion: We’ve decide not to give this review a score, not because it is bad, because it’s far from bad if you have a sweet tooth, in fact it’s great. But if you haven’t got a sweet tooth , we simply can’t recommend it. Saying that you probably made you mind up long before our conclusion anyway.
To book Visit: www.cheynewalkbrasserie.com