Fine Dining Archives - Page 2 of 2

Afternoon Tea Week – an Expert Insight

Experiences, Fine Dining, Food & Drink, Rituals, Tea Aga

Given it’s Afternoon Tea Week in London this week – starting from the 12th of August – Aspiring Snob set out to learn more about this endearing and most English of traditions. After our own experience with Afternoon Tea at the amazing Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, we got hooked and have enjoyed many a sandwich and scone since then, while gaining a greater appreciation for good tea.

To help us on our journey of exploring afternoon tea, its etiquette and its history, we reached out to Eileen Donaghey, the Afternoon Tea Expert. “Afternoon tea is a distinctly British phenomenon that is currently enjoying a resurgence amongst those who appreciate fine food and drink. I’ve been passionate about afternoon tea and everything around it for a number of years and now have the opportunity to share my passion with like-minded enthusiasts from all over the world”, says Eileen.

Following the Oyster Trail

Deals, Experiences, Fine Dining, Food & Drink Aga

Discomfort Zone on a Plate

For years, oysters to me were in too much of a discomfort zone for my palate to actually try them with an open mind. It was not only their slimy appearance but also the largely misunderstood way of eating them. I believed that you were supposed to slurp them down without chewing. I used to think, “What was the point?” I like my taste buds to enjoy the intricacies of my food, of the memories that taste evokes. I love learning about new flavours and experiencing new combinations of heat, acid, salt and fat. Slurping without chewing oysters offered none of that. To me, it was just a strange experience with a weird texture sliding down my throat. No, thank you!

And it’s not like I hadn’t given oysters a chance before. I had ordered them, or had them part of a tasting menu in decent restaurants around the world. What turned out to be red flags was that these restaurants only ever had one kind of oyster, and far from specialised in them.

The Art of Tasting Wine at a Restaurant

Alcohol, Fine Dining, Food & Drink Tom

So you’re on a big date. Or an important meeting. Or out with some good friends. You’re at a nice restaurant. The kind of restaurant that irons the table cloths before each service. Maybe there’s a star or two involved. You’ve read the menu, shared your choices with your fellow diner(s) and even progressed past the often heated “red or white” debate.

This is arguably the most mysterious, unknown and contested point during a fine dining experience

As a result of being an avid reader of Aspiring Snob, you’ve also taken it upon yourself, or been assigned, to decide on the wine to accompany your fine meal. You’ve browsed through and weighed up the merits of New World versus Old World, the type of grape, perhaps the year and – cutting right to the chase – the price. Finally you settle on what you believe will be an impressive accompaniment to your meal and will increase your standing by pairing perfectly.