Cream-clotted scones with your tea, sir?

For those who grew up under the influence of Enid Blyton and her books The Faraway Tree The Five Find Outers and The Famous Five the concept of the British High Tea is not new Remember Fatty munching on a creamclotted scone while Daisy in her prim and proper pinafore took delicate bites of a muffin Tomboy George would gorge on salmon sandwiches while Anne neatly nibbled on croissants while we salivated at Blytonrsquos delectable descriptions The high tea is served in a threetier platter at the Atrium Lounge Taj Landrsquos End Bandra For years Mumbai restaurants have followed brick shifts called lunch and dinner closing the place in the rsquonoon for lsquocleaningrsquo In the past two years however there has been a growth in holiday dining according to Mumbaibased food writer Antoine Lewis ldquoToday restaurateurs have to utiltise their space and time to the maximum to make a profit Many eateries have had allday dining but now they have a special afternoon menu with interesting presentationsrdquo says Lewis explaining the British concept of high tea Mini burger at Veda Lower Parel PicPradeep Dhivar ldquoThis is a tradition of British aristrocrats the ones who have a lot of free time It refers to tea time with a selection of bitesized savoury and sweet items such as classic pastry scones with clotted cream summer jams cucumber cream cheese or salmon sandwichesrdquo says Lewis adding that this concept overlaps with the Indian concept of chaibiscuit time ldquoBhajia biscuit and chai has been a 4 orsquoclock activity for us but Mumbaiites are now lapping up the flavoured foods that high tea comes withrdquo Sandwiches at Saffron Bay Marine Lines PicBipin Kokate A month ago Corniche a nine monthold waterfront eatery at Carter Road Bandra started a special hightea menu The first few weeks saw only one or two takers per day A month on the eatery serves an average of 25 high teas in a day ldquoBetween 4 and 7 pm a lot of corporates from nearby offices and youngsters frequent the place We thought it was a great time to serve them a light hightea menu while they chilled and watched the setting sunrdquo says owner Shashank Kadam Corniche serves a mixed bag of croissants sponge pastries stuffed buns veg and nonveg sandwiches and a pot of tea and coffee for Rs 350 plus taxes While afternoon menus at many restaurants were previously sampled mainly by giggling students bunking class or kitty party groups a lot of corporates today prefer conducting meetings over hightea rather than a formal lunch or dinner Waffles at Temperance Deli Bandra W Pic Sunil Tiwari Juhu resident Shyam Dalal a regular at Corniche walked in for a meeting last month ldquoThe presentation of the high tea menu was amazing While the serving was not very filling it was ideal for an afternoon snack to keep me going till dinner time I munched on a veg sandwich and some coffeerdquo says the 27 yearold analyst in the financial sector Akanksha Rawal restaurant manager at Atrium Lounge Taj Landrsquos End however feels that the Mumbai palate is not completely ready to indulge in a classic British high tea menu ldquoWhen itrsquos tea time we want our basic masala chai and a filling snackrdquou00a0Thatrsquos why their afternoon high tea menu apart from offering the classic scones muffins and open sandwiches also serves items such as fish fingers and prawn tempura ldquoWhile the foreign customers go for the classic high tea we do get a lot of Indian corporates wanting something more heavy with their afternoon teardquo says Rawal Where to head for high tea Corniche Menu 2 types of pastries 2 types of croissants quiches muffins cold sandwiches 1 pot of tea or coffee At Carter Road Bandra For Rs 350 plus taxes Temperance Deli A la carte menu includes waffles French baguettes Brushettas teas and coffees At 1st floor St Xaverian Court Sherly Rajan Road Bandra West Call 9833833270 Saffron Bay Menu A la carte menu includes pitafils cucumber sandwiches samosas apple pie and juices At 39B Chowpatty Seaface Next to Cafeacute Coffee Day Marine Drive Marine Lines Call 23696992 Atrium Lounge A la carte menu includes prawn tempura fish fingers and a classic assortment of muffins sandwiches pastries croissants At Taj Landrsquos End Bandra For Rs 1200 plus taxes Call 66681234 Veda The TeaTox menu has Delhi chaat galavati burger and shahi roll At Palladium Mall High Street Phoenix Senapati Bapat Marg Lower Parel At Rs 325 and Rs 275 Call 43326666 u00a0