"The Tea Cosy" - Our New Mini & Secret Afternoon Tea Room

After many enquiries asking for smaller, more intimate afternoon tea parties, I am very excited to be announcing a new and very homely afternoon tea venue in Cambridge, or somewhere close to our City... for a Cambridgeshire retreat with a difference.. and free parking too – a real perk in our here region!

Introducing... The Tea Cosy

The perfect afternoon tea location for bookings from simply 2 to 5 people.

It’s your very own private tea room for 2 entire hours, with an entirely new Secluded Tea Party menu for each date listed below.

You will be able to book The Tea Cosy with Miss Sue Flay as your own personal tea hostess for the afternoon, whilst you get to sit back, lounge around, read a book, get to blogging or writing that important post or chapter you have been promising yourself you would complete, chat with your friends or family or even grab the chance to sit back and watch a film or a few episodes of your favourite box set should you prefer.

You can treat the Tea cosy as your own personal space and peace & quiet for the entire time you are there, enjoying the coffee table books and films provided, be it a girly chick flick you fancy indulging in, or a horror or indie film should you prefer something a little edgier with your afternoon tea or even bring your own if you would prefer.

Alternatively, you can simply have some relaxing background music on whilst you natter and nibble away to your heart’s content.

You won’t annoy anybody with your antics, it’s just you and your fellow afternoon tea guest/s for a full homemade afternoon tea menu and a vast selection of tea and coffee to order. Equally, you won’t be annoyed by children running around you or other afternoon tea guests listening in on your conversations, it’s just you and your own people here : )

It’s the perfect secluded venue for couples or for a date, perhaps even for a unique & romantic proposal, friends & family wanting to catch up, small civilised hen parties or birthday celebrations, “Ladies Wot Do Lunch”, men who want to indulge at lunch, or Just because you fancy a good old gossip in your own space for an hour or two..

There is plenty on the menu, to include finger sandwiches, homemade cakes & sweet treats, scones with all the trimmings and much more besides. Each menu is £25 per person (minimum is 2, maximum is 5) and will be different for each of the dates below. What doesn’t get eaten, you will take home with you to enjoy later on.

Whatever the reason, just email Miss Sue Flay at cake@secludedteaparty.com to secure & book your time slot from the dates & times below and tell her why you think you deserve to secure The Tea cosy for the afternoon.

On booking, you will receive details of its secret location and the appropriate etiquette for your visit.

The dates and times below are the only ones currently on offer, so get in quick to sample an entirely new & exciting venue and menu (Subject to change if I burn something along the way hehe).. Some evenings may be available, subject to a chat via email in the first instance... Just get in touch.  

Saturday 19^th May 2012  - £25 per person

12noon – 2pm – Available

3:30pm – 5:30pm – Available

MENU:

Finger Sandwiches, Including:

Cucumber, Cream Cheese & Mint

Free Range Egg Mayonnaise & Cress

Ham & Garlic Jam

***

Choice of Scones, from either:

Sweet Fruit & Spice Scones with Clotted Cream & Locally Sourced Preserves

Or Savoury Cheese Scones with a selection of herb butters

***

Selection of Cakes & Sweets:

Fruit & Chocolate Tarts with Vanilla Creme Patisserie 

Gorgeous Raspberry Coulis & Chocolate Cream Meringues

Teacup Trifles

***

Unlimited Tea & Coffee Selection

Tuesday 5^th June 2012    (Bank Holiday for Jubilee)  - £25 per person

12noon – 2pm – Available

3:30pm – 5:30pm – Available

MENU:

Finger Sandwiches, Including:

Red Leicester & Spring Onion

Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese

Ham & Garlic Jam

***

Choice of Scones, from either:

Sweet Fruit & Spice Scones with Clotted Cream & Locally Sourced Preserves

Or Savoury Cheese Scones with a selection of herb butters

***

Selection of Cakes & Sweets:

Warm Blondies, served with Fresh Strawberries & Cream

Banana Split Bites

Nutella Teacup Cheesecakes

***

Unlimited Tea & Coffee Selection

Sunday 17^th June 2012   (Fathers Day) - £25 per person

12noon – 2pm – Available

3:30pm – 5:30pm – Available

MENU:

Finger Sandwiches, Including:

Cucumber, Cream Cheese & Mint

Free Range Egg Mayonnaise & Cress

Ham & Garlic Jam

***

Choice of Scones, from either:

Sweet Fruit & Spice Scones with Clotted Cream & Locally Sourced Preserves

Or Savoury Cheese Scones with a selection of herb butters

***

Selection of Cakes & Sweets:

Fruit Tartlet Bar, with Fresh Fruit & Crème Patisserie

Oreo Cookies & Cream Truffle Selection

Peanut Butter Mousse & Meringue Dipping Kisses

***

Unlimited Tea & Coffee Selection

Saturday 30^th June 2012    - £25 per person

12noon – 2pm – Available

3:30pm – 5:30pm – Available

MENU:

Finger Sandwiches, Including:

Red Leicester & Spring Onion

Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese

Ham & Garlic Jam

***

Choice of Scones, from either:

Sweet Fruit & Spice Scones with Clotted Cream & Locally Sourced Preserves

Or Savoury Cheese Scones with a selection of herb butters

***

Selection of Cakes & Sweets:

Chocolate Ganache & Raspberry Cake

Ritz Torte

Strawberry Shortcake Popsicles

***

Unlimited Tea & Coffee Selection

And I hope from here, you are salivating as much as I was making up these menus... and do get in touch to book your slot before it goes to somebody else  : )

Miss Sue Flay

x

A Civilised Hen Party... At Their Lovely Cambridgeshire Family Home

Last weekend I was witness and host to the loveliest & most civilised Hen party I have ever been part of, I was very lucky to be involved and I had a great time helping out to make this memorable for the gorgeous bride-to-be.

Emma, the sister of the bride has been to one of my events previously and she is such a sweetie for asking me to help host her sisters’ surprise Hen party at their home in the gorgeous Cambridgeshire Countryside. Of course, I said yes, it was going to be a first for me in going to my guests home, rather than them coming to me, so exciting.

The original idea was to hold it in their stunning garden and orchard, however with the changeable weather (This IS England, of course it was threatening rain, when isn’t it?!) so we set up in their gorgeous kitchen and dining room instead, which gave me huge house envy, I must admit.

With the bunting up and the table set up in a buffet style with mis-matching teacups & saucers, side plates, cutlery and of course the food itself, it looked great and I was chuffed to bits with the way the afternoon panned out.

The Hen knew she was having a tea party, but she didn’t know she was going to be pampered just as much as she was hehe. She enjoyed sipping out of the lovely teacup she had made to commemorate this afternoon along with my delicious layer cakes, including my Tuck Shop Cake and a Lemon & Blueberry Layer Cake as well as my home made fruit & spice scones, served warm from their very own Aga. It was a kitchen dream for me and I loved every minute of it. 

I was able to stand back and let the lovely ladies spoil the lovely Steph, whilst I was on hand in the background to serve loose leaf tea whenever they needed me. 

Plus, that way I got to people watch and see just how lucky this lovely lady is in her loving friends and family and some of my very youngest tea party guests hehe. The little lady with the prettiest outfit and huge white flower in her hair was snoozing in the land of cake fairies after a few bites of my tasty treats, awww so cute!

I was also mightily impressed by the gorgeous gifts they had bought from a lovely local lady who makes stunning personalised crockery and wrapped up a lovely cake stand and a commemorative plate with a pen for everybody to sign and then fire at home for her to keep as a gift. I may well get one myself for The Secluded Tea Party one of these days, such a great idea!

So, with practice, means I now have the hen tea party bug!... For any need of a civilised celebration, just drop me a line, I would be more than happy to have a chat. 

You can book a Hen Party Afternoon Tea or Tea Party in Cambridge or in any location you wish, either at home, a venue of your choice or one of our chosen afternoon tea venues, no matter how many guests you have we can cater for 3 to 30 guests onwards, so just email Miss Sue Flay for all your Hen Tea Party needs. 

cake@secludedteaparty.com 

But most importantly - Steph, congratulations and Good Luck for your big day! xxx

Miss Sue Flay 

x

Hunt & Darton Pop-Up Cafe - Cambridge

I honestly can't resist sharing this with you all. 

It was only last week I saw my lovely friend, Deepa (also known as lazy Giraffe hehe) had been saying that Cambridge needed a new pop-up restaurant or a tearoom or a new underground foodie location and I then went home, flicked through the latest edition of the Cambridgeshire Journal magazine and saw just the ticket...

Not only do we have the fabulous Scrimshaws Supperclub, A Saucepan & A Suitcase and the upcoming Plate Lickers Anonymous...

Cambridge is now home to Hunt & Darton, a pop-up cafe in the very heart of Cambridge City Centre, well, for the next few weeks anyway!...

Hunt & Darton Cafe is the brainchild of local and arty duo, Jenny Hunt and Holly Darton, where they intend to incorporate live art within a cafe, based on Regent Street no less.

From the moment you walk in, you will be chuckling, it’s Random with a capital R... Salt & Pepper on the tables, resting on Action Men dressed as Barbies, Pineapples on the table tops as decoration, a customer tally on the huge blackboard on one wall (Of which you are asked to chalk yourself onto to help them keep track of how many customers they attract... Some dogs are even mentioned on this tally....!) as well as an openly public loss and profit count on the wall for all to see, actually telling you how much they make on anything from their Roast Dinner Sandwich to a cup of tea a Wagon Wheel.

On sitting at our table we were greeted with a friendly waiter with a name tag "Low Profile"... We weren't sure what to make of the polo he offered each of us before we ordered, but we naturally became traditionally British and accepted and proceeded to suck the mints prior to our coffee and tea course haha.... We didn't question this at the time, but suddenly thought about the logic a day or two afterwards : ) 

Our Roast dinner sandwiches were interesting to say the least, we had expected them to be hot but on arrival, they were indeed cold meat and vegetables with all the trimmings in between 3 lovely layers of fresh bread. I went for the Roast beef with Parsnips, Carrots, Stuffing and even some Gravy and Horseradish mixed in there and it was filling and not too bad for £4. The mister had a Roast Chicken & Cranberry Roast dinner sandwich and it was lovely and sweet and more up my street as a cold sarnie, but the concept was great, being that was initially had us fancying a trip there to give these badboys a go. 

We weren't disappointed, we chuckled all the way through and enjoyed flicking through their specially made paper to browse through with more and more random musings and articles. We were entertained all the way through our visit. 

The amusing menu on the table tells you how to take tea properly (don't tap your spoon on the side of your tea cup don't you know?!) with etiquette that you could in fact learn at our very own Secluded Tea Party & Etiquette lesson coming up in September. 

But what is great about this is that on the other side of the menu it tells you to go completely against these manners and just simply play with your food... Titled "How to Play With Your Food", you can order a slice of Battenburg and are advised to Uncouple the pink and yellow sponge and reassemble in the form of a model castle. 

Or try ordering a Tunnocks Teacake and roll up the foil wrapper into a ball and throw it in each others mugs (the mister didn't wait for me to finish my tea so I got a little wetter than planned... hmmm). 

If you like trying new experiences and you like playing with your food, this is the place for you to try out!

Hunt & Darton Cafe is at 100 Regent Street in Cambridge until 27th May, so get your bum down there and support this project, it's so much fun. 

And if you get hooked, you can go back again and again and after 4 trips with stamps on your loyalty card, you get a special treat... Oooh intriguing!

Even each till receipt is a piece of art in it's own right, with each one being completely unique. It could be worth money one day, you never know hehe... I loved it and I am so glad we took a visit. 

We were kids for an hour or so and enjoyed making boobies out of pieces of Battenburg and flicked our Tunnocks wrappers at each other... where else will ever let you do that as a "Done" thing to do with your cuppa?!... Enough said ; ) 

100 Regent Street (Opposite De Luca Restaurant) 

Cambridge

CB2 1DP

http://liveartcollectiveeast.com/hunt-darton-cafe

Wednesday - Sunday 

10am to 6pm 

Miss Sue Flay 

x

"The Tea Cosy" - Our New Mini & Secret Afternoon Tea Room

After many enquiries asking for smaller, more intimate afternoon tea parties, I am very excited to be announcing a new and very homely afternoon tea venue in Cambridge, or somewhere close to our City... for a Cambridgeshire retreat with a difference.. and free parking too – a real perk in our here region!

Introducing... The Tea Cosy

The perfect afternoon tea location for bookings from simply 2 to 5 people.

It’s your very own private tea room for 2 entire hours, with an entirely new Secluded Tea Party menu for each date listed below.

You will be able to book The Tea Cosy with Miss Sue Flay as your own personal tea hostess for the afternoon, whilst you get to sit back, lounge around, read a book, get to blogging or writing that important post or chapter you have been promising yourself you would complete, chat with your friends or family or even grab the chance to sit back and watch a film or a few episodes of your favourite box set should you prefer.

You can treat the Tea cosy as your own personal space and peace & quiet for the entire time you are there, enjoying the coffee table books and films provided, be it a girly chick flick you fancy indulging in, or a horror or indie film should you prefer something a little edgier with your afternoon tea or even bring your own if you would prefer.

Alternatively, you can simply have some relaxing background music on whilst you natter and nibble away to your heart’s content.

You won’t annoy anybody with your antics, it’s just you and your fellow afternoon tea guest/s for a full homemade afternoon tea menu and a vast selection of tea and coffee to order. Equally, you won’t be annoyed by children running around you or other afternoon tea guests listening in on your conversations, it’s just you and your own people here : )

It’s the perfect secluded venue for couples or for a date, perhaps even for a unique & romantic proposal, friends & family wanting to catch up, small civilised hen parties or birthday celebrations, “Ladies Wot Do Lunch”, men who want to indulge at lunch, or Just because you fancy a good old gossip in your own space for an hour or two..

There is plenty on the menu, to include finger sandwiches, homemade cakes & sweet treats, scones with all the trimmings and much more besides. Each menu is £25 per person (minimum is 2, maximum is 5) and will be different for each of the dates below. What doesn’t get eaten, you will take home with you to enjoy later on.

Whatever the reason, just email Miss Sue Flay at cake@secludedteaparty.com to secure & book your time slot from the dates & times below and tell her why you think you deserve to secure The Tea cosy for the afternoon.

On booking, you will receive details of its secret location and the appropriate etiquette for your visit.

The dates and times below are the only ones currently on offer, so get in quick to sample an entirely new & exciting venue and menu (Subject to change if I burn something along the way hehe).. Some evenings may be available, subject to a chat via email in the first instance... Just get in touch.  

Saturday 19^th May 2012  - £25 per person

12noon – 2pm – Available

3:30pm – 5:30pm – Available

MENU:

Finger Sandwiches, Including:

Cucumber, Cream Cheese & Mint

Free Range Egg Mayonnaise & Cress

Ham & Garlic Jam

***

Choice of Scones, from either:

Sweet Fruit & Spice Scones with Clotted Cream & Locally Sourced Preserves

Or Savoury Cheese Scones with a selection of herb butters

***

Selection of Cakes & Sweets:

Fruit & Chocolate Tarts with Vanilla Creme Patisserie 

Gorgeous Raspberry Coulis & Chocolate Cream Meringues

Teacup Trifles

***

Unlimited Tea & Coffee Selection

Tuesday 5^th June 2012    (Bank Holiday for Jubilee)  - £25 per person

12noon – 2pm – Available

3:30pm – 5:30pm – Available

MENU:

Finger Sandwiches, Including:

Red Leicester & Spring Onion

Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese

Ham & Garlic Jam

***

Choice of Scones, from either:

Sweet Fruit & Spice Scones with Clotted Cream & Locally Sourced Preserves

Or Savoury Cheese Scones with a selection of herb butters

***

Selection of Cakes & Sweets:

Warm Blondies, served with Fresh Strawberries & Cream

Banana Split Bites

Nutella Teacup Cheesecakes

***

Unlimited Tea & Coffee Selection

Sunday 17^th June 2012   (Fathers Day) - £25 per person

12noon – 2pm – Available

3:30pm – 5:30pm – Available

MENU:

Finger Sandwiches, Including:

Cucumber, Cream Cheese & Mint

Free Range Egg Mayonnaise & Cress

Ham & Garlic Jam

***

Choice of Scones, from either:

Sweet Fruit & Spice Scones with Clotted Cream & Locally Sourced Preserves

Or Savoury Cheese Scones with a selection of herb butters

***

Selection of Cakes & Sweets:

Fruit Tartlet Bar, with Fresh Fruit & Crème Patisserie

Oreo Cookies & Cream Truffle Selection

Peanut Butter Mousse & Meringue Dipping Kisses

***

Unlimited Tea & Coffee Selection

Saturday 30^th June 2012    - £25 per person

12noon – 2pm – Available

3:30pm – 5:30pm – Available

MENU:

Finger Sandwiches, Including:

Red Leicester & Spring Onion

Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese

Ham & Garlic Jam

***

Choice of Scones, from either:

Sweet Fruit & Spice Scones with Clotted Cream & Locally Sourced Preserves

Or Savoury Cheese Scones with a selection of herb butters

***

Selection of Cakes & Sweets:

Chocolate Ganache & Raspberry Cake

Ritz Torte

Strawberry Shortcake Popsicles

***

Unlimited Tea & Coffee Selection

And I hope from here, you are salivating as much as I was making up these menus... and do get in touch to book your slot before it goes to somebody else  : )

Miss Sue Flay

x