Crown & Crumpet

Tim and I finally got around to trying out Crown & Crumpet on March 13th.  It was the day of the Pacquiao fight, but we wanted to go up to SF and go on a little adventure, a little food adventure!  =)

He made reservations for 2pm, but they didn’t have anything available in the main seating area so we booked a bar seating.  We took some time getting ready and was actually running behind schedule so we didn’t end up getting to the city till after 2.  I was a bit nervous that they wouldn’t seat us since they’re always so busy.  Fortunately, the bar was occupied and they had tables opened, so they kindly sat us down.  I’m not one to wear pink or do anything girly at all, so being in this place where it looks like hot pink walked in the room and threw up everywhere made me a bit uneasy.  Haha.  Alice in Wonderland had just come out around that time I think so there were posters up and the theme was of that inside.

I think the owners of this place ARE British so it would be an authentic English tea room.

It only makes sense to have Tea for Two… Haha.  Cheaper than Tyme for Tea and more food; just farther from home.

They do offer other items on the menu if you’re not interested in high tea - hence the picture of the Light Lunches sign.  ;)

Cute stork.  There was a baby shower behind me and I didn’t realize how perfectly placed that stork was until now haha.

Part of the Alice in Wonderland theme.  I love the pig!

“I need a pig!”

I really like the authenticity that antique tea cups and saucers have.  These are cute, but it reminds me of play time.  It doesn’t give me the ambiance I need while having afternoon tea.

I rarely get anything other than green tea because it doesn’t contain as much caffeine as others.  Although, I just recently learned that white tea has the least amount of caffeine and doesn’t really have a bitter taste like some green tea blends do.

I caught Tim mid-pour.  He ordered a peach flavored tea and it smelled fantastic.  I just don’t like the taste because it will never leave my tongue and it’ll give me a headache all day.  Haha.  ;)

Three tiers of yumminess!

Lemon curd, *clotted cream (top center), butter, and strawberry jam.

*Clotted cream (similar to, but not to be confused with Devonshire cream or Devon cream) is a thick yellow cream made by heating unpasteurised cow’s milk and then leaving it in shallow pans for several hours. During this time, the cream content rises to the surface and forms clots. (via Wikipedia)

Bottom tier: mini pastries, chocolate, and a mini fruit bowl.

Middle tier: crumpets and scones.

Top tier: tea sandwiches.

Tim’s point of view.

The top scone is plain and the bottom is black currant I believe.  These weren’t as soft and doughy like the ones at Tyme.  In fact, the crust was hard.  Oh, let me mention that I forgot about taking pics for a second and devoured my crumpet without realizing I hadn’t taken a picture of it!  Oops.  I was hungry!

There were two sandwiches that were the same and one of them was an egg salad sandwich.  I don’t know about you, but I think an egg salad sandwich is really good.  Some people don’t like it and it probably has to do with the smell of hard boiled eggs.  Too good to pass up!

The second full sandwich was the cucumber one.  The smaller, bite sized pieces you see there are halves of the other sandwiches they served.  Left to right: Smoked salmon, brie, chicken curry, and roast beef.

Almond bar that I passed off to Tim even though he had his own.  Sugar crystals irritate me because they grind on my pearly whites and I can hear it inside my head.  Makes me shiver thinking about it.

Mini cupcake that wasn’t so easy to take out of the paper cup.  I didn’t eat the frosting because I never really eat frosting.

A dark chocolate truffle.  So rich and decadent.  Tim couldn’t finish his, but I had no problem savoring this piece of happiness in a fluted paper cup - lol.  It went well with the fruit because it cut into the tartness.

Lemon tart with fresh blueberries.  Do I really need to explain this?

Recap: Crown & Crumpet - think of this as your play time tea party.  It’s playful, child-like effect, but it’s still good.  It’s reasonably priced and it is located at Ghirardelli Square, next to the wharf.  They have plenty of selections on their menu so you’re not limited to having just afternoon high tea.  Remember to make a reservation!  They have indoor and outdoor seating.  And they’re also quick with their service.  Tim and I are taking both of our moms there for Mother’s Day.  It costs an arm and a leg for that day, but I think it’s worth it and they’ll both enjoy it - at least I hope they do.

More tea, Gov’na?

Now read the title with an English accent…so much cooler that way!

I love going to Tea Parties!  Thanks to Jess, they are my new thing now.  This is my first tea house in Old NIles, called Tyme for Tea & Co.  It is an antique shop, but they also have a tea room which is really cute and just slightly femme.  I first went here for Jess’ bday a couple of weeks ago and have been back 3 times since then.  What can I say? I love tea, especially Green Tea!

Today happens to be a special day at Tyme for Tea because of Halloween.  They had a prix fixe tea menu set which I will break down into details shortly.

My husband is secure enough to be seen at a tea party AND wear a hat!  Except his head is really big, so nothing ever fits.

Here’s us.  I found a medium sized red hat with a large bow that’s supposed to be in the back, but I wanted it in the front so there you go.  The girl sitting behind us was dressed up as the Bride of Frankenstein and the lady sitting to her left is Lucy - I love Lucy.

There’s Jess with her hat.  She eventually changed her hat to the yellow one you see hanging on the left side of the pic.

Caramel Spiced Apple tea.  I generally don’t go for flavored teas because the aroma makes me nauseous.  I also don’t care for the flavor, but for today’s festivities, I played along and had about 3 cups; normally I can finish my own tea pot.

I had to wear the spider ring!

Pumpkin spiced scone with sugar crystals on top.  This was pretty good regardless of the sugar crystals.  It wasn’t as doughy as the blueberry scone they normally serve, but this was scrumptious.

Orange butter to accompany the scone.

The scone was a bit flaky and crumbly.  The butter was a great compliment to the pumpkin.

Your classic tea sandwich: White bread with cucumber, radish, and what I think may have been cream cheese, with fresh dill.

Ham and cheese croissant.  The ham wasn’t too salty, a bit sweet actually which countered the cheese.  This is not a part of the regular menu.

Almonds in cheese spread crostini.  The bread they used was sourdough and the nuts were a great touch.  I prefer French baguettes, but the melted cheese went very well with it.

This was the heaviest sandwich served.  Chicken salad on wheat bread with walnuts.  I can never finish this one.  I gave half of mine to Tim.

Feta, olives, and something else in phyllo sheets.  It was a bit tangy for my taste and I don’t care for olives much, but I did finish it.  This is also not part of the regular menu.

Dessert!

Petit Fours: they’re like mini cakes covered in chocolate.  I didn’t like the cream that was in between the thin sheets of cake, but look at how cute these are!!

Chocolate pecan turtles.  The best option on that plate!  Phyllo sheets covered in chocolate, thick caramel with chunks of pecans.  It wasn’t heavy or overwhelmingly sweet.  Although, I did remove some of the caramel.

S’mores truffle.  These weren’t that great because of the cream in the middle.  I took a bite and left it on my plate.

Chocolate dipped shortbread cookies shaped into bats.  I just ate the chocolate part.  ;)

There was a raffle at the end of the our tea party.  I got my ticket ready and decided to put on some lip conditioner.  I was just reading the numbers while they were calling out the winner and thought to myself, “oh I’m so going to win this” and they called out my number!!  Awesome!

I have so many other pictures from my past tea parties that I will post.  I won’t add too much text because 1) it’s late and 2) I’m lazy now.

First tea party for Jess’ bday.

Jess got champagne and I got apple cider.

That is THE best scone I’ve ever had!!  Blueberry scone with creme fraiche and raspberry preserves….

Green tea with lemon.

Jess’ hat.

My hat.

Tea sandwiches; only two differences are the mushroom turnovers and the spanakopita.  I believe that was a different cheese spread on the crostini as well.

Dessert: petit fours, chocolate cheesecake bites [almost fudge like], and ginger snap cookies which were delicious dunked in your tea.

I craved the scone so much that the next day, Tim and I went.

There he is with his Lebanese hat thing…

Let me just put this out there: I don’t normally wear floral tops or pink for that matter, but since we were going to tea, I figured why not.  It just so happens, they had a hat that had the same color scheme going on.  SO, I didn’t match on purpose for the record..ok..

My tea cup was bigger than Tim’s.  He had to stick out his pinky in order to hold it properly.

Recap: Tyme for Tea in Old Niles.  On regular days, they have set menus that include everything you’ve seen in this post.  It’s called the Victorian something.  It doesn’t look like it’ll be enough food, but boy does it fill you up!  They have a great selection of teas and the best part is, you can buy them at the store.  They even have the same scone mixture that they serve.  I bought some to try out here at home, but I haven’t had a chance to make them.  Tea parties are 50% experience and 50% tea/food.  I don’t think it should be strictly limited to girls because boys can have fun too!  I’m so hooked that I’m on a mission to try out different tea places and blog about my tea adventures!

I grew up in the Philippines, so I never had my own tea set or had tea parties with friends.  I was a tomboy and still am, but I’ve gotten in touch with my feminine side - for the most part anyway.  I can’t wait to own a house with a big open backyard so I can have tea parties and be dainty.  =)