Afternoon Tea : Intercontinental Park Lane

2015 was all about starting new traditions, especially during the holiday season. It was our first ever Boxing Day and it only seemed appropriate that we celebrate with a very British Afternoon Tea!Intercontinental Park Lane is an elegant hotel with gorgeous dining areas in a very prime London position--right off of Hyde Park Corner. With several beautiful green areas right outside it's doors, Wellington Lounge was designed with the hopes of bringing the surrounding Royal Parks to the indoors. It has crisp, bright décor that makes you instantly feel settled and at ease, which is perfect because the Wellington Lounge doesn't set limits on your time at afternoon tea like so many other establishments. If you're comfortable, sit , stay and enjoy yourself as long as you please! (And believe me, we tested it out for you--3.5 hours!)For the Christmas Unwrapped Afternoon Tea, we did a lovely tea pairing with each course allowing us to try out several of their delicious teas and give you a good recommendation :).For the savory delicacies, we enjoyed a smoky Lapsang Souchong Falcon tea that played very well with the turkey and sage stuffing, warm stilton vol-au-vent, and honey roasted root vegetable pie, just to name a few. And I have to say my favorite savory snack was one not on the menu...a butternut squash and feta pastry. Scones are always my favorite part of afternoon tea and usually I stick to the basic, plain scones but I have to say the orange liquor curd with these warm scones was next level! We enjoyed this with a tasty Ceylon Nuwara Eliya Orange Pekoe Choicest.My favorite tea was the Red Berry Blend--the perfect herbal infusion tea with hints of apple and rosehip and of course, the gorgeous red color! It was a great compliment to the dessert portion of the afternoon tea that comes with the most gorgeous presentation--an actual Christmas present, to be unwrapped!