Review: Kopi Tiam afternoon tea at the Pan Pacific London hotel
A Singaporean twist on afternoon tea from the excellent Cherish Finden
When you’re writing about somewhere you’ve eaten, it’s important to be honest, covering the positives – and of course, the negatives. It’s important to maintain integrity, especially when you’re not being paid off by Big Cake to only focus on the good stuff.
But sometimes there isn’t really anything to criticise. Sometimes an experience is basically faultless. That’s the way to describe the Kopi Tiam afternoon tea at the Pan Pacific London hotel.
Ok, so perhaps one criticism is that it’s not cheap, and nor would you expect it to be at the newest luxury hotel in London. It’s a special occasion experience for sure. But at the same time, it’s not expensive, and you certainly won’t leave feeling hard done by at £68 per person, or £78 per person if you have a glass of fizz (and why wouldn't you, it's afternoon tea after all).
You’re greeted by Veejay, who might just scoop the prize of London’s friendliest doorman, and whisked a short distance into the airy lobby, which is all curves and calm. It feels, perhaps unsurprisingly, like being in a luxury hotel in Asia.
The view from our table down to the lobby at the Pan Pacific London
Despite being so close to the chaos of Liverpool Street, you wouldn’t know it. You enter the space and can’t help but take a big restorative breath. We don’t know how they’ve done it, but the whole place just feels relaxing.
In the Orchid Lounge, the space has been thoughtfully filled with plants, art, Bonsai trees, statement arty furniture, marble topped tables and comfortable chairs and sofas. It looks lovely from any and every angle.
There are two afternoon teas on offer: a Traditional Delights tea showcasing quintessential British sandwiches and scones, and the one we opted for, Kopi Tiam.
From 11th November, there will be festive options on offer too, featuring a new selection of patisserie that we know Santa would be thrilled with.
Kopi Tiam afternoon tea by Cherish Finden at the Pan Pacific London
Image: Cherish Finden's Instagram
The Kopi Tiam afternoon tea is the work of executive pastry chef Cherish Finden. Cherish is recognised as one of the world’s top pastry chefs, having worked in some of the most prestigious hotel kitchens in the world, as well as becoming a household name as a TV Chef and international consultant. In 1991, Cherish discovered her passion for pâtisserie with her first role at the iconic Pan Pacific Hotel in Singapore, and has returned to the group almost 30 years later to take on the role of Executive Pastry Chef at Pan Pacific London, the first European outpost for the collection.
‘Kopi Tiam’ means ‘coffee shop’ and is something commonly served across Singapore to people of all walks of life, combining traditional dishes from the different ethnicities that make up the fabric of modern Singapore.
Cherish’s take on Kopi Tiam blends the great British tradition of afternoon tea, with the flavours of her home in Singapore.
What's on the menu?
We love that you can pair the afternoon tea with a glass of English Sparkling Wine: Nyetimber Classic Cuvée, Nyetimber Cuvée Cherie (demi sec), and Nyetimber Rosé are all on offer as the suggested pairings, but there’s a whole separate menu of fizz by the glass if you want to go rogue.
The hotel opened at the start of September, so everything is still pretty new, but you wouldn’t know it in terms of the service.
The staff know the menu – and the teas – inside out. That’s very helpful, as the tea menu is packed with exciting and rare things it’s unlikely you will have tried before. All the teas are sourced by the Rare Tea Company, whose aim is to source and supply the world’s best products directly from farmers and their tea gardens.
As ever, we were a little indecisive as we wanted to try so many of them, but eventually, with the help of our waiter, opted for Pipachá. It’s a Chinese Fujian oolong tea matured for many months in Niepoort barrels once used to age fine port wine. The result is a complex flavour of dried fruits and honey, with delicate tannins and an elegant port wine nose and finish.
We then switched to Malawi white peony tea for our last course of sweet treats. That’s described as a fragrant and extremely beautiful whole leaf white tea. Picked from a unique field and carefully handcrafted to retain the sublime flavours. A delicate infusion with peach, stewed apricots and aromas of hay with a subtle umami note.
Once we were settled with our fizz and our tea, it was on to the food. Sometimes with afternoon tea, it can be a little overwhelming to be presented with a huge tiered tray dominating the table, but there was no sign of that here.
Leisurely, over the course of a couple of hours, plate after plate of wonderful creation arrived. A surprise greeted us first, presented in half an egg shell with what looked like an egg in it. And it came with a challenge (only if we were up for it): could we guess the three flavours?
We got there with two: mango and lime, but couldn’t place the third. Having gone through every citrus fruit we could think of, it turned out to be calamansi, a Filipino citrus fruit that’s a hybrid between a kumquat and a mandarin orange.
Then it was onto the savoury dishes, starting with a trio of dim sum: beetroot, pea and pumpkin; mushroom; and har gow (prawn).
At the same time, the eccentric bird cages were utilised and housed a couple of plates, with a steam basket popped on our side table.
A potato and carrot curry puff and char siu sou (BBQ pork pastry) were flaky bites of perfection, finished with a pillowy button and chestnut mushroom bao bun, painted to resemble a mushroom.
Moving into the sweets
The next stage of our culinary journey was onto Cherish’s childhood favourites, and a bridge between the savoury and sweet patisserie to follow.
’Taste of umami’ is a seaweed sesame shortbread with soya sauce caramel and a stunning edible design on it (answers please if anyone knows how they’re made). This had hints of sweetness, but with an interesting savoury note.
And then a steamed squidgy mochi filled with white chocolate, lime and a dark chocolate ganache. No one flavour overpowered the other, and we both ended up taking tiny nibbles to ensure it lasted as long as possible.
Time for a tea change, and a move into patisserie proper. What was delivered to our table can only be described as a plate of art.
Four perfect patisserie. We were told they could be enjoyed in any order, but that there was a suggested order so the flavours didn’t overwhelm each other.
We started with the lychee choux bun, with crémaux, a rose bandung sphere and the most delicate sugar butterflies.
We took a brief tropical holiday with a coconut mousse filled chocolate coconut shell, mango, lime zest, and a chocolate straw.
Then onto the ‘Cheongsam’, the yellow tower filled with matcha, yuzu, and black sesame. Even the chocolate shell tasted of yuzu. And despite those powerful flavours, once again it was all perfectly balanced.
Naturally, the last one was the most intense: 67% Guanacoa chocolate, praline, chocolate brownies, and crunchy pearl pieces.
We sat around for a while afterwards, finishing our tea and not really wanting to leave. The temptation of a cocktail menu appeared, but we had a train to catch.
If you're looking for an afternoon tea with a difference, we couldn't recommend the Kopi Tiam tea at the Pan Pacific London more highly. It's wonderful and we've genuinely found it impossible to really criticise anything. Next time we might have to book a room and get tucked into that cocktail menu too.
Do you love afternoon tea? What's the best afternoon tea you've ever had?
Join In
Comments (9)
Amazing pictures, Rachel. I love hotels, and this made me smile for a bit.
Aww thanks Jenny, that's a lovely comment! It was fabulous!
So classy and beautiful
I just don't know how people manage to make patisserie that beautiful!!
Beautiful presentation.
Isn't it?!
It is something I plan on doing when I’m in the UK. Thanks for sharing!
Looks absolutely droolicious! I think I've been away from the UK for far too long though, those prices would give me a heart attack! 🐸😁😎
This afternoon tea looks so lovely. The patterns on the tempered chocolate of the chocolate cake look beautiful! This place is in my wish list. The best afternoon tea I had so far was at the Russian tea room in Chicago.