Cost – £14.95 (May 2015)
Background – The Orestone Manor Hotel is a small, well presented hotel in Maidencombe, not far from Torquay. It occupies a lovely position overlooking the sea, and has a lovely garden behind it.
Contents – 9 finger sandwiches between the two of us, of three varieties (egg mayonnaise, ham with chutney and smoked salmon with cucumber), a good sized plain scone, a large dish of strawberry jam, a large dish of clotted cream, a chocolate brownie, a mini fruit pavlova, a small bowl of berries and a lemon posset. The tea was made with teabags in a china teapot.
Comments – We were served in the conservatory, next to an extensive garden with views out to the sea.
The waiter first brought out the tea in a white china teapot. The afternoon tea its self was served on two white china plates. There was a rectangular one for the sandwiches and a large square plate for the scones and cakes.
The sandwiches were quite large, very well filled and delicious. We especially enjoyed the cheese and chutney. The chutney was really good. The only problem we had with the sandwiches was that there were three of each variety which meant we had one and a half each of each type.
The cakes were a little small but were very light, fresh and tasty. However, given the larger than usual size of the sandwiches the cakes were a perfect size. The lemon posset in a little coffee cup was one of the tastiest items I have ever had in an Afternoon Tea. It was really delicious.
The scone was of a good size, as were the portions of jam and clotted cream. There was loads of both. In fact we actually had to leave some clotted cream!!!! Definitely a first for us!
The tea was made with teabags and was of the right strength. The teapot contained enough tea for two cups of tea each. We asked for a got a refill of the teapot. In fact we were brought a completely new pot of tea.
Service was attentive and very friendly, and the position and surroundings were beautiful.
| Sandwiches | 2.0 |
| Scone | 2.0 |
| Jam | 2.0 |
| Cream | 2.0 |
| Cake (variety) | 1.5 |
| Cake (quality) | 2.0 |
| Tea | 2.0 |
| Presentation | 1.5 |
| Service | 2.0 |
| Value | 2.0 |
| Total | 19.0 |
Sarnies Scones and Cakes 