Cost – £29.95 for two people (Sept 2020)
Parking and Access – There is a public carpark in Park Street that is not far away from the café. It is not possible to drive any nearer as Cambridge has a pedestrian only area in the city centre. Access is all flat into the café. They also have an outdoor area on the pavement outside.
There is a toilet available inside the café, to the rear. The access to this toilet is flat.
Background – We have passed Le Patissier many times whilst walking through the city centre of Cambridge during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown. At first, it was being done up. Then, as things started to relax a bit, it opened. Tables outside made it even more attractive. Then we spotted the sandwich board advertising Afternoon Tea.
It was only a matter of time…..
Contents per person – Four rectangular sandwiches (egg mayonnaise, cheese with cucumber, ham with tomato and tuna mayonnaise). A medium sized fruit scone, a dish of strawberry jam and a dish of clotted cream. A small piece of banana cake and half of a slice of lemon drizzle cake. Plus, between the two of us, a large slice of Victoria sponge, a large slice of coffee and walnut cake and a slice of Bakewell tart. A pot of tea.
Options Available – There are no options available for this Afternoon Tea.
Comments – Just before we arrived at the café, I had a bit of an accident when I walked into one of the metal bollards that are outside St John’s College opposite the café. Very embarrassing and rather painful! Luckily, we didn’t have far to stagger and I was able to sit down at one of the outside tables. One of the kind waiters immediately offered to go and find me some pain killers to take, which he did. I am very grateful to them for this, it helped me a lot. It was a nice gesture and was a very kind, helpful thing to do.
Having arrived in dramatic fashion, we were able to relax at our table. We chose to have an outside table in a cordoned off area of the pavement, just opposite St John’s College chapel. It was certainly a table with a view!
The tables were all nicely spaced out from each other, and sanitiser was available to use.
We were quickly provided with a pot of tea. It was in a chunky white teapot with a matching mini milk jug. The crockery was also chunky and white, matching the teapot.
The tea was of a good strength but the teapot was quite small. We had a cup of tea each, then asked if we could have the teapot refilled with hot water. We were able to get a second refill later on, as well.
Our Afternoon Tea arrived on a three-tier cake stand with chunky round white plates.
We were also given a square white plate each and a knife, fork and paper napkin as well.
The sandwiches were a little rustic! Especially the cheese and cucumber sandwiches!
However, they were very well filled and were fresh and tasty. They were on a mix of white and seeded breads. They were very good.
The scones were a good medium sized and had been warmed up. There was a hint of spiciness about them, which was really delicious. I liked them very much.
There was plenty of strawberry jam and more than enough clotted cream. We even had to use up the remaining clotted cream with the Bakewell tart! Not a problem we have very often!! The jam was a bit stiff and lump-less.
The cakes looked inviting. I’m not a big lover of banana cake, so I was not disappointed to see just a small piece of that. The lemon drizzle, on the other hand, was very lemony and moreish.
Then, we had three pretty large slices of cake between us. Normally, this would annoy me. However, the slices were all plenty big enough for us to cut each in half, and still have a decent portion each. The two sponge cakes (Victoria and coffee and walnut) were both fresh, light and very tasty. However, the star was the Bakewell tart, which was really yummy.
Service was good throughout our visit. We felt comfortable and safe with the Covid arrangements that were in place. And we had a lovely Tea, sitting out in a beautiful city.
| Savoury | 1.5 |
| Scone | 2.0 |
| Jam | 1.0 |
| Cream | 2.0 |
| Cake (variety) | 2.0 |
| Cake (quality) | 2.0 |
| Tea | 1.5 |
| Presentation | 1.5 |
| Service | 2.0 |
| Value | 2.0 |
| Total | 17.5 |
All opinions expressed in this review are my own. The photographs are all my own.
I remain completely anonymous and always pay for my Afternoon Teas. They are never gifted to me by the businesses reviewed.
I am the legal copyright holder of the content and images on this blog.
Sarnies Scones and Cakes 