Tea and Niceties – Eagle Heights, Mt Tamborine
Attention to detail is an element that inspires admiration.
It shows you’ve taken the time in observation, crafting and execution. It shows you’re on to it. It shows in some way, you care about what you do and how you go about it.
For a squadron of grannies in the Gold Coast Hinterland, you’d think such precision wouldn’t come naturally given the proximity to the garish exuberance of theme parks.
At least I thought wrong when I walked into Tea and Niceties for Miss Handmaid’s birthday.
It was a more refined and tastier experience than the iconic Raffles (Singapore).
Tea and Niceties is found in a strange location outside of the main township of Tamborine. Even more peculiar was a visit in early autumn where rainforest gives way to a boulevard of senescent liquidambar and maple. Needless to say the airy autumnal tones slotted evenly into place when it came to the two hour sitting high tea, a courteous greeting kicked it off, well, nicely.
You’ve got a selection of the Traditional High Tea and Elegant High Tea.
After reading reviews online and no trace of a website (they’re grannies after all!) we’d intentionally starved to make room for the Elegant High Tea.
Miss Handmaid and I opted for two different teas from a list of about twenty; Stockholm (mulled winey spiced with apricot) and Christmas (also mulled winey spiced with almond). We could have brought a bottle of something bubbly as they’re BYO, but as we were driving back to Brisbane, better to err on the side of caution.
The high tea stand came tiered with a layer of savouries (mini capsicum muffins, savoury tartlets and traditional sandwiches), and sweets (scones, petit fours, éclairs, mousse). Miss Handmaid exclaimed she could eat the entire stand that she’d still be hungry. How wrong she was.
I could have eaten the stand if it were arranged in a 2:1, savoury to sweet ratio as one can tire more quickly from sweet than from savoury. This is what we found. We were diabetic comatose.
Tea and Niceties is decked out like no other. Rococo flourishes, gilded frames, lace, frilly bits everywhere. It would have sufficed as a halfway house for Louis XIV if he ever was on the Gold Coast. Every skerrick of detail is covered, from the pink or frosted sugar cubes through to rose petal water with graduated teaspoons for each tier.
The service is genteel, quiet and considerate. For $45 per person it’s far cheaper and less chaotically stuffy than the Raffles.
Happy Birthday Miss Handmaid.
These grannies sure can do a mean high tea.