When I received an invitation to Royal Tea, I just couldn’t resist the opportunity to get dressed up and steal a couple of hours away from the office to indulge in the British tradition. The picturesque Powel Crosley Estate was the perfect venue for Simply Gourmet’s recreation of the Royal tea service, making me wonder why I’ve never taken the opportunity to tour the estate in all of my years in Sarasota. With guests seated upstairs and on the balcony, the waterfront view was magnificent as guests sipped tea and savored delicacies created by Chef Larry Barrett of Simply Gourmet Caterers. The setting made it easy to imagine being royalty as Chef Larry Barrett presented both savory and sweet delicacies. His savory concoctions included an Alsatian tart which mingled flavors of bacon, Swiss cheese and chives, profiteroles accented with celery juice and filled with chicken salad, and vegetable pinwheels filled with a mélange of kalamata olives, cucumbers and carrots. The subtle sweetness of the desserts enabled me to sample each and every one of them without feeling like I was on sugar overload. Yes, that’s right; I couldn’t resist partaking of the apple tart tatin with an apricot glaze, deliciously moist brownies cooked in a water bath, raspberry sandwich cakes with toasted almonds, and strawberry shortcake parfait. And of course, no high tea would be complete without scones -- in this case, currant scones with Chef Barrett’s special version of Devonshire cream made with mascarpone cheese. The favorites of the day were fruit tart made with a shortcake crust and filled with white chocolate mousse and amaretti cookies made exceptional by almond paste made with 60 percent almonds rather than the typical 50 percent.
If your mouth is watering, there’s no need to thirst. Simply Gourmet will be re-creating Royal Tea every Tuesday in February at 2 p.m. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to get dressed up, gather a group of women friends and be treated like royalty for an afternoon. Just one word of wisdom though, limit your cups of tea. Otherwise, you might end up like me, wide awake at 2 a.m. with visions of Chef Barrett’s creations dancing in your head.
To make your reservation, call 929-0066
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