Scents and sensibili-tea
High-class cafes from Miller Harris and Laura Mercier
By Robina Dam
High tea just got more haute. Take the traditional teatime ritual, add the fashionistas’ favourite cupcakes and afternoon teas have suddenly come back in vogue.
Now there’s a new twist, as luxury cosmetic brand Laura Mercier has been the inspiration for the latest offering from Harvey Nichol’s Fifth Floor Restaurant in Knightsbridge. Executive chef Jonas Karlsson created The Laura Mercier Afternoon Tea taking the Vanille Gourmande scent as its inspiration. So you get the specially blended tea (jasmine, vanilla and Chinese green tea) with finger sandwiches, scones, mini macaroons and an assortment of patisserie for £19.95; add the perfume for £40.
Similarly, fans of the boutique fragrance house Miller Harris will want to head to the bijou tea room in London’s Mayfair or Nottingham to check out Lynn Harris’s new scent, Fleur de Bois (eau de parfum £54), and for a reviving cup of one of her own tea blends (£4): Thé Bergamot, Thé Petales or Thé Fumé (Harris’s interpretation of Earl Grey, Darjeeling and Lapsang Souchong respectively). In the London store, the vintage crockery is twinned perfectly with dinky cupcakes from the baking queens at Primrose Bakery – and this summer trend looks set to stay right through to London Fashion Week next month.
Harvey Nichols Fifth Floor Restaurant, 109-125 Knightsbridge, London SW1, +44 (0)20 7235 5250; www.harveynichols.com
Miller Harris, 21 Bruton Street, London W1, +44 (0)20 7629 7750; or the new store at 15 Low Pavement, Nottingham, +44 (0)115 9606 110; www.millerharris.com
