Festive Afternoon Tea - Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong

Eschewing the idea we were going to eat a luxurious Christmas meal without the need for a second mortgage, we decided to go for my favourite meal on the big day. At the Mandarin Oriental, it still took needed a deep breath to pay over $HK1400 (£50 per person) upfront before we even flew out although the process was effortless and personal. It was all worth it.

We had a very comfortable setting for our Christmas day treat although I was surprised we weren’t seated on the edge of the mezzanine where we could see the afternoon’s entertainment. We were offered a stage side seat if we wanted to skip out and go see the ballet, however, I hadn’t realised we could pop in and out of the performance, which would have been an excellent help in helping the courses go down.

We did catch little bits of the festive performance as the view cleared and it added to the old-school charm of this place. The spread was fairly traditional rather than innovative, though pleasant none the less.

The only let down for the Mandarin Oriental was the ladies room, which despite two cleaners present, who couldn’t keep up with how unexpectedly and shockingly messy the clientele was. Quite bizarre behaviour.

The turkey lunch we had the misfortune to endure the day before cost nearly as much and it was up there with the worst meal I’ve every had. Generally sitting alongside all the turkey dinners in New York, other than the fantastic buffet in the Waldorf all the way back in 2005. I was mighty glad we decided to have the full works at home the week before we flew out.

I learnt a long time ago that generally, wherever you go, 5* hotel food will be very good. In Hong Kong, where the afternoon tea choices are plentiful, the flagship Mandarin Oriental is pretty spectacular.

Next stop: a return to Intercontinental Hotel.