AFTERNOON TEA AT THE WHITE LION

Words and photos by Food Porn Nation and myself.

The Sunday of our recent visit to Aldeburgh happened to be Mother’s Day and we welcomed the opportunity to try the afternoon tea at The White Lion Hotel in Adleburgh. The pastry chef at The White Lion is Anmar Odendal, an award winning wedding cake designer. Through her business CRUMB, she was recognised by the wedding industry awards as the best wedding cake designer in the East of England in 2013.

Our afternoon tea was floral inspired and included a selection of sandwiches, scones, cakes and pastries with a choice of tea, a glass of champagne and a little pot of flowers for mum, all at an unbelievable price of £20. It was staggeringly good value and difficult to think that we could get so much for so little. At an equivalent London establishment, an afternoon tea such as this would most likely have cost at least £35 to £40.

The selection of finger sandwiches were tasty and included standard fillings such as cucumber, ham, egg and watercress. The scones were rather alluring as they presented us with an engaging texture. The exterior was crunchy and the interior was soft. Served warm, the scones went swimmingly with the clotted cream and yummy homemade raspberry jam.

The White Lion – Afternoon Tea

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BRUDENELL HOTEL

Words and photos by Food Porn Nation and myself.

We popped along to Suffolk for a weekend visit recently and stayed at the lovely 4 Star Brudenell Hotel which is located in the quaint, charming town of Aldeburgh. The Brudenell Hotel is perched on Suffolk’s Heritage Coast, and accordingly the hotel offers panoramic views of the sea along the property’s frontage.

The décor at the hotel is fresh and vibrant, and embraces the seaside theme with its vibrant energy and light, bright colours. It’s an intelligent, engaging space, and wonderfully comfortable. There are 44 cosy rooms in the hotel, with some offering sea views. Our bedroom again embraced a contemporary, coastal themed décor with a seating area by the window which allowed us to relax and watch the ever-changing movements of the sea. Our room was really comfortable, and there was something wonderfully rustic about sleeping to the sound of waves lapping up along the shore.

Also in The Brudenell Hotel is the recently opened AA two-rosette Seafood & Grill restaurant. This too has a sea-facing terrace which will soon be made available for use when the weather gets warmer. It’s a contemporary dining venue, and there is an informal bar area where hotel guests and local residents can relax and enjoy a drink or two.

We enjoyed both dinner and breakfast in the Seafood & Grill restaurant and thought highly of both the food and the service. Chef Tyler Torrance draws inspiration from his surroundings, proliferating his menu with not only seafood dishes but also sourcing his other ingredients from the abundant Suffolk area. For dinner we tried a variety of starters, with the wild scallops (£12) being our favourite. The scallops were heady with flavour and came together beautifully with the accompanying cauliflower puree and caviar.

The Brudenell – Wild Scallops

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