Fairmont Vancouver ‘s Notch 8 restaurant and bar is back with another themed high tea. Once again held within its private room, hidden behind a moveable bookshelf.
They are inviting you to jump right into fall with this flavours of autumn service. Available Wednesday to Sunday afternoons running from September 5th to November 24th, 2024. With seatings from 11am, 1pm, and 3pm.
The room is decorated in a sea of orange and yellow from leaves and pumpkins to dried blossoms bouquets. I find for any of these services the more the decorations are, the more it adds to the experience, transforming you as it surrounds you.
Their three tiered tea service includes a pot of tea, but for those looking to transition this into happy hour they also have cocktails available. You can choose from classics or have some wine. Although for the full experience, you ought to order their seasonal cocktails. Three unique cocktails representing the popular flavours of fall from pumpkin spice and harvest fruit, to ginger for its warmth. We would try one of each.
The Harvest Moon Honey is cranberry gin, lemon, spiced honey, and honeycomb sugar. I found it like a tamarind lemonade with its sweet and tangy flavour, coupled with a hint of salt at the end.
The Pumpkin Spice Latte Martini immediately caught my eye. Absolute elyx, kahlua, pumpkin spice, cream, and espresso. A mid day pick me up in everyone’s favourite seasonal flavour. It tastes exactly like the latte. You don’t much of the alcohol kick, but you feel it.
The Orchard Breeze was like a spritz, but without the bubbles and in the flavour of a clear, fall cider punch. This was the lightest of the three with bourbon, apple cider, ginger of the indies, lemon, bitters, and soda.
Similar to the cocktail options there are three distinct seasonal loose leaf teas, with similar flavour profiles, to choose from; plus all of their popular staples.
Once again I drew into the allure of Pumpkin Spice. Described as having notes of cinnamon and pumpkin, sweet spices with caramel depths and chocolate undertones. I was really missing the pumpkin from this, and got mostly a nutty chestnut and hazelnut. Still tasty with baked notes that would match the dessert portion of the tea tower ahead.
The Apple Ginger Roobios was the richest of the seasonal teas. There is no hiding the spicy and sweet notes of the ginger, soft apple, and mellow herbaceous tones.
The Maple Peach was my favourite and reminded me of a peach cobbler with the addition of milk. Smooth maple and delicate peach.
As for the small bites portion of this service, we were impressed by the staff’s willingness to accommodate dietary restrictions. A member of our party was allergic to nuts, but told our server that she could eat around it. However, when the chef got wind of this he put together a tower just for her that was nut-free. He even came out and presented each item, emphasizing the restaurant’s desire to accommodate any and all their patrons. We were all in awe by this classy act.
For me, the best part of high tea is ability to pick and choose your bites, toggling between sweet and savoury, and enjoying many flavours all in one meal. Naturally we started off of the savoury and unfortunately by time we got to the sweets, we were too full to continue. I appreciated how filling six bite sizes items were, as I found myself bringing home a box of desserts to enjoy later.
Pictured is a tea for three. The top tier is the tea time staple of scones in both Buttermilk and Cranberry Orange. Served with mascarpone tea cream and a strawberry preserve. The scones were dense yet light, but dry on their own, as scones ought to be. So you layer on fluffy cream and sweet jam to play off their butteriness and the pops of dried fruit embedded.
The Kobacha Squash Tartlet was a luscious savoury bite, teetering on dessert territory with the pastry base and toasted coconut shards. Each filled with a vadouvan and saffron apple puree, seasoned in sage. It reminded me of a chewable squash soup.
The Roasted Turkey sandwich had cranberry and a pistachio crumble, all between a harvest whole wheat bread. Like thanksgiving Turkey in a tea sandwich form. I liked the taste of it, but wished that the bread was softer considering how dry it got in mouth. More cream in the spread could have helped.
The Smoked Steelhead is a classic at any high tea. Plenty of salmon curled to look like a rose bud. A stunning presentation, but overwhelming in salmon flavour for one condense bite. Smoked steelhead with yuzu tobiko and cream cheese on marble rye.
The Serrano Ham Reserva with pickled mustard seed and coffee aioli on brioche was a salty bite. I wish I was able to make out the above mentioned coffee notes, as this would have been a creative twist.
I really enjoyed the Sweet Potato & Yam Pavé as something unexpected and as a lover of anything potato related. This especially felt fall friendly with the sweet potato, bacon jam, sour cream, and candied pumpkin seeds. Like a sweet baked potato bite with a great layered texture.
For dessert I really liked the Salted Caramel Apple Pie Bar with its birch streusel topping. It had a great texture with the crumble crisp topping. The apples were not soggy and actually reminded me more of peaches. Great as a couple of bites, a little too much if you have more than one.
The Pumpkin Tiramisu with latte-spiced lady fingers was a very unique twist on a fall classic. I found it more bitter than savoury. A soft mousse in a cake form, finished with excellent cocoa power.
The Sweet Potato Meringue Tart was yet another fall friendly remix, finished with smoked white chocolate powder. It was like pumpkin pie light. The softness of its shell and filling parallels the meringue. A great bite for those who like the texture of a pumpkin pie, but not necessarily its distinctive spice.
The Gingerbread Thumbprint Cookies with dulce de leche crémeux were stunning with its wisp of gold leaf. Like a shortbread with a crumbly buttery texture. Although more ginger than gingerbread of the molasses variety. I would have liked some of the mandarin orange below to help round this one out.
The Cranberry Cheesecake Brownie was my favourite bite topped with freeze-dried mandarin orange segment. It takes two classic nostalgic desserts and mash them together so well. Both with a sticky soft chewiness that melts in your mouth and gets stuck to your gums. The cheesecake acts more like a cream and the orange offers a needed freshness. I would have liked more mandarin to go around, even though it had the unusual texture of soggy styrofoam.
And as an extra surprised we all got a pumpkin and maple macron to finish on. Each hand painted with the colour of fall leaves turning.
In short a great way to celebrate the season and enjoy its bounty. Fall typically signals the end of summer and cold weather ahead, but with the warming flavours of pumpkin, nut, cinnamon, apple, and ginger it need not be a cold one.
Availability: Wednesday – Sunday afternoons
starting September 5 – November 24
Seatings at 11:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m., 3:00 p.m.
Price: $72 per adult, $40 per child (ages 12 and under)
Notch 8
900 W Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC V6C 2W6
(604) 662-1900
fairmont-hotel-vancouver.com
