AFTERNOON TEA REVIEW: Tea Around Town (Chicago)

 

Location: Chicago, IL (starting point at the Aon Building)
Price: $69-79 per person for Petite menu, $89-109 per person for Luxe menu
Reservations: In advance via website

As part of my semi-regular (but not nearly frequent enough) trip to see bestie Ginger in Illinois, I scheduled us seats on Chicago's branch of the Tea Around Town tour bus. We already know I'm an afternoon tea fiend, and she's much the same after our trip to the UK several years ago. It seemed like a very cool idea, especially since we were belatedly celebrating my birthday.

It's definitely not the type of experience I've had before, and I was aware that (by virtue of being US-run and on a bus) some things would likely be quite different to what's "standard." Overall, though? A really darn good afternoon, with a really darn good menu.

A proviso before I go on, though: Tea Around Town operates in many cities, and thus quality may vary. Please check reviews for each city's branch specifically before booking. This is specifically for the Chicago-based experience, and this review does not (and cannot) vouch for the quality of the experience in any other city.

Since it was a big day and bestie and I both deserve the best, I went with the Luxe menu. According to the menu on the website, this contains all 14 items on the Petite menu plus three extra sandwiches, three extra desserts, and a bonus tea.

The Experience

This is really something I should do for every tea review (and will going forward), because ambience is part of the whole deal. This, as you can see, was on a tour bus. It was very pretty both inside and outside, and all the seating was on the second level with the first level being kitchen and management (and driving, of course).

The tour guide was very sweet and friendly, and interspersed talking about the locations with singing and chatting with the diners. She was extremely friendly, as was our server, which made a rather gloomy day of sightseeing a little brighter. I managed to come to Illinois right at the front of some really ridiculous weather, so things were overcast.

The tour proper runs about 70 minutes, with your stack (see above) waiting for you when you sit down. You also get a branded tea tumbler, which is where your teas are served and which you also get to take home. This experience does lack fancy teacups and pots but, considering you're on a bus in city traffic, that's understandable.

The Savories

A really impressive spread of traditional sandwiches and unique little bites. As you can see above, the Luxe menu is extremely packed. So you know. Come hungry. (Luxe exclusive items are starred.)

• Ahi Tuna Delight*: A small starter bite of tuna with spicy aioli and greens. This was a fantastic little starter.
• Nautical Splendor Lobster Roll*: My first lobster roll. I am a lobster enjoyer and I was relatively okay with this one, though I wasn't huge on the texture of the bread. Ginger really loved it, though.
• Napoleon Alaska*: A nice little smoked salmon bite. Pretty darn good.
• Garden Gala Chicken Soirée: Obligatory chicken salad sandwich. Not bad, but a bit bland by comparison.
• Triple Crown Steak Stack: This was my personal favorite, and I'm not even a fan of steak sandwiches. This is the one I kept thinking about later.
• Earthly Elegance Crostini: Mushrooms and ricotta on a baguette. I liked this one very much and was a little surprised to realize it's on the standard menu.
• Light 'n Green: Egg salad, of course. Not bad, but again a bit bland by comparison.
• Cool Down Cucumber: Despite the other "traditional" tea sandwiches being middling, they nailed the cucumber. This was simple and delish.
• Deviled Egg Basket: It is very difficult to make me dislike a deviled egg. This was nice.

There was also an extra item: a tiny skewer of melon ball, prosciutto, and mozzarella, I think. Very tasty, and a nice little surprise addition.

The Scones

One plain and one cranberry, with clotted cream and preserves. Rather than the Adirondack preserves described on the site, we got standard strawberry jam. A bit of a disappointment, but only because I was really curious about those preserves. The scones were a bit on the hard-to-cut size, meaning things got a little messier than usual, but they were still good scones.

The Sweets

While these are the same items as listed on the menu, some varied visually. Again, from city to city there may be small alterations. As before, Luxe-exclusive items are starred.

• Ferrero Velvet Delight*: On the one hand, I'm a red velvet fiend. On the other, this was rich. I wouldn't dislike it as a stand-alone dessert (it was good!), but as part of a tea menu it's very heavy.
• Espresso Cloud Divine*: Same note as above. Delicious and worthy of being its own dessert, but not necessarily balanced with a larger spread.
• Emerald Dream*: My favorite of the three Luxe additions, a pistachio puff pastry. This one was both tasty and light enough to be in balance with the overall spread.
• Floral Fun Pop: Good, but nothing special. A cake pop of the sort you find at coffee shops.
• Mini Lemon Meringue: Good, but we were both surprised at how lemony it was. Great if you're a fan of really tart lemon desserts.
• Empire City Cheesecake: This one looked significantly different from what's advertised on the site, but it was still very nice. One of the better things in the spread.
• Cream Puff: Good, but as with the cake pop, nothing special.

The Teas

Rather than ordering you preferred tea at the beginning of the meal, there was a tea tasting, with the server pouring about half a serving out at points throughout the trip. In terms of managing the unique difficulties of a tea room on wheels, it's a good idea. However, I did find myself wishing that perhaps we could have one less tea, then have each diner close out the meal with a larger cup of whichever they liked best. Except for the Refresh Rosé, I believe these were all Stash brand teas.

• Refresh Rosé*: This one was waiting for us when we sat down, a cold-brewed non-alcoholic sparkling tea that tasted like a rosé. Ginger called this "the only rosé [she's] ever liked," and I as a rosé enjoyer liked it too. It was a great and clever little start to the meal.
• Maple Apple Cider: A really smooth herbal that absolutely does what it says on the tin. Very maple-forward.
• Cinnamon Vanilla: Another nice herbal. Not bad, though it didn't hit as nice as the maple apple cider before it.
• Breakfast in Paris: This was the winner right here. A vanilla lavender Earl Grey. Liking this one so much is why I went searching it out online and found out where the teas are sourced.
• Tangerine Honey: Two flavors that tend to get done wrong in teas, but this was lovely. They called it a green, but on the site it's listed as a white. I don't care either way, it was excellent.

Overall, this was really nice. It's not strictly a UK-level afternoon tea, but of course it's not. The changes made allow the function to operate safely and smoothly, and with that in mind, anything out of the ordinary didn't much matter.

For us, the sightseeing felt secondary - but I was also with a friend who knows Chicago and could point out things of personal interest to me in addition. If you approach this as an afternoon tea with a bonus tour, rather than a city tour with bonus tea, I think it hits just right. But, as before, check your local branches for reviews. And when they say get there 15 minutes early, do it. It will help.