there are few things i love more than a fancy gathering. so when i found out about afternoon tea at the grand america, i knew i had to immediately be a part of whatever was happening there. i summoned one of my besties, britt, who i’d been needing a catch up with anyway, and cordially invited her to join me in the tea room downstairs, which overlooks a beautiful, green {sorry, california} courtyard. the sweeping floor-to-ceiling windows let in the the beautiful sunshine we’ve been enjoying here in the intermountain west for the past few weeks and made for the perfect lighting.

we were not disappointed! the grand always puts on an incredibly classy show, but our experience was out of this world. one of the best parts by far was that her mom and 4 year-old niece came, so it was quite the family affair! i myself have a 7 year-old niece who is a lot of fun, so being reminded of her four-year-old self brought back the memories of many a stuffed animal tea party.

the afternoon started with our selection of teas, herbal of course! i got the mint {my go-to tea of choice} and then Britt and her mom got the organic berry spice, which i imagine was amazing! our waitress then brought out our selection of finger sandwiches, including a traditional cucumber, prosciutto & cheese, BBQ chicken, something with crab, and then {wait for it} the most delicious blueberry scone you’ve ever had in your life. it was so buttery and rich, and then we got lemon custard spread with jam to compliment the lemony goodness. wow. it was. wow.

then, came the dessert. i think it’s safe to say i would eat the whole dessert and nothing but dessert for long as i shall live {mixing a few things there, i am aware}. i love all things chocolately and sweet.

the dessert tray was amazing and everything was an incredible as it looked! it included madeleines {a FAVORITE of mine while i was living in france, i used to just get a bag and take it to the movies with us…}, chocolate mousse, macaroons, a raspberry tart and french gumdrops. i could have eaten just the desserts and would have considered the afternoon a total win. i definitely think dessert is the best part of tea.

inspired by the french-themed dessert tray, i ventured over to la bonne vie, a tiny pastry shop just down the hall from the tea room-it was so adorable. it’s funny because little shops like that which are meant to be frenchie are not like actual french pastry shops at all. they of course have their charm but are much less ‘frilly’ {the only word i can think of to describe the american interpretation of ‘french’} but are inspiring in a much different way. it was still really cute!

it was so nice to discover such a hidden gem just down the street! even if this little shop is not exactly like my boulangeries en france, it still feels a little like home. i brought a few macaroons home for matt and i to enjoy-he wasn’t terribly impressed {and quite honestly, neither was i}. we ate them the  day after i bought them and i think they just lost some flavor or something. i guess we’ll just have to go to paris and retrieve some!

xoxo,

cait