Gin High Tea Hits the Spot at Pan Pacific Perth

High tea is one of my favourite ways to spend an afternoon, although I’m usually one of the few men – if not the only one – in attendance. I’m not sure why: a good high tea offers more variety than most lunches, and you rarely come away hungry.

As a lover of gin, I was excited to be invited to try Pan Pacific Perth’s new gin-inspired high tea.

Unusually for a high tea, there was a plate of items to start with before the traditional tower came out.

This course included (clockwise from top left) gin and pomelo cured salmon with braised endive & radish sprouts, gin & roma tomato gazpacho, quail egg sarnie with bacon crumb & frisee, and hickory smoked Wagyu beef & horseradish crème de gin on Yorkshire pudding.

Tea service consisted of a variety of different teas poured throughout the morning.

Good service should be part of any high tea – it’s what you’re there for, isn’t it? – and a high level was provided here.

The generous savoury course included angelica and juniper cured pork sliders with wasabi & apple slaw; rocket, whipped stilton & maple glazed fig choux buns and two sandwiches: coronation chicken and gin compressed cucumber & dill creme fresh.

A sign of a great high tea is when the sandwiches are particularly delicious, and a whole plate of these wouldn’t have lasted long. They’re a deceptively simple thing to make.

The brioche sliders were unusually big for a high tea – and certainly more than a mouthful – but one of the most delicious items on the plate.

The sweets were gin & peach macarons, coconut panacotta with berries, gin & rhubarb cheesecake, and gin & tonic tart.

Gin-soaked raisin scones were served with raspberry jam and cream.

Four gin-based cocktails were included, one made with each of West Winds, Archie Rose, Giniversity and Bombay Sapphire. Yes, it’s quite a boozy event 🙂 

The food and drink at Pan Pacific Perth’s gin high tea was of very high quality, and it was great to see plenty of gin-infused items rather than just drinks added to the standard selection.

Taking into account the extra plate of items at the start and a very generous four cocktails, at $65 a head this is easily the best value high tea I’ve been to.

Pan Pacific Perth’s Gin inspired High Tea costs $65 including cocktails, and is available every Saturday and Sunday until 27 May 2018. Seatings are from 11:30 to 2:00pm and 2:30pm to 5:00pm. 

I attended the Gin inspired High Tea as a guest of Pan Pacific Perth.