Gluten Free High Teas Now Done Well!
A little while ago I discovered that my voice could have impact. That we actually can encourage the food industry to look after us better if we deliver the message respectfully and appeal to their bottom line. So this is my story of how I did just that…with a local 5 Star hotel in the city no less!
So firstly, what is High Tea and why do ladies LOVE it??
High Tea is little mini sandwiches and savoury pastries and pretty, gorgeously crafted petite cakes and scones and cream all served on a 3 tiered stand using pretty china, with pots of tea. And we love it because it is sooo so cute and pretty and all things girly, and really yummy. It feels decadent, and it takes us back to a time when ladies didn’t play ladies they were ladies. It is served in posh spaces and we dress up and we therefore feel posh.
And should a gluten free version still have mini sandwiches and scones and petite pastries and cakes and be served on pretty china??
Well yes, of course.
Ok, so when I arrived with my mum and my sister-in-law to the 5 star Stamford Plaza in Brisbane for their High Tea on the Patio to celebrate my birthday, that was what I was expecting. So excited. What I got however was my first real lesson in how I was now officially a second-class diner. And I had to watch all of the ‘first class diners’ around me enjoying the experience I had foolishly hoped for but apparently could not have.
My mum and sister-in-law had their beautiful 3 tiered stand brought out with the exquisitely crafted pastries and cakes. Exciting. Then my GF version came out. I had a plain white plate, and a little timber dish with a garden salad and a fruit salad (not fresh), and one little savoury pastry on it. My cakes were a dry, cold friand, a plain chocolate slice (no embellishments), a couple of unauthentic macarons (ie biscuity and sugary and not beautifully gooey and crunchy and creamy all at the same time), and no scones and no mini sandwiches. I nearly cried. I literally felt like the poor cousin that no one cared about. My experience was not valued. Although, of course, I was certainly expected to pay the same.
My polite feedback to the maître d on departure was met with professional apology (ie not sincere), and the explanation that apparently gluten free sandwiches were swapped for a salad because customers found their bread not nice. Hmmm. Make better bread. Or buy some…there are (& were then) some great commercial GF breads that would have been perfect. I explained that I came for High Tea and a salad is not High Tea. He was unmoved.
So feeling hugely let down by my experience and frustrated that my feedback was dismissed, I decided to write to the management. I crafted a well-worded email detailing my experience, explaining how it made me feel.
I received no reply. Nine months later when chatting with a friend about the experience she encouraged me to follow up the email and resend it, which I did. The reply I then received quite promptly blew me away. Not only did I receive an apology, but I was told that in response to my email the entire GF High Tea menu had been recreated and would I please accept their gift of 2 free GF High Teas any time I liked so that I could try the new one and have the original High Tea experience I had hoped for. And this I did. Scones (!), varied cakes with prettily decorated icing, yummy pastries…all on a pretty 3-tiered stand. Thank you Stamford Plaza for listening, responding, and for now respecting coeliac diners.
So if you have had a disappointing experience eating out, why not get proactive and give them some feedback…you just never know the positive change you might make, and the gluten free joy for others you may create!
You can view the feedback I gave here if you need some inspiration!
Below are the café’s/restaurants/Hotels in Brisbane where I have found High Teas worth paying for. You can read my reviews for these High Teas in my blog Best Gluten Free High Teas in Brisbane Part 1.
I would love you to add in the Comments any that you would also recommend.
The Emporium Hotel, Fortitude Valley
