Vanitea Room is a glamorous tea salon in Centertown West district of Ottawa. Offering brunch, lunch, afternoon tea and desserts the luxurious cafe is decorated with multiple chandeliers, plush tufted seating, and ornate gold mirrors. Swayed to visit by the chic interior and the promise of afternoon tea, a favourite of mine, I orchestrated a visit with my brunch group.
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Vanitea Room perfectly modernizes the tea room experience. With a bold wall mural of a woman sipping on tea, the cafe feels sophisticated and trendy at the same time. Afternoon tea is available from noon to 4:30 pm and costs $40 a person. The option to add a glass of mimosa ($8) or prosecco ($10) is also available to enhance your afternoon tea. Reservations are highly recommended, and it is worth noting that everyone at your table has to order afternoon tea if you wish to experience the tea service.
Vanitea Room was able to comfortably sit all 10 of us for afternoon tea on a large tufted banquette and we were first invited to select our choice of tea from a vast assortment of Sloane Teas. Included in the afternoon tea is one pot of your choice of selected teas, so I opted for Sloane Teas’s Heavenly Creme which is Ceylon tea with notes of bergamot and vanilla.
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The first try of the afternoon tea included 3 finger sandwiches and a shot glass of gazpacho. The sandwiches were all the classics you come to expect at tea, including cucumber and egg salad, but I appreciated the addition of curry powder to the egg salad that gave it an unexpected twist.
The second tray included two scones including some jam and cream.
The top tray included a vast assortment of desserts including a creme brule, a petit four, a tart, a mouse dessert, and a sugar cookie. All the desserts looked spectacular including fresh flowers, cute sparkles or beautifully piped icing, unfortunately, they were all painfully too sweet to the point I couldn’t eat any of them as I could only taste sugar and nothing else.
While the desserts were too sweet for me, I did enjoy my experience and still love the decor. I’d be curious to return to Vanitea Room to try more of the savory options included on the brunch and lunch menu – and of course, sip some more divine tea!