Pinkies Up For Holiday High Tea At The Atwood Café

By Melissa Wiley in Food on Dec 6, 2013 4:40PM

December demands decadence, but there’s still a limit to how much gluhwein we can chug at the Chriskindlmarket. Sometimes we need to recalibrate with a simple cup of chamomile tea. Following a visit to the best of Bavaria in Daley Plaza, there’s no place we’d rather do so than at the Atwood Café where a roaring fire awaits our frozen toes mere steps away. The halls inside this corner of the Hotel Burnham are bedecked with just about as many boughs of holly as they can handle. So now that we’re in the mood for celebrating again, a simple cup of tea just doesn’t seem like enough. If we’re going to have tea, we’re going to have high tea. We’re going to raise our pinkies and feast on a mid-afternoon meal to rival dinner to come.

Holiday tea service at the Atwood takes place from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. every day during December except for Christmas and New Year's Eve. At $35, it qualifies as a holiday treat to yourself, one worth coming good and hungry for. Executive Chef Derek Simcik prepares an assortment of scones, biscotti, mousse and other sweet things piled high on tiered plates like edible presents. Cucumber, salmon and chicken salad sandwiches are also neatly arranged for the offing. Choose from eight loose-leaf teas, sweetened with cumin or chamomile-infused honey, and for $10-$12 more you can sip on a glass of sparkling wine. Just be sure to make reservations in advance.

The Atwood Café is located at 1 W. Washington.