Festive Afternoon Tea and Cocktails at Hotel Gotham Manchester

I recently wrote a post on here about a visit to Hotel Gotham to experience Face Place – a premium facial treatment brand that have launched at Hotel Gotham in Manchester. While I was there, I was very lucky to have combined my treatment with what I would describe as a fabulous pampering day, as it included trying out their new festive afternoon tea and Christmas inspired cocktails.

For Christmas 2021, the award-winning festive afternoon tea that Hotel Gotham offer at ‘Honey’ has received a merry makeover. They have added a festive twist on some traditional expectations on the old afternoon tea tiers , to give guests the opportunity to enjoy a Christmas themed lunch.

Of course, you can expect a line up of delicious sandwiches, scones and desserts, all given that yule tide update. Something that jumped out right away to me was that you have the option to choose from a myriad of teas to accompany the food – it’s basically a large box of teas in display for you to have a look at before selecting. I’ll show you further down in this post, but had to get that in here while it’s fresh in my mind, as it’s quite a unique approach.

Of course, you can upgrade to prosecco or champagne for the festive afternoon tea. Myself and my friend Marianne enjoyed a Bakewell Tart Fizz cocktail (a sweet tasting cocktail served in a champagne glass with Sipsmith Sloe Gin, Amaretto, Sparkling Wine & Lemon Zest) upstairs at Club Brass before heading down to Honey, which was picked off their festive cocktail menu. It’s a real chic, elegant yet laid back bar, an ideal place for a catch up with a friend before heading off for food. It’s also a stunning place for business meetings and events.

Anyway, down to Honey for a slice of Christmas!

Hotel Gotham Festive Afternoon Tea

Here’s the afternoon tea menu, which arrives served up in a sleek tiered cage style holder, nicely presenting the selection on offer:

The Festive Afternoon Tea includes:
Sandwiches- turkey, bacon & Cranberry- oat smoked salmon with lemon crème fraîche – duck egg mayonnaise & mustard cress- cucumber, cream cheese, red onion & dill2x scones per person served with Dorset clotted cream and strawberry jam.Desserts- eggnogg choux bun- red velvet cake- black cherry & chocolate macaroon – gingerbread rocky road.

As I mentioned earlier, I thought it was a really nice unique offering to showcase a box of loose leaf teas, so we could browse the matching tea menu and make a decision. Me being the typical English breakfast tea obsessed girl I am, myself and Marianne opted for the Planter’s Afternoon blend, as our waiter explained this was closest to English Breakfast, It was lovely, rich and flavoursome, the perfect tea for the cakes. I honestly can’t eat anything sweet without a cup of tea with it, it’s like an unwritten rule I follow!

As you can see, both Club Brass and Honey were decorated so pretty with their Christmas decor. lots if subtle twinkling lights with leafy, floral garlands adorned with glittering decor. The Christmas cheer at Hotel Gotham has been kept to a pretty, muted style, very classy to look at and gives the cosy rooms that festive boost without being too cheesy or ‘in your face’. The tables had a warm glow and it just felt so lovely to be sat up high, looking down on the drizzle that fell onto Manchester’s roads and buildings.

I mean, when in Manchester, always expect rain!

It’s hard to pick a favourite cake, as I’m such a cake girl with a BIG sweet tooth. It’s safe to say I tried and had them all – no doggy bag or boxing up for this one! But I guess if I had to recommend a cake or two to anyone wondering, I’d say the red velvet cake and gingerbread rocky road were bloomin’ delicious!

It was nice to have an afternoon tea dedicated to festive bakes and Christmas inspired sandwich fillings – it reminded me of the days when I worked for fashion and beauty companies in marketing before I went self-employed. This type of treat would make a great work group lunch outing, or even a Christmas catch up breaking away from the cold and wet of the Christmas Markets (every time I’ve been this year I’ve got soaked!)

I found the following pricing online, so hope this helps for those looking: “Lutyens” Afternoon Tea – £25.00Afternoon Tea with a glass of Prosecco – £34.00Afternoon Tea with a glass of Tattinger Champagne – £40.00. I would call up Honey at Hotel Gotham though or enquire online and ask about the festive afternoon tea offering in particular.