BIJOU AFTERNOON TEA

There’s a new breed of Afternoon Tea experience in the city centre and we went along to give it a try.

The Bijou venue on Bridge Street offers a modern take on the traditional fvaourite – there’s no tiered cake stand here or dainty vintage teacups, it’s all served on wooden boards in a plush bar environment so you can enjoy your scone with a cocktail should you wish to.

It’s a build your own menu approach here which gives much more choice to tailor make it just as you’d like. As much as we love an Afternoon Tea they can sometimes be such a cake fest you may feel you just can’t squeeze in another slice of Victoria Sponge, but we were pleased to see a wide choice of savoury options to balance out the sweetness. The sausage rolls were delicious, along with options such as southern fried chicken goujons which had a little kick as well as houmous and cucumber sticks, pork pie and cheese and crackers.

It was good value to get full sized sandwiches with two different fillings to choose from, rather than being forced to have the usual egg and cress in a tiny finger sandwich you barely know you’ve eaten. The smoked salmon was generous and there’s a broad choice including a range of fillings like cranberry and brie, coronation chicken, and falafel roast pepper salsa as well as more traditional options.

One of our party required gluten free – often a tricky one when it comes to bread and cakes but this didn’t disappoint and all received a big thumbs up – a clean board at the end of it proved it was all delicious.

The venue itself also makes a welcome change beautifully decorated with blossom on the ceiling, botanical artwork and dusky pink velvet chairs in a light and airy environment. Our tea was accompanied by some wonderful tunes from local singer Hayley Di Rito.

Bijou also has a neat upstairs lounge and larger basement area both for hire, and the basement is also used for other regular events, live music and comedy.

Now with a new Afternoon Tea experience available it’s proving it’s a city centre venue that’s perfect to head to for any occasion at any time of day.

The Bijou Afternoon Tea includes two sandwiches, a scone with jam and cream, three treats (sweet or savoury) and a range of drinks with several including a free refill all for £25 - you can make it a boozy tea for £10 extra.

Book and pre-order online at www.bijoupeterborough.co.uk