Building bridges between East and West through desserts.
Our experience
Whereas high tea is not a strong point in NYC, it most certainly is in many parts of Asia. As part of a new “Best High Tea in China” series, this month we ventured to Shenzhen, a border town on the Chinese mainland that we last visited more than a decade ago, and wow…what a change. Accessible from Hong Kong via a 15-minute high-speed railway ride, Shenzhen today is nothing like what we remember it from years ago. Now home to 18 million, it’s a sprawling city of skyscrapers, bright lights and wide roads. We managed to only check out a tiny part of the Futian and Nantou Ancient Town districts, and of course, during our weekend day, we tried our very best to track down a memorable dessert spot.
Located in the Futian district near the high-speed rail station, the RitzCarlton hotel offers a very thoughtful modern fusion high tea. During our visit, high tea was taken in the lobby lounge area, and commenced with a platter of savouries served on a peach blossom-shaped dish. There were no soporific ribbon sandwiches in sight. Instead, there were four eye-catching savouries, including gazpacho and celery root puree piped into a trompe l’oeil tomato jelly; yellowtail, red radish and caviar shaped into a budding red flower; ham mousse and honeydrew rolled into a log; and a fan-shaped creation of shrimp roulade and herbs. The exquisitely-curated Chinese tea menu along with the desserts, of course, were the twin highlights of the afternoon tea — arriving on a cloisonne porcelain high tea stand, the desserts were crafted in the French style, with two injected with touches of Chinese flavours. Of the latter, there was an ethereal lychee mousse cake shaped into a butterfly, and layered within with strawberry jasmine cremeux and pistachio sponge cake; and a miniature tartle with a caramelized peanut base and oolong tea cream piped on its surface. More Western-leaning in flavour profile were the blueberry cake crafted into the shape of a hand bag, and a very rich dark chocolate early grey mousse cake enlivened with spiced mango compote. Scones were also served, albeit in the English style with strawberry jam and clotted cream.
Our verdict
As we review the best of the newest dessert openings in NYC and beyond, we are noticing a burgeoning rise of modern Chinese desserts. If New York’s Duo Cafe and QM Dessert Bar high teas evoked and memorialized China’s historical tea culture, and Hong Kong’s Tomacado Cafe imagined its future, then Shenzhen’s RitzCarlton high tea (as well as the high tea at Pan-Pacific Hotel in London) is akin to building a bridge between East and West and celebrating both worlds — it’s a bridge that certainly ought to be nurtured and reinforced more in a today of unnecessary fragmentation and alienation.
Dessert adventure checklist
- ☑ Dessert destination: RitzCarlton Hotel, Onyx Lobby Lounge, 116 Fuhua San Road, Futian District, Shenzhen, China.
- ☑ Budget: $$-$$$ (Approx CNY 588 for 2 persons, plus service tax; approx USD $80 for 2 persons).
- ☑ Sweet irresistibles: High Tea.
- ☑ Must-eat: Modern fusion desserts.
- ☑ The short and sweet story: Building bridges between East and West through desserts.
Dessert Correspondents 