We were looking forward to the Sofitel Damansara afternoon tea at the edge of the trendy Damansara Heights neighborhood. Contemporary bites in the Kuala Lumpur’s evolving hot spot sounded promising. Let’s remember that the Damansara Heights is on Lonely planet’s list of top 10 neighborhoods to visit. Understandably our expectations were running high! Not just because of that, but also because Sofitel is well known for its lavish high teas. Check the lines below where you can read our detailed Sofitel Damansara afternoon tea review.
Isn’t it fascinating how modern buildings feel lost in space? Especially when you are inside, you could be anywhere. Paris? New York? Tokio? Who knows, as long the same global laws apply. Spaciousness addresses luxury in the same matter as the bright space does.
Clearly, both are connected and have a huge impact on the site. Extremely high ceiling at the Sofitel Kuala Lumpur Damansara Lobby let plenty of light inside through the glass wall. More importantly, clever design extends through the frontier into the reflecting sunlight. Genius idea!
Chill your mind in the hanging chair while you stare through the chain curtain.
Note that a short distance away is another skyscraper. Honestly, we didn’t expect to face the sunshine at the Le Bar for our afternoon tea, but we were delighted when it happened. For a while sun also shined some warmth on the Le Bar’s earthy color scheme with a shiny gray base, dark brown wood, and reddish additions.
At the Sofitel Damansara Le Bar, we were able to choose from the TWG grand crus prestige loose leaf tea collection. Prestigious brand TWG is on the tea scene from 2008 and offers over 1000 different brews. Naturally, the Sofitel Damansara doesn’t hold all, but only a couple of classics. However, we found our match in Royal Darjeeling and Passionfruit tea.
In case you prefer something other than tea, you can choose hot or cold Nespresso beverages or Valrhona chocolate drink. Note that only Illy coffee or loose leaf TWG tea is included in the Sofitel Damansara Afternoon tea menu. Yes, if you happen to be celebrating, you can also have something for a toast.
Our Sofitel Damansara Afternoon tea got even more location-free with a cup of TWG Royal Darjeeling tea. This tea comes from a Darjeeling district in Eastern India, located somewhere between Nepal and Bhutan. Tea plantations at the Himalayas foothills mirror unique characteristics inside the cup of tea. Of course, characteristics differ with picking seasons and processing methods, among other location bound elements of tea production. TWG tea brand uses handpicked first flush for its Royal Darjeeling. The first flush refers to the tender young tea leaves harvested in spring. In general, the Darjeeling tea is known for its musky-sweet tasting notes, vibrant aroma, and lighter body.
The aroma of our TWG Royal Darjeeling presented rich notes of ripe apricots with caramel sweetness to it. Darjeeling’s exceptional flavor is well rounded and features freshly cut grass, moss, and fruitiness with sweet notes that call for almonds. The soft approach continued all the way to the end; after all, it ended in mild astringency.
Scones are delicate and many things can go wrong in the making. We say this because we take scones under the “microscope” in every afternoon tea review. Sofitel Damansara Afternoon tea walnut-raisin scones were a far cry from the soft tender scones we were hoping to get. Instead, they were more like dry biscuits difficult to brake. A try to half them silently, quickly turned into a mission impossible.
Sofitel Damansara Afternoon tea comes with three different Bonne Maman jam options, honey, and lime zest flavored cream. Given the possibilities, we switched jams for the mixture of honey and zesty cream. Sadly, even honey wasn’t local but French.
Both of the two different bites promised more than they delivered. Firstly, only one matched the description on the menu. Secondly, the two samples could be more complex and carry some exciting wow factor. Classic smoked salmon croissant sandwich with mayonnaise and tartar sauce tasted fresh, but salmon didn’t make it through the sauces. In like manner also the second savory item lacked some flavor. Usually, chicken and mushroom pie embodies western comfort food, but this bite left us cold.
Our favorite dessert for Sofitel Damansara afternoon tea has to be the moist brownie. More specifically, dark chocolate brownie with pecan nuts topped with dark chocolate ganache and cherry jelly. The winning combination of melting chocolate and soft nutty bites also belonged to the chocolate praline. Only in this case, the sweet apricot and raisin added a touch of sweetness and chewable texture.
Soft bite; sponge cake with vanilla creme and fruit.
As it goes for the dark chocolate coating at the bottom of the French Macaron, chocolate had a more significant role than just being “a cookie holder.” Dark chocolate bitterness matched the coffee filling and extended the pallet before the sweet meringue melted away.
Intense flavors also belonged to the cheesecake with mango puree and drops of cream. Here cream thinned the thick texture and slightly salty tang. We reckon the cookie also had some cream cheese mixed in the dough, which made it more fulfilling.
The last sweet bite for our Sofitel Damansara afternoon tea was the orange sponge cake. It successfully delivered that zesty candied orange kick, but it was a bit too dry. Good thing we had our teapot refilled and therefore enough liquid to sip on.
All-time classic; dark chocolate with dry fruit and crunchy nuts.
There is no point in denying fierce afternoon tea competition in Kuala Lumpur. This might be the reason we expected more from the Sofitel Damansara Kuala Lumpur afternoon tea. Visually, they did a splendid job for this french inspired high tea. Taste sadly is on the negative side of the scale.
In short, Sofitel's pastry chefs from Paris should take some trip to Kuala Lumpur and reboot this afternoon tea. Afterall, Sofitel fans will recognize the lack of dessert quality. Regarding savory. Those were nice, we only missed a pice or two more. They can gladly change with one of the desserts. Our last critique is according to jams. This cheap jams shouldn't end at the five-star hotels like Sofitel Damansara.
Afternoon tea at Sofitel Damansara Kuala Lumpur will cost you 31,5 USD, for two persons. Here is a link to the location in case you will give them a visit.
