Like the most successful things in life, pickles have their lovers and they have their haters. Which is exactly why throwing it onto something as inoffensive as, I don’t know, an afternoon tea? is sure to cause a shockwave across the board.
Yes, you got that right. A pickle afternoon tea. In London. It’s on the horizon and we’re watching with morbid curiosity.
At this afternoon tea it’s not easy being green. With the results looking a little like what Shrek might produce if he found a love of baking (and that is most definitely a compliment), the pickle afternoon tea is one appetising affair.
What can we expect from the pickle afternoon tea?
If this has pickled your fancy already, let us delve into the event a little more. Hitting London on April 23, the world’s first immersive pickle pop-up is hopping straight out the jar and into the space of the luxury patisserie Oh La La! Macarons.
The green world will take over the shop each Sunday until May 14, and comes from the brains behind the first avocado afternoon tea. (Broccoli next? Green beans? Guess we’ll have to watch that space after filling up on pickles this time around)
A pickle-themed afternoon tea is here to say no to those who relegate pickles to the status of a small green sandwich filler. Nay, the menu at this afternoon tea puts paid to that school of thought.
What pickle-y dishes will I find at this afternoon tea?
I have to say, I was skeptical about this whole thing, and yet. One really can’t deny the brilliance of a pickle-shaped dill and lemon macaron, can they? Nor could they take anything from a portion of pickled devilled eggs or a dark chocolate dipped dill pickle.
It might be sounding like a pickle has hopped out the jar and onto my laptop while I hit the shops at lunch, but I will swear until I’m green in the face that this is not the case—the pickles have won me over!
Anyway, you’ll also be able to find more delights such as dill pickle and goats cheese finger sandwiches, buttermilk scones with pickled strawberry conserve & clotted Cream, and bloody Mary parmesan palmiers.
Oh, and as it’s an afternoon tea we’re talking about, there’s obviously a vast array of tempting drinks. Bloody Mary lite and dill cucumber & rhubarb gin fizz make up the cocktail menu, while the mocktails include pickled ginger beer and pineapple picked tonic.
Meredith O’Shaughnessy, creator of the pickle afternoon tea, said: “I love playing around with people’s perceptions of humble food. While taking a pickle and elevating it to the focus of a high-tea experience may leave some people scratching their heads we promise every bite will be dill-icious.”
“The world has never seen a traditional afternoon tea presented with a pickle-infused twist before which was all the more reason to make it. I wanted to bring something unique and unexpected together and know this limited-edition food experience will delight tastebuds.
“London has always been a city of adventure and was the perfect location to make it happen given Londoner’s affectionate name for the gherkin skyscraper. I’m excited to indulge people’s passion for a good gherkin if they are able to get a ticket.”
Book tickets to the pickle afternoon tea here. Find Oh La La! Macarons at 5 Kirby Street, EC1N 8TS.