High Tea at The Hatter and the Hare

The Overview…

Food: Savoury: Glazed Brisket Slider, Smoked Trout on Crouton, Mini sushi bowls, Fried Tofu, Chicken and Bacon Sandwich. Sweets: Pina colada tart, passionfruit jelly, mini dulce de leche choux, chocolate ganache filled pink macaron, blueberry friand, bonbon, Butter milk and date scones.

Ratings:
Food: 5/5
Atmosphere: 4.5/5
Service: 5/5
Value: 5/5

The details…

Bayswater probably isn’t top of anyone’s list as a high tea destination, but we went along with The High Tea girl to check our The Hatter and The Hare’s high tea and we were absolutely blown away with the lovely venue, perfect pastries and friendly staff.

Unsurprisingly the place does a roaring trade, even well into the afternoon. Alongside the bookings only High Tea, they also do a savoury brunch style menu and a ridiculously wide range of sweets. These guys don’t even need the bonus of there being a lack of other options around – put them on a busy high street and they’d still have queues out the door!

The venue is a modern, almost warehouse style building, with large floor to ceiling windows at the front. You’re greeted by a beautiful display of all their cakes – enough to get you drooling if you’re not already. The main seating area is separated from the counter, meaning you get privacy from the almost constant take away trade! Turn left when you arrive to go and peek at their open kitchen and watch the chefs work their magic. You’ll also see their beautiful flower wall and Alice in Wonderland themed ornaments.

We watched our scones be placed in the oven and they arrived to our table still warm, which was pretty special. We also begin our high tea with a glass of rose and a beautiful berry soda, which was one of the most refreshing drinks I’ve had. There’s unlimited soft drinks, tea or coffee as part of the high tea, so do give this a try!

The savouries arrived on a modern, black stand – perfectly fitting for these break-from-tradition dishes. Now, unlike most high teas, these aren’t little one-bite morsels, and the burgers in particular with their sticky brisket will really fill your tummy! It was nice to see smoked trout on the menu, it’s such a beautiful flavour and so often overlooked in place of salmon. The veggie sushi bowl is a good, fresh balance against the meaty burger, and the fried tofu with miso caramel – as well as being my fave – was an ideal bridge from savoury to sweet.

The sweets were presented on a more traditional, patterned china cake stand – and again nothing about these is mini. We couldn’t fault any of these – each was distinctly different and perfectly crafted. If I had to pick a favourite it would be the Pina Colada tart, just for its unique flavour, but the creativity of the passionfruit jelly and the skill seen in the Dulce De Leche Choux were almost equally as impressive.

While it may lack the opulence of several high teas around Melbourne it has to be up there with the best both us and The High Tea Girl (who is much more of an expert) have tried. The abundance and quality of the food along with the welcoming environment makes it easy to have a great time. Staff could not have done any more to ensure we had an exceptional experience and this laid back luxury made for a relaxing (and filling) high tea experience!

Everything else…

Website: http://hhcafe.com.au/

Address: 1/21 Scoresby Rd. Bayswater 3153

Opening Times: 

Mon         7am to 4pm
Tue          7am to 4pm
Wed        7am to 4pm
Thu         7am to 4pm
Fri           7am to 4pm
Sat           8am to 4pm
Sun         8am to 4pm

Parking: There is some parking beside The Hatter and The Hare, but it does get quite bust. There is a much larger car park across the road.

Getting here on PT: Despite being quite far out of the city, it is quite easily reached on PT as it’s  just a 400m walk from Bayswater Train Station on the Belgrave line

Disclaimer: We dined as guests of The Hatter and The Hare, Bayswater. Reviews are honest and based on our own personal experiences. We cannot guarantee things at a cafe won’t change including, but not limited to, menu items and opening hours, so please confirm any details with the venue before visiting.