Olinda Tea House

86A Olinda-Monbulk Rd
Olinda, VIC 3788
https://www.olindateahouse.com.au/

A friend of mine got married at Olinda Tea House a few years back, and it was so lovely that I decided I would come back for their Asian-inspired High Tea ($69pp). Disappointingly, the experience is more style than substance, though it’s not without its highlights. And it’s a great way to fuel up before spending a day wandering the nearby botanical gardens, which alone is worth the trip out to the Dandenong Ranges.

Rating: 11.5/20 – go for the a la carte menu instead; when I had it at the wedding it was actually really good
Don’t miss: the llamas. they’re down in the garden.

How gorgeous is this hey? The first course consisted of the sweets and savouries, as well as a choice of not one, but two drinks. I had the Olinda Morning Dew Green Tea, whilst Pete had the Olinda’s Apple Pie Black Tea. Both were lovely, though I wish I had room to try their Cherry Blossom Latte.

The savouries were a mixture of classic nibbles and Asian-inspired snacks. The fluffy BBQ Pork Bun was the best of the lot; the Mini Lobster Slider and Pumpkin Goat Cheese Arancini were worth scoffing as well. Much less well executed was the stale Chicken Salad Wonton Cup, which was filled with a weird pesto-flavoured concoction, and the Avocado Chickpea Bouchee was reminiscent of a sad vegan alternative at a poorly catered cocktail party.

The sweets fared a lot better, as they tend to do. The Mango Sago Cup was a spoonful of summer on a rainy autumn morning, whilst the Animal Mousse Cakes were as pretty as they were delicious.

It’s not high tea without Scones, and though these erred on the dry side, they were still decent, with a lovely golden crust. Also. Jam first then cream!