I’ve been a big fan of the Daisy Green Collection ever since I was introduced to them a few years back, so was super excited to discover they were introducing an Audrey Hepburn themed afternoon tea to their latest venue, Larry’s.
I’ve visited several of their London-based cafes and restaurants, including Ziggy Green off Regent Street and Darcie & May Green just a hop, skip and a jump from Paddington Station, each with their own unique style, while managing to stay on brand.
The former, you see, pays homage to the iconic David Bowie, while the latter is a colourful boat, decorated by the ‘godfather’ of British pop art, Sir Peter Blake, which is moored on Regent’s Canal. Both, while unique, retain the Daisy Green ‘vibe’, which is that of the relaxed Australian food and coffee culture.
Introducing Larry’s – central London’s underground cocktail bar
Larry’s is one of the latest additions to the Daisy Green family, and might be the location with the biggest wow factor. That’s because it’s styled itself like a 1920’s speakeasy bar, hidden away in the bustling centre of the city.
Just off Trafalgar Square, its ‘hidden’ entrance on Charing Cross Road takes you into the historic vaults of the National Portrait Gallery. The original exposed brick space, once used to store coal, has been transformed into a stylish bar, complete with velvet curtains and seating, low lighting and walls adorned with over 100 portraits of the West End’s most famous faces.
This includes Audrey Hepburn who, believe it or not, began her cabaret dancing career at Circo’s nightclub on Orange Street, just a few steps away from the gallery.
It was for this reason, plus Audrey’s timeless style and grace, that Larry’s decided to create an afternoon tea that embodies the sophistication and charm of both the actress and her most iconic character, Holly Golightly, of Breakfast at Tiffany’s fame.
Breakfast at Audrey’s Afternoon Tea
We were very excited to come and try out the new afternoon tea, and on arrival were quickly greeted and brought to our table, which was next to the bar. This was a cocktail table designed to seat four, but comfortably had enough space for a two-person tiered afternoon tea tray, our side of sandwiches, plates, teacups, tea pots and cocktail glasses without any trouble.
The drinks
Let’s start with the drink options for our afternoon tea. We were pleasantly surprised to discover that in celebration of its launch, when you ordered the new Audrey afternoon tea, you were given a complimentary glass of Piaff champagne. This was originally for the first two weeks, but had been extended until the end of July. This has sadly ended now, but who’s to say what specials might appear in the future..?
Hot drinks
The champers went down a treat as did the discovery that all hot drinks, including coffee and hot chocolate, were bottomless, and you could swap and change between them freely.
After a sip or two of champagne we perused the menu, starting with the speciality tea selection. This had been curated by Good & Proper, and consisted of black, white, green and herbal infusion teas from around the world. Hot chocolate and a wide selection of coffees were also on offer, so Rosie decided to start off with the house chai latte (the best she’d ever tasted I’m happy to report) followed by a pot of White Peony, while I went for the Brockley Breakfast Tea.
The White Peony was wonderfully light and floral, in contrast to the Black Breakfast tea, which retained its rich flavour when a dash of milk was added.
Each pot holds about two cups of tea, so quite small for this hardcore tea drinker, but it wasn’t an issue as our pots were quickly refreshed whenever we asked.
Cocktails
As the bar was so stylish it would have been rude not to order one of their cocktails, so we each chose a drink that took our fancy from the menu.
Rosie went for the Meet, Shoot & Leave! espresso martini. This was made with Flor de Cana, Mr Black, Daisy espresso, butterscotch liqueur and a homemade tonka bean syrup. Not as full bodied as your standard espresso martini, this was made up by the beautiful presentation.
I chose the Cecil Beaton, which was very floral and herby, with a hint of berry lozenge – but don’t let that put you off!
Made of Bombay Bramble gin, Dubonnet, homemade berry jam, sparkling wine and cherry bitters, it’s very easy to drink, perfect for the summer in my opinion. I also loved how it was served, with and comes with a spritz of Crème de Violette scent, a delicious white chocolate disc, and a massive ice cube.
The food
You also have choices to make when it comes to the afternoon tea itself. This is because guests have the option of two different sets of sandwiches and savouries – one being vegetarian-friendly. For the purpose of this review, we had the opportunity to try out both sets, and I can say hand on heart, that it’d be hard to pick a favourite!
Sandwiches
For the sandwiches, you have the choice of hot smoked salmon with horseradish cream on charcoal sourdough and chicken Caesar with candied walnuts on white, or mushroom parfait, with pickled shimeji on charcoal sourdough and mature aged cheddar with house piccalilli on white. Both options also include cucumber ribbon, cream cheese, soft herbs, preserved lemon on wholegrain.
The cucumber’s lemon twist got mixed reactions from us both, but we agreed that the crisp cucumber, cut into crunchy chunks, was great.
Each of the sandwiches was unique in its own way, and I don’t mean just in terms of flavours. The salmon and caviar stood out for its dark, dense sourdough and the fact the filling was a kind of salmon spread, where I’d been expecting fresh, thinly sliced fish. It was still tasty, to be fair, but definitely not the norm for an afternoon tea.
The prettiest of the sarnies, by far, was the mushroom parfait, which I personally thought looked too good to eat, with the tiny shimeji mushrooms delicately placed on top. Rosie disagreed with that sentiment however, and didn’t let a crumb go to waste, as she said these were absolutely delicious and her highlight of the tea.
She also described the charcoal sourdough as dense, more like a rye bread, but said this complemented the creamy, earthy – yet sweet – flavour of the parfait.
We shouldn’t overlook the others however, as the chicken Caesar and walnut sandwich had perfectly spongy white bread, with a subtle flavour and a cool crunch. Then there was the open cheese sarnie. The mature cheddar was milder than expected, but made for a great contrast of flavours with the tangy piccalilli.
Savouries
I love how many afternoon tea offerings now include a round of savouries, including outside London at venues such as the recently reviewed Ellenborough Park, and Larry’s didn’t disappoint.
The veggie selection consists of smoked cauliflower croquettes, with tomato and salsa, pickled beetroot, herb cream cheese on sourdough, and a tofu spicy sausage roll, while the ‘meat’ option had chorizo croquettes with a saffron cream and charcoal crumb, smoked salmon and herby cream cheese with avocado and grapefruit on sourdough, and beef wagyu pie with ale ketchup.
Both options came with corn fritters with avocado cream, house labne and pickled red onion. On their own the fritters didn’t have a lot of flavour, but when eaten together with the other ingredients this came to life with an interesting mix of flavours alongside the crunchy, chewy and creamy textures.
We enjoyed all the savouries, but highlights for me were the flavoursome chorizo croquettes and the mouth-watering wagyu pie, which had a deep, rich flavour that left you wanting more. I also liked the kick of the spicy sausage roll, but be warned it’s not for those of you with delicate palates.
Bottomless scones? Yes please!
I do adore a good scone, so these guys had me when I found out that their Breakfast at Audrey’s Afternoon Tea came with bottomless scones.
My eyes are bigger than my belly though, so I never actually got beyond those that were presented at the beginning, but even having the option to top up is a big plus point in my book.
The afternoon tea is served with two scones per person – one plain and one raisin – and as and when you want any extra, you simply just ask your server. These were freshly made as were still warm (as were the savouries like the pie and croquettes) and while they could have done with a dusting of icing sugar, as is the want of all sugar fiends, they were perfectly crisp outside and soft (while a little bit too crumbly) inside, with no stodge, or soggy bottoms in sight.
These were served with house-made raspberry jam and clotted cream, which again can be refilled on request, which is great for ladies like us who are quite generous with our toppings!
Stylish patisseries
The top tier sweets were the showstopper of the afternoon tea in terms of looks, as this was where you found the real nod to Audrey Hepburn and her alter ego Holly Golightly, with the desserts designed to look like everything from handbags and pearl necklaces to sunglasses and Tiffany boxes.
Let’s start with the $50 for the power room mouse purse, which was made of 54% Callebaut dark chocolate and passionfruit. You could tell the quality of the dark chocolate used from the depth of flavour and the fact it wasn’t overly bitter, and this was perfectly countered by the addition of passionfruit, which wasn’t overpowering, but rather added a sweet edge to the mousse.
The mousse was deliciously smooth and was kept in its handbag shape with what came across as a kind of cake-crumb coating. This was served on a biscuit base and topped with a chocolate strap.
The pearl necklace was a strawberry macron, which had a vanilla cream filling centred with fresh strawberry gel. The edge of the macron was dotted with edible pearls to represent Holly’s iconic necklace, but the gooey strawberry centre received mixed reactions, as it’s level of sweetness was very high. The macron itself was delicious though, and I liked the crunch the pearls, which reminded me of Kellogg’s Ricicles breakfast cereal.
Larry’s is supposedly known for its Mars Bar cheesecake, but sadly I have to say it wasn’t to either of our tastes. This was the filling of the Tiffany Blue Gift Box, which looked beautiful, but didn’t have a particularly nice flavour as far as our palates were concerned. We couldn’t taste any Mars Bar, only cream cheese, so this was quickly set aside and we moved on to my favourite of the selection, the Seeing Sally Tomato.
This was a pair of dark chocolate and sea salt caramel sunglasses.
Again, quality dark chocolate (76% single origin Callebaut this time) was used to create the glasses, and this had been filled with deliciously sweet, but noticeably salty caramel. I’m not sure I could have eaten any more than what we’d been served due to its richness, but damn, was it tasty!
Lastly came the Revlon Pink edible lipstick, which I thought was a fun idea. Raspberry cremeux is served in a lipstick case, which you twist to push up, and its sharpness was a nice contrast to the other very sweet elements of this tea.
What we thought of the Breakfast at Audrey’s Afternoon Tea at Larry’s
While it is of course open to all, Larry’s exudes exclusivity, probably in part down to its location below the National Portrait Gallery, and its speakeasy vibe, which makes the whole afternoon tea experience feel extra special.
The venue definitely adds to the experience, with its cool retro style and chilled out vibe. We didn’t feel rushed at all during our almost three-hour stay, and the staff were happy to answer our questions and chat.
Price-wise, the Audrey Green Afternoon Tea doesn’t come cheap, but to be fair it’s no more than the majority of afternoon teas in London today. So, if you’re looking for a classy afternoon tea with a twist, then we’d highly recommend Larry’s for a special treat.
You could even take it up another level by embracing your inner ‘Hepburn and dressing up in your pearls and little black dress! This is a trend that our server, Lara has been seeing from groups of guests fully embracing the theme.
All in all, this afternoon tea was one of my favourites in London – the food, service and setting were all impressive, so long live Larry’s Breakfast at Audrey’s Afternoon Tea!
Audrey’s Afternoon Tea costs £59.50 and is available Wednesday to Sunday between 2-5pm. Booking is essential.
