The Lounge at the Taj Hotel
15 Arlington St. (2nd Floor)
Boston, MA 02116
(617) 598 5255
First off, let's get the most important thing out of the way - the Taj is the new name for Boston's historic Grand Dame: The Ritz-Carlton. In 2006, the Ritz-Carlton group sold off their first ever asset to India-based Taj Hotels. Ritz-Carlton themselves moved across Boston Common to newer, less austere accommodation and left Boston's most famous hotel in the hands of this relatively new luxury hotel chain. The present arrangement is quite confusing, with a new Ritz-Carlton only a short walk away from the hotel that almost everyone still refers to as the Ritz Carlton.
Once inside, it becomes clear that the Taj is still very much the Ritz in style, grandeur and attitude. This is where you would expect to get a great afternoon tea, with top-notch service and surrounded by expensive antiques and living ones too. They've been serving here since 1927! Tea at the Ritz... it's the classic phrase. It doesn't quite sound as good to say Tea at the Taj, but rest assured that Indians are tea lovers through and through.
Afternoon tea is served on Wednesday to Sunday at 2 pm and 4 pm sittings, and it's wise to make a booking. It is served on the first floor, so enter through the front door and take the grand spiral staircase up to the high-ceilinged lounge adorned with traditional artwork and bedecked with antique furniture. A harpist plays and the window seats look out over Newbury St below and the Gardens across Arlington St.
There are two menus: The Churchill, which consists of tea, orange scones with cream and a selection of sweet pastries for $20, and The Edelweiss, which adds a set of luxury finger sandwiches for a further $8. To each menu a refreshing glass of excellent champagne can be added for $12 more. The tea menu consists of nine typical teas and nothing too adventurous. The tea is served from pots kept warm on your table using traditional paraffin heaters, and only the finest chinaware is used.
Hana... 
Up until this point, this is my favorite place to have afternoon tea, and is definitely the place where I'd treat a friend to afternoon tea. I love it here. Beautiful drapes, comfortable chairs, and relaxed lighting make the room feel warm and cozy. It is fancy, yet not uptight. The decor rounds out beautifully with great artworks and chandeliers, paying attention to every detail. This carries through to their chinaware and food presentations as well.
Sitting in front of a 3-tiered silver platter of sweets, I was in a daze. The smell of scones, the scent of chocolate opera cakes, the sugary profiteroles and lemon tartlets, this is how heaven should smell like! Or maybe, you will already be on cloud nine because there is an actual harpist playing. Whether enjoying the tea here on a chilly day or a warm summer afternoon, you should really dress up, because it is quite an experience, despite no longer being the Ritz.
Tom...
Wow - this was a great Sunday afternoon. The service, food and tea here were excellent and the atmosphere was beyond excellent. The cucumber sandwich (the classic tea companion) looked amazing and every bite was refreshing joy. I loved the way the teapots were warmed on flame heaters and it was a nice touch to have Indian designs on the chinaware.
Believe it or not, I'd started that day playing soccer in a mudbath game and had to quickly scrub myself down and slide into a suit for the dining. I was glad I did, because we were given one of the best seats overlooking Newbury St and the rest of the clientele looked very wealthy. There was even one aged lady who looked straight from her Manhattan penthouse - a walking, talking Gary Larson cliche.
My favorite memory was our waiter - an elderly man with a welcoming style and warm confidence that suggested he'd been part of the afternoon tea operation for decades. No doubt the Taj had decided to keep more than just the room when they took over The Ritz's tea.
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8 comments:
This is awesome. I want to be your new tea party partner!!!
Ahh, thank you so much for this review~! I've been yearning for a good afternoon tea for a long time. I think I know where I'm headed :)
I agree with this review -- I've been there four times for tea (three times when it was still the Ritz), and it has always felt like a special occasion. I've been to other teas in Boston, but none compare to this. Service, food, atmosphere are all impeccable.
Once I went there with someone for an anniversary, and as we paying I let slip that we were celebrating. The waiter smiled and urged us to wait a few more minutes, and he returned quickly with a special small serving of an incredible flourless chocolate cake with the words "Happy Anniversary" piped on the plate. No charge. It was amazing, and the perfect touch for a lovely day. That's the sort of service that I've always had there.
My only slight qualm is with the harpist, who usually begins with a nice selection of classical music, but toward the end, some showtunes and other songs always seem to come in. It struck me as a bit peculiar the first time I was there in a clearly Victorian setting with all the formality of high tea and suddenly the harpist starts playing "The Rainbow Connection." A really small point, I know... but the fact that this is the ONLY thing I can come up with to be negative about shows that this is clearly the best tea in Boston.
I have been to many formal afternoon teas and I have to say that I was rather disappointed with the Taj tea (more regarding the service). The pastries were good. The sandwiches were rather dry on the bottom (except for the crab one in the cream puff). The tea was good. I had called ahead of time to make reservations and inquire regarding pricing for adults and children. I was quoted the appropriate amounts for the adult tea and then $16 for the children's tea. They asked me if she wanted a ham and cheese or pb&j and we opted for the ham and cheese. She did not receive any pastries or anything else to go along with it. I assumed that a drink would be included (usually milk, chocolate milk, juice, or tea is offered). Oh, and usually they receive some pastries/chips/fruit/etc. She chose a fruit infusion (I hope!-mountain berry). When we received our bill, I was charged $16 for her ham and cheese sandwich alone (which was a normal ham and cheese-no special bread or anything!) plus $7 for her pot of tea! Ridiculous! I could have ordered her the "Duchess Tea" for $20 (which is an adult selection). They also told me that they no longer had the child's tea (apparently it was when it used to be the Ritz...and the reservation people were "confused." I couldn't believe it! I was able to get them to take off the $7 for the tea, but wow...they could definitely use some work when it comes to children! My daughter is only 4 years old too! She has been to many formal teas with me (including at the Waldorf Astoria in NYC which is awesome!)...I don't mind paying $16 or even more for her tea but come on! At least, provide her with a complete tea too! Oh, and if you don't offer a children's tea...just say so from the beginning! That would've been fine also...I would've gotten her the "Duchess" tea!
I just went this Saturday with 2 other girlfriends and we were extremely dissapointed. The service, tea, and snacks were all dissapointing.
After 1 cup of tea, our waiter never came to pour more tea, and when we finally asked for it, the tea was SO bitter and undrinkable. We had 3 pots of tea and each only had 1 cup! Plus our waiter could hardly understand any english and we had to explain so many times that we would like to have more tea but how it was really bitter.
The snacks were same as the one in the picture posted but the bread was SO dry. The chocolate dipped strawberry was mushy. The desserts came later and were also unimpressive.
The room was nice, and the Chanel trunk show was fun but we would never go back again.
I'm sorry to hear about the last two disappointing teas at The Taj. I hope our opinions haven't led to any let-downs. We will be revisiting The Taj in the next month or so and will re-rate if we think appropriate.
The Chanel trunk show sounded interesting. It may be that the Taj Lounge was stretched beyond a usual capability with a show like that and it could've led to a substandard experience (which is not an excuse, but possibly a consideration).
I went there about 3 months ago and found the service very disappoiting. The waiter was very unprofessional. They only give you one pot of tea which you brew yourself and the tea eventually gets very bitter. I liked the Swan Cafe at the Park Plaza better because their tea is perfection! The room might not be as nice but tea and service more than make up for it. However, the pastries at the Taj were slighty better than at the Swan Cafe in the Park Plaza.
I'm not sure if you still read this, but I just wanted to say thank you for posting this. It was awesome it helped me decide where to take my friend for tea. I was only in Boston for a week, so we only had one chance.
We picked the Taj and it was wonderful, a nice relaxed atmosphere and very friendly staff.
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