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Esplanade Afternoon Tea Review

January 30, 2025
Esplanade Hotel is celebrating its 100th anniversary, this year. Esplanade afternoon tea is served at the Esplanade Lounge Bar 1925. Lounge Bar 1925 has much to offer from early mornings to late nights Minimalist tea set keep distractions away from the Ronnefeldt tea The best high tea in Zagreb Savouries on top Grilled cheese with avocado mousse, Salmon with herbal curd and prosciutto canapés prosciutto on toasted focaccia Delicious desserts Choux au Craquelin with creamy pistachio topping Raspberry and rose are not matching only in color but also in taste. The yellow macaron was a bit shy but still delicious. Red velvet cake-pops in chocolate Pansy on top of the praline filled with nougat cream and hazelnuts Shall we start with sweets or fruit? Sweets! Esplanade Afternoon Tea Review

Croatia has been Europe’s hotspot for a while and for a good reason. Surely, its capital, Zagreb has many stories to share. That is why we want to shine a light on one particular luxurious fascination, celebrating 100 years in 2025. We are talking about a hotel that came to be because of the Orient Express train. Esplanade Hotel Zagreb to be exact. Back then it brought elevated elegance to the town and things still haven’t changed. After all, the Esplanade Zagreb brought a gourmet tea experience to this part of Europe. Now, let’s check this Esplanade afternoon tea review and see how is the experience itself.

Esplanade Zagreb
Esplanade Hotel is celebrating its 100th anniversary, this year.

Ambiance

Grandeur, in Art Deco style, follows guests at every step of the way around the Esplanade Hotel. The old charm of the 1920s is equally tantalizing and fascinating. However, we felt a sense of safety and tranquillity during our high tea time in the Esplanade 1925 Lounge and Cocktail Bar. Shiny chandeliers and spotless surfaces do that to us. We particularly loved how natural light put the dark wooden furnishings in the spotlight.

Esplanade Bar Zagreb
Esplanade afternoon tea is served at the Esplanade Lounge Bar 1925.

Lounge Bar 1925 Drinks Menu

The stocked bar can be seen from far away, but the menu names even more. Even though we were fixed on Ronnfeldt tea we noticed the signature cocktails. We love that cocktails are designed by the prominent mixed drink of the decade since the hotel opened its doors in 1925. Naturally, you’ll also find famous cocktails in the Esplanade bar as well. Along with a handful of LABV cocktails, mocktails, and spritz distinctions. For those looking for something stronger, rest assured you’ll get your needs met in the world of strong spirits. Then it is also a good idea to taste some local craft. A big portion of the menu belongs to the wine, coming from all over Europe.

Esplanade Zagreb Hotel
Lounge Bar 1925 has much to offer from early mornings to late nights

Our Tea Selection

Pai Mu Tan

The invigorating fruity and floral aroma of the organic white tea enchanted us immediately. Large leaves were able to give their best due to the loose manner. The natural sweetness was clear with every sip and spoke to us about candied fruit and maracuja. We were also glad of the gentle astringent finish coming from the tannins. Pai Mu Tan tea kept on the gripping charm even for the second brew, so we suggest you enjoy it to the max as well.

best afternoon tea Zagreb
Minimalist tea set keep distractions away from the Ronnefeldt tea

Fancy Sencha

Fancy Sencha has a smooth body with gentle bitter-sweet notes. The aroma of the freshly cut grass comes as an introduction into the Japanese realm of tea making. Indeed, steaming the picked leaves improves the final product. Although the vegetal notes come from the tea leaves themselves, the process just intensifies it. Taste on the other hand is quite tart but it comes with a rounded sweetness.

Afternoon tea Esplanade Zagreb
The best high tea in Zagreb

Esplanade Afternoon Tea Bites

Savories

The one with the mildest flavors was the first to go, that goes for the grilled cheese on toast. Roasted full-grain toast bonded with grilled cheese nicely. The pair were accompanied by the avocado mousse in the middle and zingy Asian microgreens on top.

High tea Zagreb
Savouries on top

Next one was the smoked salmon on focaccia bread. We loved the generous portion of the herbal curd cheese underneath the salmon and rocket for more textural flavor.

plate of canapés
Grilled cheese with avocado mousse, Salmon with herbal curd and prosciutto canapés

We are always happy when prosciutto is so soft it melts in the mouth. That was the case in our last canape and we loved every bite of it.

canape
prosciutto on toasted focaccia

Sweets

It is always hard to choose where to start first when you have a bunch of sweet delicacies in front of you. However, we try to start with more neutral and lighter delights, continue with fruity ones and finish with chocolate ones. Every bite is accompanied by tea and our palate is clean for the next bite.

desserts in Esplanade Zagreb
Delicious desserts

Firstly, we grabbed a nice-looking Choux au craquelin. Perfect choux pastry should have a light, airy, and crisp texture. The exterior should be delicately crisp, while the inside should be hollow with just a slight chew. Here the pastry itself was splendid. To elevate this, the creamy raspberry filling was spot on in the craquelin cream puff. It was also a great match to the pistachio cream that was on the top.

cracked cream puff
Choux au Craquelin with creamy pistachio topping

Our taste buds were still rioting from the last bite, but here comes a new – raspberry mousse cup. As expected, the blossom-shaped delicacy tasted floral and fruity at the same time, mostly reminiscent of raspberry and rose.

Raspberry mousse cup
Raspberry and rose are not matching only in color but also in taste.

Both macaron cookies tasted as great as they looked. One was hiding the taste of the blueberry behind the sweet veil, while the other wasn’t straightforward. It only gave off a hint of marzipan. However, the technicalities of the great macaroon were all there.

yellow macaron
The yellow macaron was a bit shy but still delicious.

One could say that cake pops were different just in terms of the chocolate. However, we found toothsome nuts in the one coated with ruby chocolate. The other cake pop was plain red velvet with milk chocolate around it.

cake pops with purple flower
Red velvet cake-pops in chocolate

The last sweet bite we took at the Esplanade Hotel in Zagreb was a chocolate praline filled with nougat and hazelnuts. Crunchy and yet brittle chocolate filled with lavish nougat cream is all you need for great praline. Simply delicious.

nougat praline Esplanade
Pansy on top of the praline filled with nougat cream and hazelnuts

Fruit

What can one say about the fruit for our afternoon tea in Zagreb? Well, given the fact that wintertime is no season for basically anything, we must compliment the chef on making strawberries as tasty as they were. Marinated strawberries were brought to life with no signs of struggle.

Sweets and fruit
Shall we start with sweets or fruit? Sweets!

Final Thought

We can’t say we didn’t miss scones, because we did. They are an item that connects the past with the future and they taste wonderful doing it. Especially, when they are topped with clotted cream and old-fashioned jam. But we don’t hold missing scones against Esplanade Hotel. We know this is just the beginning of something new they brought to town. Afternoon tea isn’t exactly a big trend in this part of Europe, and keeping scones fresh at all times would be a challenge. However, every bite, the service, and the ambiance were spot on. They can proudly serve their afternoon tea and maybe even help make it a trend in Zagreb!

Blueberry macaron
Esplanade Afternoon Tea Review

Esplanade Afternoon Tea Review Card

  • 9.5/10
    ATMOSPHERE – 9.5/10
  • 9.5/10
    SERVICE – 9.5/10
  • 9.3/10
    TEA SELECTION – 9.3/10
  • 9.2/10
    PRESENTATION – 9.2/10
  • 9/10
    BITES – 9/10
  • 9.6/10
    VALUE – 9.6/10
9.4/10

Price and Location

Afternoon tea at Esplanade will cost you about 47 USD. Here is a link to the location so you can pay them a visit.

afternoon teaCroatiaEuropeHigh teareviewRonnefeldt tea
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AFTERNOON TEA

Vivi
A culinary enthusiast who is prone to writing. She loves discovering new flavors, spiced with cultural differences. The fear of the unknown does not stop her exploring and learning new things.

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