Lady luck was shining down on me last week when I won Alfreton House’s competition for a Festive Afternoon Tea for Two. I decided to share my good fortune with my Mummy Bird, so after we had done our Fitness Pilates class with the marvellous Maxine at Alfreton Leisure Centre we tootled off to the Tea room.
The staff are all incredibly friendly and the room itself, whilst not the biggest room in the world, has bags of character to it. I love how the chair backs have been decorated in red Santa suits for the Festive period, it looks fantastic. When we arrived there were already lots of tables taken with people eating and a couple of other tables were reserved for later times. I always think it’s a good sign that a place is so in demand, it gives me faith that the food is good quality.
Between me and you dear reader, I think everyone is on a mission to feed their customers this week because after the belly busting dinner the Man and I had at Lumb Farm on Tuesday, Mummy bird and myself were in absolute awe of the mountainous spread of cakes and sandwiches that Alfreton House placed before us.
There were sandwiches freshly made with Salmon and Cucumber, Turkey and Stuffing, Brie and Cranberry and Ham and Pickle accompanied by fresh salad and crisps and then a wonderful selection of delicious sweet treats: Mini doughnuts, Stollen bites, a twist on Bakewell tarts filled with mincemeat, Chocolate fudge cake and Cherry scones with jam and clotted cream.
We were asked if we would like tea or coffee with our afternoon tea and we chose to have a pot of tea for two. It is a really nice brew that they serve at Alfreton House with plenty of flavour to it that makes it the perfect accompaniment to the sandwiches and cakes.
As if this wasn’t enough (and believe me, my tummy was telling me it was more than enough!) we were also offered a cup of Hot Mulled Punch. Now as we all know, most mulled wines and punches are mediocre at the best of times, but I have to say that this one was superb. No, really, it was very nice; lovely and fruity with a gentle hint of spices and best of all it didn’t have that sickly sweetness to it that stays in your mouth for ages, it genuinely was a good glug :)
On a nearby table there was a large family group with a couple of younger children and the Alfreton house team do a rather nifty “kids plate” that is a pared down version of the adults tea for a very purse-friendly price of £1.50. My Mummy bird is a fully paid-up, card carrying fan of Alfreton House Tea Rooms now and will be going there on a regular basis when she nips in to do her shopping. It has a fantastic location on the end of the high street with parking on Rogers Lane very close by, what’s not to love?
Seriously, if you haven’t been here before, you are missing a trick. The Hot Food smelled so delicious, and judging by the smiles on peoples faces as they were eating, it tastes mighty fine too. I don’t think I’ll be having an awful lot to eat for my dinner tonight thanks to being fed so well by the team at Alfreton House Tea Rooms. Hot Wings deserved here, without doubt.
