Let Us Eat Cake

In celebration of the V&A’s hotly anticipated Marie Antoinette: Style exhibition, five-star London hotel The Kensington is introducing a brand-new afternoon tea: Let Us Eat Cake. Launching on 20th September, this quintessentially British experience pays tribute to the opulence, artistry and enduring style of one of history’s most iconic figures.

Drawing inspiration from the fashion, gardens and lavish court life of Marie Antoinette, Let Us Eat Cake is a chic and beautifully presented afternoon tea, where each item is as ornamental as it is delicious. The apt and artfully designed fan-shaped menu mirrors the decorative elegance and playful extravagance of the Palace of Versailles.

Guests can look forward to a selection of intricately crafted patisserie, including Le Gâteau du Jardin - a strawberry genoise sponge layered with vanilla Chantilly and fresh strawberries, Le Brisé de la Dauphine - a delicate lemon shortbread shaped like a fan, La Robe de la Reine - a blackberry and lemon curd tartlet topped with blackberry mousse, and Le Macaron Petit Trianon, a raspberry and white chocolate almond macaron. These are served alongside freshly baked traditional and fruit scones with clotted cream and homemade jam.

Savouries include refined finger sandwiches such as egg salad on brioche; French chicken tarragon on white bread; avocado purée, sundried tomatoes & crumbled feta on a savoury pink brioche roll; and pastrami, horseradish cream & baby rocket on hearty brown bread.

A dedicated vegetarian and vegan menu will also be available, with imaginative options such as French tarragon tofu on white bread; vegan cheddar with pesto, tomato and watercress on white bread; avocado purée, sundried tomato and crumbled feta on a vegan roll; and hummus with black olive tapenade and piquillo peppers on hearty brown bread.

The Queen’s Coupe (£23) – a royally indulgent cocktail featuring Belvedere Vodka, Pimms, Earl Grey cordial, clarified clotted cream, and Charles Heidsieck Brut Réserve NV, with a rose petal and raspberry rim, will also be available to enjoy as a decadent accompaniment. 

Served in the elegant surroundings of The Kensington, this afternoon tea offers a transportive experience that captures the charm and splendour of the V&A’s latest exhibition sponsored by Manolo Blahnik, which opens the same day.

Marie Antoinette Style will be the UK’s first exhibition on the French queen Marie Antoinette. The exhibition will explore the origins and countless revivals of the style shaped by the most fashionable queen in history. A fashion icon in her own time, and an early modern ‘celebrity’, the dress and interiors modelled and adopted by the ill-fated Queen of France in the final decades of the eighteenth century have had a lasting influence on over 250 years of design, fashion, film and decorative arts.

Priced at £59 per person, or £73 with a glass of Champagne or The Queen’s Coupe, Let Us Eat Cake is a decadent cultural celebration not to be missed.

Book here.

To coincide with the launch, the hotel will also offer exclusive packages for visitors to the V&A, located just moments away in the heart of South Kensington.

The Kensington, 109-113 Queen’s Gate, South Kensington, London, SW7 5LP