Lanier House — Restaurant in Madison

We (four of us) went to Lanier House for 3:00 tea. It was an early Mother’s Day celebration for us since we do not like to take my elderly mother out in large crowds, as traditional Mother’s Day most certainly will be. We were greeted warmly at the back door from the handicapped ramp my mother used with her walker and seated immediately. The server promptly delivered all 3 courses of food with the first course of tea. The server then explained there was a tea paired with each course, and each plate on the three tiered rack was a course. The bottom plate was the first course, the middle plate second and top was the third course. Additionally, she explained Earl Gray Supreme was paired with the first course and was best with cream and sugar. The server then let us know when we were ready for our second course tea we should invert the teapot lid. We all enjoyed our Earl Gray with some discussion as to whether it was better with or without cream and sugar.  The “Salmon and Cucumber Sandwich” was acceptable as was the “Coronation Chicken Sandwich”.  The “Strawberry, Mint, Cream Cheese Sandwich” was my favorite, but I didn’t get even a hint of mint. We were now ready for the second course tea, so we flipped the teapot lid and waited. Well, not all of us waited. My mother had nearly finished her second course before second course tea arrived. The service was a bit slow here. Second course tea, Regency Wedding White Tea, was served with a “Banana Scone”, and a “Lemon Poppy Scone” accompanied by “Lemon Curd” and “Clotted Cream”. Again, we all enjoyed the tea and again with discussion about no sugar or sugar as suggested by our server. However, the “Banana Scone” was actually banana bread, very disappointing. Both the “Lemon Poppy Scone” and the “Lemon Curd” were excellent and even better together! The “Clotted Cream”, was actually whipped cream. Clotted Cream has a far denser texture similar to butter that's grainy with a nutty flavor. Please, don’t tell me you’re serving something you’re not. If it is banana bread and whipped cream, tell me it's banana bread and whipped cream, then I won’t be disappointed.  We flipped our pot lid again and moved on to the third and final course. Our third course was paired with Iced Raspberry Tea which everyone (but me) thoroughly enjoyed, (but I don’t like any iced tea – it's always way too weak – but that's just me).  The Raspberry tea was served with a “Blueberry Tart”, a “White Chocolate Dipped Strawberry” and a “Blackberry Lemon Petit Four”. Hoping not to be disappointed, I took a bite of what turned out to be a very runny “Blueberry Tart”. The “White Chocolate Dipped Strawberry” was good but not even half dipped. The strawberry itself was excellent!, but it is strawberry season. I tasted neither blackberry or lemon in the “Blackberry Lemon Petit Four” but there was a blueberry on top. The atmosphere was spot on exactly what you would picture as an afternoon tea! Service was generally good and kept the atmosphere flowing. My conclusion is, if you’re going for the menu – don’t!  However, if you’re going to experience an afternoon tea and don’t really care about the menu – this is your place! If you're going for both, give it some thought before making...

Lanier House Madison 🎉

I love supporting local businesses and women owned businesses in Huntsville so I’m thrilled to share this gem with you all. What a wonderful place to celebrate my birthday yesterday. This place opening in my birth month was definitely a gift in itself.

It’s conveniently located on Martin St in downtown Madison. If you live in OXR it’s about 30 mins away. I had the pleasure of meeting Tammy Hall’s daughter Reagan. She was an absolute delight to talk to and is getting ready to set sail for Taiwan for her higher studies. Tammy Hall also owns Main Street cafe on Main Street. If you haven’t tried that place yet, then you have to. It’s a wonderfully delicious restaurant.

Coming back to Lanier House, it is every girls dream and and every women’s fantasy. It like paying a visit to your fairy godmother’s house where you are the center of attention. They take good care of you and make you feel special. Peaceful ambience, enchanting decor, adorable velvety furnishings, nostalgic vintage china, aromatic tea ☕️ and delicious tea trays. I loved everything about this place. I’m big on high tea and this place is exactly what I was longing for. So I’m extremely happy 😃

Let’s dig deep into the setting of Lanier house. You will be given a slot for 1 hr and 30 mins. Their first slot of the day is at 11am. So make sure you arrive 10 mins before your reservation starts. The menu is pre decided, depending on the number of people in your party, they will accordingly set your snacks. You will be served 3 teas which you will pair with your snacks in the tea trays. You work your way up, meaning you start at the bottom of the tray with your first tea. My favorite snack was indeed cucumber sandwiches, I love those suckers.

Great place for high tea or host private parties, baby shower or just a Tete-a-tete with your besties. You can easily seat around 30-35 people in the space. They take reservation for up to 5 hrs for private event. Check their website for details. You can also borrow high tea hats to step up the overall experience just like I did 🤩

I am definitely taking my out of state clients over there for a unique high tea experience. I can’t wait to go there for a second, third, fourth……nth time. I loved it & you will love it too! Reservation is highly recommended.

#realtormom #realtormomlife #lanierhousemadison #hightea #supportsmallbusiness #supportlocal #supportwomeninbusiness #supportwomenownedbusinesses #shoplocal #teatime #teatimesnacks...

I am sorry, but I feel like I got ripped off. I didn’t get the scrumptious food experience that some people claim this place has. I have been to about 5 tea rooms between Oklahoma, Texas, and now Alabama. This one was just as nice as the rest in atmosphere and great service, but the worst with food I have ever experienced. I have paid $30 for other tea rooms, but I actually got my money’s worth. At this place, they serve the most rip-off pathetic amount of food I have ever seen. It’s not a meal, and they need to explain that on their website. You pay $30 for bread snacks and dainty desserts. I had two tiny pieces of toast with some sort of cream cheese on them, 3 tablespoons of drinkable salsa that they called “cold soup”, two fork-fuls of greens that they called a salad, two scones, and three tiny dessert portions including a one and half inch cube of strawberry cake for $30!! How pathetic! I make homemade scones and curd at home, so I know how cheap it is to bake scones. Then, they charged $25 for my daughter. She got the scones and dessert with a basic ham sandwich that was about three inches across. Pathetic! Please do better with actually giving people their money’s worth on the savory tier...