Afternoon Tea at the Phoenician — Restaurant in Phoenix

This place has been on my waitlist for years, and I just hadn’t found the right occasion—until my friends planned my birthday celebration here. They know me well, because it turned out to be my very first high tea experience, and definitely not my last. From the moment we entered The Phoenician, it felt like stepping into another world. Parking was simple, and we made our way to the main lobby where the tea room is set. We were warmly welcomed and escorted in—and wow, what a gorgeous setup. With a live piano player, fresh flowers, elegant cutlery, and impeccable presentation, the whole ambiance felt truly royal. We opted for the full tea experience and chose the Darjeeling tea, which was both exotic and fantastic. The finger sandwiches were each unique and delicious (with generous refills too!). Next came the scones, paired with lemon curd and strawberry jam—honestly some of the tastiest I’ve had. One of the highlights was when the pianist played Happy Birthday as I blew out my cake. Such a special touch. Finally, the dessert plate arrived—so stunningly plated I almost didn’t want to touch it. Thankfully, they provided takeout boxes so we could bring some of the magic home. The service was flawless—attentive without being overbearing. Prices are on the higher side, and do note there’s a 22% service fee, but it really is all about the experience.

If you’re in Phoenix, I’d highly recommend treating yourself to this high tea. It’s an experience...

The best afternoon tea we’ve tried in the Valley – various visits, and still satisfied! Adhering to traditional English-style afternoon tea is being served in their new quaint Tea Room area. Voted consistently Best Afternoon Tea in the area in Arizona Republic and Phoenix New Times reviews, includes impressive tea blend selections along with unlimited finger sandwiches, pastries, scones along with tasty Devonshire cream, marvelous preserves and delectable pastries. The sandwiches consisted of: English Cucumber with seedless cucumber, fresh mint cream cheese, and white pullman; hickory-smoked Salmon; Mousse of cream cheese, dill and citrus on dark pumpernickel; traditional egg salad, Watercress, and whole wheat; lemon and thyme chicken salad; delectable chicken salad with fresh thyme and lemon on marble rye; crispy asparagus & garlic-herb mousse with poached asparagus tips and boursin mousse, aged Parma-ham on white loaf. The fresh baked tasty although somewhat dry Scones were of Buttermilk and Cranberry Served with Devonshire Cream lemon curd and Strawberry Preserves. One can enjoy a pleasant background ambience relaxing to classics and standards played while you enjoy your tea, with locally renown pianist Alan Comyns. Let’s not forget great servers, especially vivacious and attentive 19 years of experience Wanda, making your tea time extra pleasant. Kudos to the Phoenician for continuing the great level of service...

We go every year to the high tea for Mothers Day and have been going for several years now. The tea service has gone way down and is not at all worth the price now. Prices have risen drastically over the years and quality of service has been cut to the bare minimum. They stopped ordering the vanilla tea, they don’t serve the sandwiches and food on the traditional tiered serving center piece anymore. The sandwiches are much smaller and cheaply made with cheaper ingredients which you can taste the difference to persons who are are used to quality high tea service such as they used to do. Additionally the desserts are not as good as they used to be and are a cheaper quality than the little traditional tea cakes they used to serve. They don’t give you the traditional chocolates at the end like they used to, they have added more tables and the room is VERY HOT and cramped with tables utilizing every inch of floor space they can find in the rooms. The service has just gone down dramatically and I can make this cheap quality food at home with store bought ingredients. The Phoenician needs to hire a new tea time manager and get back to the same quality tea service which brought them loyal customers in the first place. Do better Phoenician! Stop putting money over quality. We pay a lot for tea service and expect a quality traditional tea service, not cutting corners anywhere you can to...