Soffee Cafe has been on my afternoon tea list for quite some time and I finally had a chance to try it with my foodie pal, Roanna (IG: foodiegramca). It was nice that we were able to meet since I know Roanna is a very devoted mom to her boys and usually attends only a handful of media events which she gets invited to. I really admire this dedication and care she puts into her family life. We spent a couple of hours discussing our mutual love of the Vancouver food scene, traveling, tea ware and family life.
Soffee Cafe proved to be the perfect location to sit down and chat in a relaxed and beautiful yet unpretentious setting. I really loved their sweet English decor and the teapot warmers they used to keep the tea warm. I found the food quality to be good but the portions were on the smaller side. They were also less substantial items so someone with a heartier appetite might find this tea set a bit underwhelming for $39. A comparable tea set would be the one at Adonia or Rose House for its size and variety.
Overall, I enjoyed our experience and would definitely recommend it to others. Just be prepared to snack a bit more after you leave if you have a bigger appetite.
❤ OTHER NOTES:
One Word description: Feminine
Ambience: Traditional English manor decor. Dark carved wood furniture, chintz fabrics, lace table cloths. The space is on the small side with approximately eight tables seating 2-4 people, depending on the configuration. There are only two window tables available so keep that in mind when reserving.
Savoury: Fresh seafood starters featuring shrimp cocktail, white wine seared scallop and steamed lobster. There is one small croissant but without sandwiches or other more substantial pieces, some may be left a bit peckish.
Sweets: Good. 5 mini sweets plus one scone which were all on the small side. I would have expected at least 2 scones per person considering how little sweets were included and how small they were. All the sweets were delicious and well executed and the one I particularly enjoyed was the matcha choux "cream puff".
Tea: A respectable collection of 15 house blends and ten single flavours.
Tea Ware: Pretty, shabby chic mismatched vintage tea ware. Not designer tea ware like at Adonia, or XiXi Lounge Shangri-La. Candle teapot warmers were used to keep tea hot and is a nice touch which I've only seen at Rose House.
Service: One server for the five occupied tables, one of which was a large party of 6+. Professional but not overly friendly, took time to introduce each piece. The food came out quite slowly as well.
Location: 1426 West 8th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V6H 1E1 (West 8th & Hemlock)
Parking: Metered Street parking available on 8th.
Other notes:
♥ Afternoon Tea $39/per person
(includes one pot of tea, sub fresh fruit tea $5.95)
13 piece set of mini sweet and savoury bites
♥ 2 hour seating, 24 hour reservation required.
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You can see that I've utilized several different shell sizes. Usually I pipe different sizes on different mats and bake them separately since smaller shells require less bake time. But for this project, my friends at Silpat came to the rescue with these toaster sized oven mats. It allowed me to put two mats side by side perfectly onto one tray. I put them in the oven at the same time but pull out the smaller set at 13 min. while the larger set baked for a further 12 min. I was elated since this saved a ton of time and I love how easy it is to wash the smaller mats. They don't wriggle as much so won't splash water all over the sink and they are easier to store as well. It's also a great size for those who live in smaller spaces with only a small oven.
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Small Batch of Edible Glue for Applying the Horse Popsicle & Mint Candy
How to Make Horse Popsicles with Candy Melts
♥ 20 grams icing sugar
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whisk on low with the balloon whisk, then turn it up to medium.
2. Using a small water bottle, gently spritz the 5 grams of water into the mixture. (It helps to pour in a few drops into the mixture first and then blend. That will help keep the powders from flying everywhere in the beginning.)
Small Batch of Edible Glue for applying Cherry Blossoms and Roses
Something to keep in mind when working with Disco Dust is that it's actually non-edible. The official use for Disco Dust is for dusting onto display cakes. Although it's non-toxic, it's also non-edible. There is a lot of confusion with this product amongst even the salespeople at the stores. Even though it is non-toxic, it is technically not a food product (it's plastic) and not FDA approved. After a lot of research and consulting a doctor (in the family), it's MY personal opinion that if you end up consuming this product in very small amounts, it would have no immediate ill effects. The likely outcome is that you'll end up with some sparkly unicorn poo 🙂
Here are three previous posts which highlight the techniques I found most useful in achieving success with baking big macarons:
Trace the outline of a big round cookie cutter, leaving a space of 1.5 inches in between each shell. I am not providing the template here since you need your shells to bake to the same size as the ice cream which you will "cut out" with the same cutter (see video on the bottom of the page before starting).
For convenience sake, I like to buy pre-made ice cream in small paper containers. Plus, you'll be able to use your favourite branded flavours like I did with mine - Haagen Daaz Strawberry, Hershey's Reeces and the ever controversial Durian flavour. Paper containers are great because you can slice open the box easily and cut the ice cream into the desired shape and thickness. Open up the paper box, slice the ice cream into the desired thickness.
Take the round cookie cutter which you used to make the macaron template and use it to "cut out" the ice cream. With the leftover ice cream bits, place them into a shallow baking pan lined with ceram wrap to make one compact ice cream block, place in the freezer. Once firm, it can be used again to "cut out" more round ice cream. Be careful not to let the ice cream bits melt too much while doing this since melted ice cream will refreeze with larger crystals and result in a grainy ice cream texture. The ceram wrap used to line the pan will prevent the ice cream from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Take the now perfectly round ice cream slice and sandwich it between two big macaron shells. Immediately place it in an airtight container and transfer it to the freezer. Place each sandwich with the flat side down since the ice cream sinks easily. Keep parchment paper in between each big macaron sandwich since the shells can stick to each other when placed in the freezer. Big macaron ice cream sandwiches can be kept for up to one month in the freezer. Enjoy!
L'Opera Patisserie in Richmond has always been on my must-visit list for afternoon tea in the Lower Mainland. At the price of $45/set, its positioned at the upper end of Greater Vancouver's offering for tea so naturally, I was intrigued and held above average expectations from this establishment.
Sweets: The non-baked desserts, tiramisu and creme brulee, really stood out for its creaminess and balanced flavours. The chocolate on the dipped strawberries were crisp so that was a great sign of freshness. The cakes on the other hand were not too flavourful or moist.
Silpat mats and I have a love hate relationship. As you already know from my 
Having been to several afternoon tea services offered by hotels, I find that the food offering is generally more traditional, the service is impeccable and the atmosphere is serene and calm. The afternoon tea service at the Wedgewood is no exception to that. Luxury and professional service seems to be the common theme amongst them and you'll notice that right away as you pull your car up to the front of the hotel where the windows to the Bacchus lounge is facing as well. There is a valet attendant dutifully on standby to help you open your car door and shield you from the elements with an umbrella. On the top of my head, I can only remember one other afternoon tea experience which had started off so grandly and that was at the Fairmont Hotel in Vancouver. It's no wonder that this establishment was awarded the Four Diamond Award from the CAA/AAA. It's obviously a good choice for hosting clients or impressing guests.
Savoury: Good. Savouries centered around a selection of traditional finger sandwiches as opposed to puff pastry or quiches. The fillings were fresh and tasty but the outer layer of the bread was a little dry perhaps due to exposure. There were five different sandwiches to choose from and they were offered in regular afternoon tea sized portions. Not too small (like 
Sweets: Good. We were told they were all made in-house which surprised me as the raspberry macaron was exquisitely perfect. Most afternoon tea places often have problems with this item so I feel this is a real good reflection of the pastry team here. The rich and smooth chocolate mousse was perhaps the item I enjoyed the most and was the biggest in size compared to the other seven sweets that were not too small (like Rose House) but also not too big (like Neverland). And yes, there is indeed fruit cake and Bakewell tarts on that second tier, some guests may really appreciate these traditional pastries.
Teaware: Minimalistic white 3 tier stand and matching teacups. Tea was served in a glass teapot with infuser.
Small Batch of Edible Glue for Applying Gumball
