A Downton Abbey Tea in Ohio

Yesterday, Saturday, September 14th, my girlfriend, Lori, and I traveled to Maumee, Ohio to attend a Downton Abbey tea at Clara J's tearoom.  How did I not know about this lovely tearoom just 90 miles away until now?

It was a beautiful day for our hour and a half drive.  Our seating was for 1:30 p.m. An earlier 11:00 a.m. seating was sold out.

We arrived about 15 minutes early, and to our delight saw two friends standing out front visiting with two other ladies.  Teresa and Rebecca [left two ladies] went on the Southern Teatime Getaway in May of 2018, and it was great to see them again!  

~ Entrance to the tearoom ~

The girl above the mantle [photo below] is Clara Jaessing Keller in her 1914 confirmation picture.  She studied Culinary Arts at Baldwin-Wallace College and eventually opened a restaurant in Maumee called Stuckey's.  She is the deceased aunt of the tearoom owner who named the tearoom in her honor.

The second seating was well attended, but not sold out.

~ My place setting ~

There were three selections of tea [two tisanes and one black tea].  We chose the Dowager Violet Grantham blend - a deep purple herbal with notes of lavender and citrus.  It was very good.

We were served a warm Apricot Scone with Devonshire Cream and a spot of Strawberry Jam to go with our tea.

Throughout our tea a gentleman played soft music, some of which was the theme from Downton Abbey.

A lot of detail was put into this tea.  Pictures of Downton Abbey cast were situated around the room to remind us it was a Downton Abbey tea.

~ Our tiered server for two ~

~ Lori and Me ~

The top two tiers pictured on my plate are as follows [6:00 o'clock position]: Traditional Cucumber triangle on White Bread with Butter and Cream Cheese seasoned with Dill; Two triangles of Spinach and Strawberry Slices on Marble Rye Bread spread with Orange Marmalade; Pate a Choux, filled with Smoked Salmon Mousse;  Mushroom Palmier with chopped Button Mushrooms, Red Onions, Garlic, Rosemint & Sherry.  It was topped with Mrs. Patmore's seasoned Cream Cheese; and lastly Fig, Prosciutto & Goat Cheese on Wheat Bread with Chives.  Everything was delicious!

Desserts were Chocolate Teacup filled with Chocolate Mousse; Lemon Tart with Sugar Cookie Crust, toasted Meringue, and Candied Lemon Zest; and Battenburg Cake - Pistachio and Rose Cakes with Strawberry Jam wrapped in Almond Paste.  In the center was a Watermelon slice in the shape of a teapot.  Yum!

Our favors were a Harney & Sons tea bag, honey stick, and a return coupon.

After our tea meal we looked around the tearoom.

Lots of hutches filled with teawares.

Then we made our journey back home.  It was a delightful afternoon, and I highly recommend the tearoom if you're ever in Maumee.   The town is very quaint with a large antique mall if you want to make a complete day of it.