Business launch was a piece of cake!

The Tea Garden is an afternoon tea box delivery service that recently opened its books, delivering for free throughout the Vale of Belvoir, including Melton.

Having recently been made redundant from her accounts administration job and having to shield during the coronavirus lockdown, Annette, from Granby, decided, in a positive move, that this was the push she needed to fulfil a life-long dream.

Annette said: “Recently being made redundant certainly gave me lots of time to mull over the future. Having to shield also made it difficult for me to get out and about for essentials such as shopping, so I had to practically have everything delivered to my doorstep.

“To fill my time I read a lot and one day I came across an article on the history of afternoon tea. It’s widely reported that in the 1840s it was the Duchess of Bedford, Anna Russell, that came up with the idea of a light snack in the afternoon.

“It was during a visit to the 5th Duke of Rutland, at Belvoir Castle, that the duchess started to feel a bit peckish, as meals during this period were only two a day and spread out with nothing to fill the gap between lunch and dinner. The duchess requested a light refreshment to stave off hunger, she enjoyed it so much she carried it on with her ‘well to do lady friends’ back in London and hence afternoon tea was born.

“This literally was a light-bulb moment for me as Belvoir is literally on my doorstep plus, I have a huge passion for baking and for many years have loved creating home-baked cakes and savouries for my family. I also love a lavish afternoon tea so I thought why not take the plunge and combine the two plus offer a personal touch.”

The Tea Garden offers quality afternoon teas delivered directly to your doorstep. Starting at £15 for an afternoon tea for one person and £28 for two, each box contains a selection of popular finger sandwiches on assorted bread as well as savouries such as double cheese and red onion quiche.

Quintessential light and fluffy fruit scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream, plus thick slices of lemon drizzle cake, rich chocolate brownies and deep-filled carrot cake muffins complete the sweet side of things. Everything is home-baked and freshly prepared.

The afternoon tea boxes also include individually wrapped Twinings Teas, pretty napkins and a surprise complimentary treat. Gluten free cream teas plus children’s afternoon tea boxes are also available.

During National Afternoon Tea Week last week, The Tea Garden supplied 40 afternoon tea boxes to local residents.

To find out more or to place your order simply email [email protected] or call 07899 965667.