The words “afternoon tea” now make Hunter seriously PERK UP and get all excited now. Complete with little excited hops all over the place! He now associates it with loads of yummy food and a whole ton of fun with other kids.

If you’re one that loves to do civilized high tea with girl friends, or if you’re a parent that’s looking to encourage your child to discover the love of reading, then get yourself to the completely  darling Imaginary Friends afternoon tea @ Pan Pacific Hotel!

 

You guys, prepared to be awwww’d by sweetness and cuteness. This is seriously adorable stuff!

The premise of this limited-time-only afternoon tea is the book Imaginary Friends: 26 Fables for the Kid in Us by local author Melanie Lee. It’s all about the silly and the zany, with talking food and lots of wry humour.

Inspired by the characters from this whimsical book. pastry chefs at Pan Pacific Singapore have come out with 10 SUPER UNIQUE treats that match the characters!

Think of it as a refreshing change to the same ‘ol same ‘ol high tea sets you see…. everywhere.

• Chucky White Flour Cookies with Orange and Chocolate Chips (Chucky the Clever Calico Cat) – I LOVED this and ended up popping 3 in rapid succession into my mouth. I loved the buttery shortbread!
• Seaweed Swiss Roll (Olivia the Overachieving Octopus) – I admit I’m a bit of a boresville and pulled off the seaweed! I loved the swiss roll without it, all fluffy and sweet.
• Seaweed Scones (Olivia the Overachieving Octopus) – one of my top picks, so I ended up eating 3. I blame it on the amazing freshly-whipped thick cream that it was served with!
• Cheese Cake with Turkish Delight (Freda the Friendly Froyo) – this reminded me of fluffy Japanese cheesecake. Only gripe? It was hard to eat, I ended up using a teaspoon to dig it all out.

 

 

• Octopus Mirin Quiche with Bonito Flakes (Olivia the Overachieving Octopus), Blue Cheese and Leek Tart (Lucy the Lively Leek) – these fabulous tarts ranked right up there for me. Perhaps I’m a savory queen. The pastry was so rich and buttery, and the flavour of both the tarts was amazing! Could have eaten just these and left satisfied.
• Grape and Leek Panna Cotta (Greta the Grouchy Grape and Lucy the Lively Leek) – the chilled, sweet pudding went down a treat, and the shot glasses were adorable. Plus, there’s fruit in it – practically a healthy dessert!
• Durian Puff with Spiked Meringue (Dan the Dowdy Durian Man) – I admit, durian isn’t my thing. I avoided this at all costs!
• Tea-infused Chocolate Praline (Timmy the Tenacious Teabag) – I think the kids and I popped about 4 each. These babies were outstanding. I wanted to sneakily pack a whole stash of these back home, but didn’t have an empty box or bag with me. Darn.

 

 

One of my platters of afternoon tea goodies. Such a lovely thing to indulge in, and in the swanky Pan Pacific to boot. I reckon this will make a very thoughtful Christmas gift (that you can also share with, hehe) for a friend of yours that’s either into books or food (or both).

 

The book is actually catered more toward adults and the young at heart, but my kids were pretty interested in the cute cartoon drawings at the start of every short story.

 

The much-anticipated book reading session, by Melanie Lee herself! This one was specially catered for kids, but the next sessions (see below for dates) are civilized ones for adults, so you don’t have to worry about kids climbing all over the top of you 😉

 

And THIS was what happened after everyone’s bellies were filled, and the book reading was over. KIDDY MAYHEM. There was so much madness and kids launching themselves everywhere I was quite surprised there were no broken bones at the end of it.

 

Chris got roped in by the kids and became a sort of tumble toy / play gym for all the kids. He slept well that night 😉

 

Imaginary Friends Afternoon Tea is available daily now until 31 December 2014, from 3:00pm to 5:00pm. Additionally, attend book reading sessions with Melanie on 22 November, 6 and 20 December 2014 at 3:00pm and hear the stories come alive.

Date: Daily, from 17 November to 31 December 2014
Time: 3:00pm to 5:00pm
Price: $58 for two adults, inclusive of tea and coffee
Venue: Pacific Marketplace (Level 1), Pan Pacific Singapore, 7 Raffles Boulevard, Singapore 039595

For dining reservations and enquiries, call +65 6826 8240 or email [email protected].