So, what is Teddy Bear tea you might be wondering? It has become an annual holiday tradition in San Francisco, where families are invited to gather for Teddy Bear Tea in the winter wonderland of The Ritz-Carlton Ballroom. While children enjoy a special tea experience of hot chocolate, scones, teddy bear sweet treats, and assorted sandwiches, they are entertained and engaged with a lively holiday show performed by an animated elf and holiday characters featuring sing-a-longs, skits and storytelling. And, as you enter the ballroom, Christmas Trees line the edges as well as holiday decorations and a massive sized teddy bar that greets you as you get off the elevator.
It’s a fun event, especially with kids in tow, for it really is a beautiful experience for kids to experience. It is lively and animated and an opportunity for kids to engage with other kids, all in a festival holiday atmosphere.
As for the menu? For kids, they have egg and English cucumber sandwiches and a grape and berry fruit cup as well as cookies, brownies, cannoli and berry cheesecake. The adults menu is a bit more decadent. Their savory menu included a Classic Egg Salad sandwich with avocado aioli and fried shallots on wheat bread, Lemon Cucumber with roasted pepper feta, kalamata olives and mint, a French Onion tart with creme fraiche, thyme and aged parmesan, smoked salmon mousse with wild Alaska Salmon Roe, cornichons and dill on rye bread and Tuscan Prosciutto with goat cheese, lamp chopper and winter spiced apple butter on brioche bread. Yum, right?
For sweets, they had cinnamon scones with lemon curd and Devonshire cream, Red Velvet Tea Cake with a cream cheese frosting (one of my favorites), Chocolate Caramel Tart, French Macaron and a Raspberry Bear Claw. It was all so divine. Additionally, they offer gluten free and vegan options as well.
Scones, pastries and sandwiches at the Ritz Carlton
Below is a fun video series on our experience. For more information, including how to reserve for the next season, visit the Ritz Carlton San Francisco events page.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
