The Abby Garden Tea Room

My mom, sisters and I have started a new tradition with my Grandma when she comes to visit us each summer. We love to visit The Abbey Garden Tea Room in Fairhaven for tea. Established in 1998, Abbey's is a wonderful place to go for tea, tea sandwiches, and delicious desserts. They have expanded their location to include painting your own pottery. There are all kinds of item to pick from, including dishes, picture frames, garden statues, figurines and piggy banks. Once you have finished painting your master piece they will fire and glaze the pottery for you. I have always wanted to meet a friend there to drink tea while we chat and paint some piece of pottery.

Me, Aunt Karen, Grandma, Julie, Mom and Jackie - Ready to enjoy some tea together!

You have several choices for tea including High tea, Afternoon tea, Abbey tea, Gentleman's tea, Savory tea, Cream tea, or Lil' tea. Of course you can always create your own combination of goodies by selecting them from the menu, but we always order the High tea. High tea lets you select your own pot of tea, raspberry or lemon sorbet, three tea sandwiches, sausage roll, quiche or pasty, a plate of fresh fruit and your pick of dessert. I decided to order a green citrus tea, lemon sorbet, a smoked salmon sandwich, an egg salad sandwich and a chicken curry sandwich, the pasty, and the lemon tart for dessert.

Everyone is served their choice of tea in their own little tea pot. I loved the cup and platters.
My sisters and I traded until we all had the perfect cup and saucer.

I love lemon sorbet, and Abbey's has wonderful lemon sorbet!

My three tea sandwiches - I think the smoked salmon was my favorite, but they were all so good.

I decided on the Cheese and Onion Pasty which has cheddar cheese, goat cheese, potatoes,
 turnips, and onions in a flaky pastry. It was very, very good!

The fruit plate was so cute and tasted so good!

I love, love, love lemon tart! I could help but say "mmmmmhhhhh"
while I ate this one! Everyone wanted a bite!

It is so much fun to sit around the table, drink tea out of beautiful china cups, and catch up with the wonderful women I am blessed to have in my family. My Grandma is such a wonderful, fun, and interesting woman who always has something clever to say. We spent most of afternoon questioning things around us that we think we know about, but then realise we really don't. For example, my Grandma asked us why it was called Mt. Baker and what was the significance of a Fleur-de-lis. I had no idea. "Well, don't you have one of those smart phones, look it up!" she would say!

Grandma, Julie, Jackie, Mom and Aunt Karen ready for tea!

Me, Grandma, Julie, Jackie and Mom - pinkies up ladies!