UPDATE: The Ritz Carlton Chicago no longer offers a daily afternoon tea. It is offered only during certain seasons of the year and is served in the Deca Restaurant on the 12th floor.  Still, I would like to take you on an image tour of the afternoon tea experience when I was at The Ritz, but please note that what you see here may not, is probably not, the same afternoon tea that is offered today.

The Ritz Carlton Chicago Hotel is located in the high-rise building known as Water Tower Place situated in an uber-prime area of Chicago – the high-end shopping district of North Michigan Avenue.  If you want to locate a hotel in Chicago, it just doesn’t get any better than this.

Entrance to Ritz Carlton Chicago Hotel on E. Pearson St

The stunning and elegant lobby of The Ritz Carlton Chicago is located on the 12th floor …

Lobby of The Ritz Chicago (image courtesy of The Ritz Carlton)

Here’s a picture of a general seating area in the hotel’s lobby, which I hope will give you a feeling of the overall ambiance of the space. The overstuffed upholstery just invites you to relax and spend some leisurely time here.

Seating area for afternoon tea at The Ritz Carlton Chicago

A typical table set up in advance to host an afternoon tea for a party of four. Remember that this is the arrangement when I was there –  afternoon tea is now offered in the Deca Restaurant.

Table setting for afternoon tea at Ritz Carlton Chicago Hotel

My table for afternoon tea at The Ritz Carlton Chicago …

Table setting for afternoon tea at Ritz Carlton Chicago Hotel with three tier tray

The loose leaf tea selection included a few caffeine-free choices as well as oolong, white, green, herbal, and fruited & scented black tea blends.  The teapot is made by Narumi, a Japanese company, out of white bone china.

Narumi bone china teapot Afternoon Tea

The elegant tea sandwiches – starting at the top and moving in a clockwise direction – egg salad, smoked salmon, chicken salad, and cucumber with red pepper cream cheese.

Finger sandwiches at the Ritz Carlton Chicago

Two scones – one traditional and the other, cranberry.

Scones for afternoon tea

Finally, the sweets and pastries tier.  Toward the front is a raspberry Breton tart, and a blackberry trifle is in the center of the dish.

Sweets and pastries at Ritz Carlton Chicago Hotel Afternoon Tea

To end our tour, here is one more image of the Ritz Chicago’s lobby hallway on the 12th floor.

Lobby hallway Ritz Carlton Chicago