You know the drill. The crowd has gathered for the holiday, friends and family are seated around the table and lovingly-prepared food is passed from plate to plate. Just as the chatter dies down, while people dig in for their first bite, your charming child loudly declares, “Ew, this is disgusting!” We’ve all been there. (We have, right?) Well local parents rejoice: The Grille at Morrison House hosts a monthly story time tea with Mrs. B. Who’s Mrs. B, you ask? A children’s etiquette teacher.
The monthly themed teas cater to the children with an introductory activity, kid-friendly menu items (pb&j and egg salad sandwiches, naturally), and story time. All the while, Mrs. B works in subtle tips about proper tea time manners casually throughout the afternoon. Tea is served in the hotel’s elegant tea room (available for afternoon tea for grown-ups every Saturday, 2:00-5:00pm).
We were invited to attend the Spooky Halloween tea and my five-year-old son had an absolute blast. He was smitten with Mrs. B, delighted to hear they had a “special hot chocolate” just for him and thoroughly enthralled the entire time.
Spooky Tea with Mrs. B
The breaks between the savory and sweet courses helped keep him entertained, and the champagne cocktail for mama made the afternoon even sweeter. As we left he declared that he wanted to return every month. The November and December teas feature Thanksgiving and Christmas themes, naturally, but story-time teas are held the third Saturday of every month. See details below for reservation information. And visit Mrs. B’s website for more info about her other classes and birthday parties. (I foresee a birthday tea party for the foodie bebe someday.)
MONTHLY STORY TIME TEA with MRS. B
The Morrison House
Old Town Alexandria, Va.Every third Saturday of the Month, 2pm
November 19: Giving Thanks
December 17: A Very Merry Christmas TeaAll ages welcome
$38 adult / $28 child
RSVP
703-838-8000
storytime@morrisonhouse.com
Disclosure: We attended the tea as guests of the Grille at Morrison House. As always, all opinions and reviews are our own.
1 response so far ↓
1 Spinning Cook
Twitter: spinningcook
// Nov 18, 2011 at 3:28 am
Brilliant. You can remind them later about what “Mrs B said…” and it’s not all about “your rules” as mom, it’s associated with fun memories and another authority figure. Sounds like she puts on a good show – performance with a purpose, right?