Reviews

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: this place is so wonderful. the girls are fabulous. the teas are extensive! the food is delish!! scones to die for! worth the trip and the money. they have added some delightful items to the menu since my last visit! i will be back!

- jasmine 06/24/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: I feel that it is important for readers that read the reviews on this website, to realize that there are happy pleased customers as well, I came into the tea house on Friday and the selection of teas will blow you away alone, there is a huge selection that makes it hard to narrow it down to one. I came with my sister so we were able share two yummy teas. The Food is amazing, you can tell that they are unique homemade recipes, the savories are my Favorite!!! I hope that readers that come on here to find a tea house are not taken back by the negative reviews and keep in mind that people who are unhappy will make the point to come here and write a negative review, Where Happy Customers often forget to come and share their wonderful time at the tea house. I did not experience any of the bad things mentioned, I will be back and am sure my experience will just as great.

- --T 06/22/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: This place is wonderful, some people must have it out for them for some reason. Jealousy? Millie apparently being one of them who has nothing better to do then come on here 'before 10 am' and analyze reviews, i don't know what kind of a person you are that you thought it was necessary to say such a thing. This place is doing great considering the state of our economy. Keep up the good work girls!

- Lisa 06/21/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: I believe teamap is a place to leave a review of tearooms and not a place to put tearooms out of business! If you are not happy with your service or tea, then speak with the owner or manager. Do you realize that tearooms are a small business and that by leaving negative reviews you are, in a way, standing in front of their business with a sign in hand saying do not visit this horrible tearoom. It in fact makes an inpact on their business and their livelihood to be able to make a living. In this economy of Depression, why would you want tearooms to close? Did you realize that in 2008, 8 tearooms in Southern California closed and in 2009, 5 tearooms in Northern California and 3 tearooms in Southern California have closed so far. Pretty soon there will be none left to leave reviews, good... (more) or bad, because of the economy. If you enjoy taking afternoon tea, please visit every tearoom you can. It encourages owners to stay open when they were just thinking of closing their business for good. If you do not like your tea,food,service,or whatever, please let the owner know. They would love to help you have a beautiful day rather than have you leave a nasty review that could harm their business. I have been a customer of the Gilded Rose Manor ever since they opened 9 years ago. There are very few tearooms that have been opened that long or longer. Most come and go within 3 years or sooner. I do agree that the house needs some new paint and new china ordered and cleaning, but that does not warrent a negative review that impacts the tearoom and owner. I do not believe that TeaMap was created to tear down an Industry. It was created so that Tea Lovers everywhere could find tearooms to enjoy! Please, think next time you go to write a review. YOU could be the last nail in the coffin of a tearoom because of YOUR review.

- Kathy 06/21/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: I recently enjoyed a relaxing afternoon of tea at the Gilded Rose Manor. I was there with my mother-in-law and we both had the Royal Tea. The tea menu was very expansive, and with some help from our server I chose the Blueberry Vanilla. Our food was good for the most part, I just wish there was a greater variety of tea sandwiches. However, I must say that the scones are to die for! I would definitely recommend this tea house to others.

- Joanne 06/21/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: I came to this tea house some weeks ago and agree with most of the below low reviews. The place needs a good clean and the china is chipped. The food is average with a nice gift shop and pastry. I think it could improve. It is obvious that staff, management or friends are leaving reviews here for the Gilded Rose after all the negative ones, the review by Tea Fanatic below has been left before 10am Sunday morning 6/21/09 and they write about their great afternoon today!!!!

- Millie 06/21/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: my friend and i went today for the first time. we had a wonderful and relaxing time. the server was excellent- very knowledgeable and sweet- and the food watch fresh and delicious. thanks for a wonderful afternoon!

- tea fanatic 06/21/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: I brought my Aunt here for her birthday with a few close family members and we all left very full and happy after several pots of tea (my choice, Fiji green tea, was delicious!) and 3 or 4 courses of treats.. We even had scones to take home. This place is definitely worth a try! =)

- Pleasantly Surprised! 06/18/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: What a wonderful place to go in order to escape the rush of everyday life. Being a hard-working woman, it was such a treat to indulge in this tea room. I was mostly impressed with the variety of tea offered. Although I picked one off the original menu, the sweet girl who served us told us about the teas that were new and not featured on the menu. I cannot wait to come back and enjoy another flavor. And...I know this recession has us all trying to save money, but the tea services are worth the indulgence, especially because the food is so fresh and home-made. If those services seem too much to handle, I learned if you go here during the week, they have a beautiful lunch menu which is very fair in price. Also, you can always order ala carte, all the time. I know there are some bad reviews on here, but I still wanted to try this establishment myself and am so glad I did. Can't wait to go back and I encourage eveyone to give it a try.

- Very Impressed 06/17/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: I love this tea room! The chicken salad sandwiches are amazing! They have so many teas to chose from I had to ask the server for help deciding. I ended up chosing Chocolate Macadamia Nut Coconut Creme! All that in a tea! It was wonderful! Wonderful friendly service. Good food! Great day!

- Rosalina 06/15/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: A wonderful environment to enjoy tea and relax! The food is very tasty and they have a wonderful variety of teas to choose from.

- Kris 06/15/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: I Took my mother in to have tea, for a late mother's day present. Oh boy were we treated to a wonderful meal! The Spinach savories are absolutely amazing. The Scones are the best I ever had! There are so many teas that I know We will have to come back to try different flavors! We will be back really soon!

- Sandy 06/15/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: Worst tea experience ever. This place is dirty, the food was not fresh and they lack knowledge on tea, the service are sweet young girls, only thing going for it, but they are not knowledgable in tea or etiquitte. Sorry we asted out time and money!

- Terrible! 06/02/09

Tearoom Response You have wrongly described our wonderful establishment. For eight plus years we have successfully pleased our guests and have been rated the best Tea Room in the san Fernando Valley. Sorry about your day.

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: My mother and sisters went here on Mothers Day, it was horrible, my sister had to prepay and we were looking forward to a special day, all I can say was this was the worst experience. I won't go into detail but if the owners read this clean the place up and get some new furniture and china for new customers coming otherwise like us people will never be back! Very dissatisfied!

- Judy 05/20/09

Tearoom Response We served over 100 guests that raved about their wonderful 'Mother's Day'! Sorry you did not enjoy yourselves. I know we tried our best and you did not let me(the owner) know on the day that something was off!

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: my mom needs a break so make this the best PPLLEEAASSEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- stephanie 05/05/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: 'm a guy and was brought here by my girlfriend. I was not expecting to enjoy myself, but oddly enough, I did. It has a great assortment of teas. I had the yerba matte which is my favorite tea. The food selection is very tea house oriented. I had the savories, the tea sandwiches , and the pastires. All were great and very fresh. The decor is very female oriented but it is still nice and cozy feeling. I would recommend women to take their boyfriends here just for the embarrassment factor for the men. They will end up enjoying it more than you would expect. The service is also top notch. I highly suggest going on the weekend for afternoon tea.

- Jeff Klepper 04/14/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: Very disappointing experience, they were out of many of the teas offered, the service was just so so, the servers very nice but young and lacking knowledge. The food only average and not that fresh, other reviews are right, the artificial flowers look very artificial, everything needs a good cleaning it's very dusty, uncomfortable lumpy chairs, mismatched, chipped and cracked china. Only good thing was the gift shop, but pricey! We won't be back anytime soon.

- Disappointed 04/06/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: I love the food at this tea house, and I will continue to return, but I just have a few suggestions: As previously mentioned in other reviews, the place needs a good cleaning-chipped china, dirty and uncomfortable chairs, (except 6?) Also, although I've always received great service from very sweet girls, I have sometimes felt rushed. There's cleaning in the kitchen and I can hear the clanking of dishes. I can tell when I come in the late afternoon that the girls want to go home, and although I completely understand, I believe they should maintain a more professional demeanor. If they work out a few kinks they could be absolutely amazing. And they have the best scones I've tasted.

- Vanessa 03/12/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: Second and now the last time at this house, it was just average the first time we went, the manager said it would be better the next time, sadly it wasn't. The food was only average, the scones weren't hot and we thought not as fresh as they could have been the service was ok but they were not busy and there seemed to be more important things happening out the back. We had to ask twice to have our tea refreshed. The place needs a good clean, the chairs are lumpy and the china chipped. Sadly this used to be a very good tea house I have been told, with a little TLC I think it could be again, but there are much better places in Los Angeles to spend our $$ in.

- Elizabeth 02/18/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: Follow-up to my 1/5/09 review: The owner of the Gilded Rose Manor responded with great care and sincerity to my disappointment and concerns. Incidentally, my prior two visits had been very enjoyable, with excellent service provided. I have every confidence that my disappointing most recent visit was an isolated incident and that the problems will all be corrected. Please visit this lovely tea room.

- Vicki G. 01/15/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: I love this place! I have been taking friends here since I discovered it. I love the variety of delicious teas served and the sandwiches are always fantastic. I love the atmosphere and how each course is served separately so you can savor the time with friends.

- Cheryl 01/10/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: My grandparents are visiting from England. They said they had such a delightful time. The variety of tea was tremendous and the server was so sweet. They said they felt very welcome and want to go back before they return home. Gran said the sweet girl even came outside to give them their change. It is very nice to see someone actually cares about elderly people. I plan on going myself very soon to see what the excitement is all about.

- David Robin 01/06/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: Our recent visit was disappointing, as the service was just so strange. First, my tea strainer was delivered with someone's spent tea leaves in it. Then we discovered there were no knives at our place settings. Each of the three of us had ordered the Victorian Tea, which comes with two courses of the patron's selection. We each opted for a different combination. The two of us who had ordered tea sandwiches received them at the same time. But our friend, who had ordered a hot savory, was sitting with nothing to eat. We asked why the hot savory had not been served, and our server told us it would take another ten minutes to prepare. After asking a few more questions about this 'unsavory' situation, we finally dragged the truth out of our server - that the kitchen had forgotten to begin prepa... (more)ration of the hot savory. We would have preferred to wait for our tea sandwiches until our friend's hot savory was ready, so that we could all be enjoying food at the same time. This way, we felt compelled to share the tea sandwiches three ways so that our friend wouldn't be hungry while we were eating. The worst thing of all was that only one small serving of jams and Devonshire cream came with two orders of scones. We very nicely pointed out that it wouldn't suffice, and our server told us she would bring us more later if necessary. Well, it was necessary, about two minutes later. It took us another few minutes to get the server's attention, and then we had to ask twice again for more jams and cream. The point is, one pays far more to go to high tea than the food is worth. What we are paying for is the relaxing and indulgent experience. When the service is dishonest and less than competent, the relaxation and indulgence elements are not there. So, as customers, we felt on this occasion that we had grossly overpaid. The food at the Gilded Rose is nice, but fairly ordinary as tea fare goes. The scones are especially ordinary, as they are always plain, never flavored, not even for the holidays. And the Gilded Roses's 'Devonshire cream' is not real Devonshire cream. It is far too light and tastes and feels like common light whipped cream. The teas are quite nice, and servers willingly refill your pot with more hot water for a second, and even a third, infusion. I think we might have been more forgiving of the shaky service if our server had admitted upfront to the mistakes and apologized for the various mishaps. But she maintained a rather Stepford-esque countenance at every turn, which only served to further annoy us. Unfortunately, based on this visit I think we've seen our last of the Gilded Rose. I've got my eye on another SF Valley tea house for next time.

- Vicki G. 01/05/09

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: The food is very good. The tea sandwiches are among the best I've tasted. The scones are flavorful, either loaded with jam and cream or even without. They also offer a delicious breakfast menu that you won't find at most tea houses. The problem I have is with the setting. The place does not look particularly clean and it's not comfortable. The dishes and silverware are old and not old 'quaint,' but old as in badly used. They have a Christmas tree shoved in a corner all year and a table is wedged up against it, so it's not possible for you to enjoy your meal easily without getting a branch in your eye, if you're sitting in that particular seat. And the seating is another problem . . . They have mostly metal chairs that are clumsily covered with ill-fitting ... (more)little jackets. The few big upholstered chairs they have are mostly missing their seats, so they put pillows on the chair bottoms. The pillows are not wide and don't fully cover the seat, so it's an uncomfortable, unstable sit. Aside from that I don't like being that close to the chair bottom -- it's just another thing that's worn and dirty. They only have 2 good chairs that are properly cushioned in the whole place and they are very selective about who they let use them. The interior is rather dank and often chilly. So, go there for the delicious food, but the ambience leaves a bit to be desired.

- Meredith Jamison 12/20/08

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: My family comes from out of town every holiday season and I always take them to the Gilded Rose Manor! I already made a little visit this past weekend and everything was wonderful. The girls are so cheerful and seet. I can't wait for the nutcracker ballet tea!

- Cindy 12/02/08

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: It is not that great.

- krista 11/09/08

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: Dirty and not the greatest scones

- jennifer 11/08/08

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: We have only been to this place once, but our experience was very pleasant. The atmosphere is nice and cozy. We were seated in large, cushioned chairs. Also, they have boas and tea hats that you can dress up in, if you're willing (this might be fun for high school or young girls). The tea selection was great, the food was yummy (one of the few places I've found in LA that offers petits fours), and the servers were very sweet and attentive. We will certainly be back.

- loves_tea 08/18/08

Variety:     Artistry:     Service:     Food: My first review of this tea house was on 5/31/08 and it has disappeared - could it be because it was a negative review? The story is that the tea house, upon your initial visit, will be charming and loverly and you will want to go back. You will then realize that it's victorian charm needs dusting and you might get seated in the uncomfortable lumpy chairs instead of the pleasant firmer ones. I enjoy the food and the tea - the service is unpredictable however due to the young-not-well-trained staff - so it depends on who you get how well you will be treated. Not a bad place - not the best either.

- Diana Batista 08/10/08