15 Jul

Tipiak survey reveals essential role of macarons in afternoon tea

PHOTOGRAPHE-BRETAGNE-FRANCE

More than half of consumers believe that macarons are an essential part of afternoon tea, according to a survey commissioned by French pâtissier Tipiak.

The research, to mark Afternoon Tea Week next month (12th to 18th August 2024), revealed that seven in ten Britons think that macarons are fashionable.

The confectionary favourites are regarded as being in the top four key ingredients that Brits want to see in their afternoon tea, following scones with clotted cream, mini Victoria sponge cakes and ham finger sandwiches.

Marie-Emmanuelle Chessé, international development project manager at Tipiak, said: “Macarons are one of the most treasured authentic French sweet treats in the world and we are delighted to see that they are so highly regarded as afternoon tea ingredients in Britain.

“Afternoon tea is a quintessentially British tradition which has seen a resurgence in popularity in recent years. It’s a great way to celebrate a birthday, baby shower, Mother’s Day or a special anniversary – or just to get together with friends or family for a catch up.

“Afternoon Tea Week is an annual celebration that’s the perfect time for food service operators to pull out all the stops and go to town with their afternoon tea menus, making sure of course that macarons are centre stage! This survey shows just how popular macarons are as an afternoon tea ingredient so don’t forget to include these wonderful products.

“Tipiak offers a range of thaw and serve, gluten-free macarons to the UK food service sector via key wholesalers, including the recently launched heart-shaped macarons, which are ideal for afternoon tea, as well as cake decorations, toppings for shakes and smoothies, and for use as part of a café gourmand.

“All our macarons are made to a traditional recipe and have the added convenience of being available frozen to food service operators so that they can defrost according to demand.”

The survey conducted by Perspectus Global for Tipiak in June 2024, polled 2,000 Britons about their thoughts on macarons and afternoon tea.

Some 53% believe that macarons are an essential part of afternoon tea. Respondents aged 18-29 (63%) and aged 30-44 (64%) were the age groups most likely to say that macarons are essential for afternoon tea – confirming just how popular these darlings are amongst the younger generations.

On average, Britons would eat three macarons in one sitting – rising to four on average for 18-29 year olds.

The survey revealed that Brits would like to see the following as part of afternoon tea served up in a food service setting:

  • Scones with clotted cream (59 percent)
    • Mini Victoria sponge cakes (48 percent)
    • Ham finger sandwiches (42 percent)
    • Macarons (42 percent)
    • Egg and cress finger sandwiches (39 percent)
    • Éclairs (38 percent)
    • Shortbread (35 percent)
    • Miniature quiches or savoury tarts (34 percent)
    • Chocolate-dipped strawberries (34 percent)
    • Mini fruit tartlets (32 percent)

Made in France to traditional recipes, Tipiak’s range of sweet and savoury pâtisserie is available frozen to UK food service operators via key wholesalers.

For more information about the Tipiak range available to the UK food service sector visit www.tipiakfoodservice.co.uk

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13 Nov

Garden Centre Catering Awards 2023

Tipiak was delighted to sponsor the Afternoon Tea of the Year Award in the Garden Centre Catering Awards 2023.

Congratulations to St Peter’s Garden Centre near Worcester which took top slot for their afternoon tea.

Other winners were Thetford Garden Centre in Norfolk, which was named Independent Garden Centre Caterer of the Year, Bosworth Garden Centre Company in Burton Latimer, Northamptonshire, which was Group Garden Centre Caterer of the Year, and Tong Garden Centre Catering in Bradford, which was the winner of the Sustainability Award.

“All award competitions are interesting, but few are as enjoyable as this one, which has offered endless opportunities to spend sunny (and some rainy) days examining – and sampling – the truly imaginative fare that is now the hallmark of so many garden centres,” said Val Hirst, editor of Garden Centre Catering magazine.

“With entries arriving from every size of centre, including the larger chains and the more modestly sized independents and from companies with multiple outlets to those with just two or three, the judges were faced with a plethora of choice at every stage and in every category. 

Award criteria

“Ultimately, we were looking to reward cafés and restaurants where everything came together as part of a cohesive whole.  In the first instance, ambience was important. This meant attractive décor, comfortable seating, pleasing views and good facilities in the way of parking, toilets, highchairs and outdoor eating opportunities. 

“And obviously, the food had to pass muster too.  Extra points were awarded for more adventurous menu options, together with the provision of plant-based and gluten free dishes, perfect presentation and excellent cooking skills. And, needless to say, the warmth of the welcome and the overall efficiency of the catering service were regarded as other vital attributes.

“However, there’s no point in having the perfect venue if no one knows about it, so promotional efforts were also taken into consideration, as was the provision of extra events and services.”

The Garden Centre Catering Awards will return next year, with more details available in Spring 2024.

Tipiak offers a wide range of sweet and savoury pâtisserie for garden centre cafés and restaurants. Take a look at the range here.

Check out more information about the Garden Centre Catering Awards here.

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18 Apr

Tipiak sponsors Afternoon Tea of the Year Award

Pâtisserie specialist Tipiak is sponsoring the Afternoon Tea of the Year Award at the Garden Centre Catering Awards 2023.

The awards are run by Garden Centre Catering magazine and are open to all garden centres and nurseries in the UK with a food and drink offering.

Marie-Emmanuelle Chessé, Tipiak’s international development project manager, said: “Tipiak specialises in supplying frozen, authentic sweet and savoury pâtisserie to the hospitality sector in the UK.

“Our exquisitely French ‘thaw and serve’ macarons, petits fours, pop éclairs and canapés are the ideal ingredients for afternoon tea. They simply need thawing before serving – helping garden centres, farm shops, hotels and other venues to easily offer delicious French pâtisserie.

“Afternoon tea has become a popular occasion, as a celebration or for customers wanting to treat themselves. As such, we know that many garden centres offer a super afternoon tea selection.

“We are excited that Tipiak is the sponsor of the Afternoon Tea of the Year Award and look forward to being involved in the event.”

Awards

As well as Afternoon Tea of the Year, the awards are also looking to reward the Independent Garden Centre Caterer of the Year and the Garden Centre Catering Group of the Year. A Sustainability Award is also available.

“This is the chance for garden centre catering operators to put themselves forward to get well-deserved recognition,” said Bryony Reid, editor of Garden Centre Catering. “Each category has a chance to acknowledge the effort from catering groups as well as caterers either new to the industry or not as well-known.”

The Garden Centre Catering Awards are free to enter for both independent garden centres and group garden centres.

Visit https://www.gardencentrecateringawards.co.uk/ for more details and to enter.

Nominations close on 1st September 2023.

To browse the selection of authentic afternoon tea ‘thaw and serve’ products offered by Tipiak to the UK food service sector, click here.

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15 Mar

Have a cracking Easter with Tipiak

With hospitality restrictions likely to be in place at Easter, venues can still make the most of the occasion by offering takeout afternoon tea or meal kits.

Tipiak offers an exquisitely French range of thaw and serve authentic pâtisserie which is guaranteed to brighten up any Easter afternoon tea or picnic.

Options include superb eye-catching pop éclairs and delicious gluten-free macarons and pop macarons. All bring delightful flavours to the table.

Tipiak also offers an excellent selection of savoury canapés. They’re ideal for starters, accompaniments to drinks, or afternoon tea.

Thaw and serve

Just like all the frozen, pre-prepared pâtisserie from Tipiak, simply thaw and serve for an authentic taste of France.

Takeaway options offer friends and families the chance to get together outside – sharing some much-needed companionship and fun.

Choose Tipiak thaw and serve pre-prepared pâtisserie to ensure your customers enjoy some treats this Easter.

Take a look at the Tipiak range here.

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04 Mar

Add a little French chic to Mother’s Day afternoon tea takeouts or meal kits

Whilst customers are not able to visit hospitality venues just yet, operators can still capitalise on this much-treasured celebration by offering takeout and delivery afternoon teas and meal kits for the perfect Mother’s Day treat. And we have just the ingredients to help caterers add a little French chic to proceedings to create a tempting and delicious affair.

Tipiak offers a superb range of ‘thaw and serve’ sweet and savoury pâtisserie products that are ideal for the occasion.

Choose from a range of eye-catching authentic savoury canapés. Perfect for afternoon tea, they also make amazing starters!

When it comes to sweet treats, try the award-winning Tipiak pop éclairs and the delightful gluten-free French or pop macarons. These exquisitely French fancies will add more than a touch of sophistication to your offering!

Thaw and serve

All Tipiak products are supplied frozen and simply need thawing before serving.

A hamper, afternoon tea in-a-box or meal kit featuring Tipiak’s perfect pâtisserie is sure to go down well on Mothering Sunday.

If you’re a food service operator looking to offer Mother’s Day takeout treats, get in touch for details of stockists. Tipiak’s products are available nationwide via frozen food wholesalers, including Brakes and Bidfood.

Take a look at the Tipiak range here

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12 Aug

Celebrate Afternoon Tea Week with Tipiak

Hooray! It’s Afternoon Tea Week…the chance for us all to celebrate and enjoy this popular British tradition.

Afternoon tea has been one of the success stories of the hospitality sector in recent times.

According to OpenTable, bookings for afternoon tea increased by 54% from 2016 to 2018. One of the reasons is that afternoon tea is such a delightful and unique way to mark a number of occasions, whether that’s a birthday, anniversary, baby shower, hen party or some other celebration. And who doesn’t enjoy a celebration?

Exquisite to look at and delightful to eat, great-tasting, authentic French pâtisserie really hits the spot when it comes to afternoon tea. Try serving Tipiak’s petits fours, mini fruit tarts, pop macarons and pop éclairs as part of your afternoon tea offer during Afternoon Tea Week.

Macarons really are a must-serve ingredient on any afternoon tea menu now. With their pretty pastel or vibrant shades and their super selection of flavours, they suit most afternoon tea themes and sit perfectly on any afternoon tea display. Macarons are also the darlings of social media, with more than 5 million macaron images posted on Instagram alone. Serving macarons are sure to help with those all-important insta-hits.

When it comes to the savoury elements of an afternoon tea during Afternoon Tea Week, why not include Tipiak’s canapés on the menu? There’s a delightful array of different flavours, colours and types, which simply need thawing before serving, and make tasty, bite-sized alternatives to traditional sandwiches.

Making authentic pâtisserie from scratch can be difficult and time consuming, so consider buying Tipiak’s top quality, ready-made frozen pâtisserie for your afternoon tea menu. Defrost instructions are clearly printed on the box, which chefs tell us is super convenient as it helps them to serve the products in tip top condition.

Simply thaw and serve Tipiak’s exquisitely French products for foodservice for any Afternoon Tea Week celebration.

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24 Jun

Winners announced for the Afternoon Tea of the Year awards 2019 – sponsored by Tipiak

Congratulations to all the winners of the Afternoon Tea of the Year awards 2019 sponsored by Tipiak.

The winners were the London Hilton Park Lane for best tasting, best presented was the Polurrian On The Lizard based in Cornwall, and the prestigious Afternoon Tea of the Year title was awarded to Pennyhill Park, Surrey.

Sixteen hotels were shortlisted for the final. Presentations of signature afternoon teas for judging took place on Friday 14th June. Tipiak’s Laurent Albert was part of the judging panel. Laurent is an experienced pastry chef and chocolatier who has worked for several prestigious establishments across the world including Albert Roux in the UK and Christian Constant in Paris.

The standard of the finalists was incredible, and it was amazing to showcase Tipiak’s range of mouth-watering macarons, pop éclairs and canapés at the awards which were held at the Westminster Boating Base in London and run by Hotel F&B magazine, part of H2O Publishing.

For more information and for UK sales of Tipiak’s pâtisserie for foodservice customers, please visit www.centralfoods.co.uk

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03 Jun

Tipiak sponsors Afternoon Tea of the Year 2019

As producers of high quality, authentic pâtisserie, Tipiak is delighted to be sponsoring this year’s Afternoon Tea of the Year Awards.

The event takes place on Friday 14th June at Westminster Boating Base in London.

Sixteen hotels from across the country who have been shortlisted in the final will be showcasing their signature afternoon tea….preparing and serving a delicious spread for a panel of industry judges.

Among the judges will be Tipiak’s Laurent Albert. Working in our R&D department for the last six years, Laurent has been a pastry chef and chocolatier for 20 years.

He has worked several years in the UK in prestigious places such as Albert Roux and Gascon Club (1 Michelin star). He has also worked as a pastry chef at the Point Hotel in NY, USA, and as a chocolatier in the famous Christian Constant establishment, Paris.

Good luck to the finalists:

Macdonald Leeming House, Cumbria

My Chelsea Hotel, London

Polurrian On The Lizard, Cornwall

Crewe Hall, Cheshire

St. Ermin’s Hotel, Westminster, London

Pennyhill Park Hotel & Spa, Surrey

Bedford Lodge Hotel & Spa, Suffolk

Grassington House, North Yorkshire

COMO The Halkin, Belgravia, London

London Hilton Park Lane, Mayfair, London

Sheraton Grand, Mayfair, London

InterContinental London – The O2, East Greenwich, London

Nobu Hotel London Shoreditch, Hackney, London

Thorton Hall, Wirral

Hotel Café Royal, Soho, London

W Hotel, Leicester Square, London

Afternoon tea is one of the success stories of the hospitality sector in recent times. According to OpenTable, bookings increased by 54% from 2016 to 2018. Because traditional French pâtisserie can be time-consuming and tricky to make from scratch, Tipiak’s ‘thaw and serve’, hand-finished pâtisserie is the perfect solution for afternoon tea in any setting, whether it’s a hotel, garden centre, pub or other foodservice outlet.

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11 Mar

Tipiak has some top products for Easter catering

Easter isn’t all about chocolate when it comes to catering…it’s traditionally a time for afternoon tea, family gatherings and delicious meals too.

Tipiak’s exquisitely French range of superb canapés and pâtisserie are ideal for foodservice professionals at this busy time of year. Using top-quality, pre-prepared frozen products for some elements of a meal can be a huge time saver – leaving chefs to concentrate on other aspects. Tipiak can be the perfect partner for the foodservice professional in the kitchen.

Tipiak’s selection of items for the UK foodservice professional includes a range of authentic savoury canapés, mouth-watering gluten-free macarons, eye-catching pop éclairs and terrific petits fours and mini fruit tarts. Simply thaw and serve.

Our products are ideal for afternoon tea, perfect for buffets and events, and a great addition to any dining occasion.

We offer only the highest quality products to guarantee excellence every time. Our dedicated and passionate team of experienced bakers, chefs and pastry chefs bring their expertise to your kitchen, enabling you to focus on everything else, without ever having to compromise on quality.

So, when it comes to Easter catering, take a look at our cracking range and how we can add a little French chic to your menus.

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06 Mar

Tipiak has the perfect ingredients for afternoon tea

With Mothers’ Day, Easter and National Tea Day all approaching, now is the ideal time to take a look at afternoon tea menus.

As an authentic pâtissier, supplying a range of elegant hand-finished savoury canapés, classic mini patisserie, sweet petits fours and famous French macarons, Tipiak has the perfect ingredients for both the sweet and savoury elements of afternoon tea.

Start with bite-sized savoury delights, with all components from the different breads, choux or blini bases to the mousse, cream or sauce toppings prepared and made in-house by our expert bakers and cooks. Tipiak’s canapés are available in a range of selections – including vegetarian and meat-free to fish and seafood – to suit all tastes and budgets.

Then choose from a mouth-watering sweet selection that includes premium quality classic French macarons, contemporary pop macarons, or our chocolate macarons collection….all are gluten free.

Or take a look at our exquisite award-winning pop éclairs, which come in four different flavours. We also offer classic or chocolate French petits fours, as well as superb French mini-fruit tarts, which are made in-house with real French flour and butter and are bursting with flavour.

Convenient for busy chefs and foodservice operators, our products are simple to thaw and serve.  Being hand-finished means they are the perfect solution when time or labour is at a premium in the kitchen but an artisan result is required.

Contact us for more details.

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