A couple of weeks ago it was my Birthday, so of course I had to celebrate with the obligatory Afternoon Tea! I got the girls together and headed for the nearby village of Whalley, where in the grounds of a former Cistercian Abbey, a new cafe has sprang up.
Cafe Autisan is a beautiful space and perfect for parties. Indeed it is the perfect place to meet up with a group of friends. The furnishings are fun!
The Cafe’s name is a clever play on words. It was set up by the National Autistic Society and plans to give work experience to adults with autism. It is run by Autisan Creative Enterprises who help to improve life skills and job prospects. 450,000 working age adults in Britain have autism but only 15% of them are currently in full time employment. Businesses like this hope to buck that trend. As well as a cafe here there are various artisan products for sale, such as fudge and soap, made by people with autism.
This image is from Cafe Autisan’s Facebook page.
But hey what about the Afternoon Tea? Well my pictures really do not do this scrumptious sandwich and cake selection justice! The photo above does though. 🙂
The Afternoon Tea comes served on a three tiered slate cake stand which is laden with goodies. At the bottom there were three varieties of sandwiches and pork pies. Chutneys and coleslaw are provided as accompaniments. The middle tier is all about the fruit scones which come with little jars of strawberry preserve,butter and jars of clotted cream. The piece de. resistance is the top tier where tasty diminutive desserts tempted and teased our taste buds. A selection of teas and other drinks are on offer. The service was friendly and efficient and at only around £7.50 per head was very good value indeed. 🙂
I also hear Cafe Autisan does a very good cheeseboard. I shall be back!
sunshine and celandines 
What a great place!
It is.I hope it takes off.:)
I do love reading about your afternoon teas. Unfortunately I now want to go and find second breakfast!
Ha I’ve had a lot this year.But so much to celebrate! X