The University Club of Western Australia

Most of the time, the University Club is only available to club members, University of Western Australia staff and to people who are attending conferences at the university.Friend and I went there to High Tea as part of the Shakespeare400 festival. There were booths for food, coffee, books; there were performances on small stages and wandering stilt-walkers, a unicyclist who also juggled, Morris dancers.I booked the High Tea a few weeks before the event and mentioned a specific dietary requirement - as they asked on the form. Ms FFT (fave fellow traveller) is a lacto-ovo vegetarian, in other words, a milk-drinking, egg-eating vegetarian.We got to the venue, given our sparkling/bubbly welcome drink and were taken to our table. Ms FFT always says I'm too impatient because she thinks I wait 30 seconds then expect staff to come and take our orders or start serving if it's a set menu. We waited. And waited. And waited. It was only when the next table of tea-partakers were served that I stopped a waiter. The next table arrived LATER than we did.I assumed that we were taken to a particular table and had to wait a bit longer because of the dietary requirements or variation, but we got the 'standard' item UNTIL we asked a question. THEN Ms FFT was asked, so you DON'T eat seafood?!Not that it's the staff members' fault, given all the variations of allergies, food intolerances and anaphylatic conditions, especially in Australia, but word to ALL restaurant, hospitality and catering staff. SEAFOOD is NOT VEGETARIAN FARE, OK? Seafood is essentially 'meat' just from animals who live in the water/oceans, ok?When the staff member came back Ms FFT-Vegetarian got specially made items which were meat- and seafood-free. WELL DONE!Part of the High Tea was a singer accompanied by a pianist on a digital piano. Great performances of contemporary songs that were linked to Shakespearean verses. Special appearance by "Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth 1st" and William Shakespeare (actors in costume). I had the Earl Grey tea which staff were taking around in teapots and pouring ... Ms FTT's special ginger tea was served in a pot on the table. Made me wonder WHY not the Earl Grey as well?So, as this is a university, I will use the university grading system. It's a Satisfactory. What would take it to a Distinction? Well, quicker response from the staff, given that I'd booked, if they got the dietary request right. I mean, if it had been a more serious dietary restriction - peanut allergy, gluten intolerance, etc. - and they got it wrong, well, more serious consequence. OK, maybe you wouldn't go to such an event or book such a meal if you had those dietary restrictions, but then again, why not? And vegetarians who eat eggs and have cheese and milk are probably rather common these days.High Distinction? Ah, may be more difficult to achieve, because Ms FFT and I have been 'spoilt' by our High Tea experiences in other parts of the world, e.g., Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where those restaurants would achieve 'high distinction' at least from me.Suggestion to UWA Club for the next High Tea/s:1. If you ask about dietary requests, then remember and act on it.2. If you CAN'T accommodate variations in the menu, JUST say so in your adverts, most of us will understand even if we're not happy about it.3. If you're going to get staff to serve tea, then make sure they're going around AND serving tea. If you're short-staffed, just get more teapots and LEAVE them on the table, we're just as happy to serve ourselves,4. Themed high tea? May as well go with the theme or even if you named the items creatively ... Hamlet Bacon Sandwiches, Macbeth's Blood Pudding, Shylock's Flesh-Coloured Cream Cake, Banquo's Ghostly Gateaux (sp?), Lear's Three Corner Sandwich, The Tamed Shrew Sausage Roll, Caliban's Crusts, Prospero's Petit Fours, Gertrude's Ear Fungus Tart, Benedict & Beatrice's Bread Roll, Romeo's Rosemary Roulade, Juliet's Jam Tart, Othello's Green Tea, etc. You are after all, the UNIVERSITY CLUB and presumably have a number of English Literature, if not Shakespeare Scholars among your regular customers. If they can't help you, the DipEd students (pre-service teachers, I was one of them once) would be able to!I have tentatively booked another high tea connected to another event. Fingers crossed.

This is a lovely place to visit at any time of the day particularly for a leisurely lunch. The food is very good accompanied by a nice selection of wines. Surrounded by nice lawns and close to the Swan River this is ideally situated.

Regular catch up venue with my classmates. The sweet potato wedges in the café are a good group share plate. The staff are happy to make suggestions on food and drink choices. The coffee is good. Lunch times are busy but plenty of space in the evenings make it a viable space to get some work done. High Tea in the restaurant is good.

I went to a "Literary" High Tea one Saturday afternoon in August, and was really impressed with the whole deal. The speaker was really engaging, talking about what inspired him to write his historical novel about characters (loosly based on real people) in 19th century Perth. The high tea was varied, delicious and plentiful, and service efficient and discreet. This was held in a private dining room (high tea can also be had, without the speaker, in the main dining room). The price was not cheap, but similar to other venues, and reflected the quality of the occasion. Altogether a delighful experience.

The University Club of WA restaurant and bar has been recently renovated - enhancing its spaciousness, light and contemporary style. The broad outlook to the Swan River, campus ovals and buildings contribute to a sense of unique ambience. This is a wonderful location for an al la cart or "express" business lunch.Judy and I have been back on several occasions for the business lunch. It is excellent. We had the creamy forest mushroom risotto with charred grilled garlic bread and salad plus a glass of wine - for $30 per head. Outstanding value!The risotto was a generous serve, full of mushroomy flavour without being over powering. It had a lovely texture - neither dry or soupy - just right! The tempura fried vegetables on top were novel, crispy - a nice addition to the dish. The Club restaurant has evolved over 10 years into what is now the leading 'club' restaurant venue in Western Australia, confirmed by many industry awards. It is a very high quality dining destination all-round in terms of the environment food and service.We love returning to the UWA Club on a regular basis.