In Paris, afternoon tea is no longer just a gourmet treat between lunch and dinner. In Parisian palaces and five-star hotels, it has become a full-fledged hospitality product: accessible enough to attract customers from outside the hotel, sophisticated enough to express the codes of a particular establishment, and photogenic enough to extend the experience on social media.
The Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme takes this concept a step further during the summer of 2026. From July 1st to September 30th, the hotel on Rue de la Paix transforms afternoon tea into a collection of frozen pastries. Simply called Le Goûter Glacé (TheTea), the experience is offered at Café Jeanne every day between 2 pm and 7 pm.
What might seem like a seasonal adaptation of the menu actually reveals several developments in contemporary luxury: the rise of short experiences, the strategic role of pastry in hotel identity, the importance of the seasonal calendar, and the ability of a palace to transform relatively simple consumption into a true brand territory.
Luxe Daily had already analyzed this shift in its feature on tea time as a new art of living for luxury brands. With the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme, summer now adds another dimension to this ritual: that of chilled air.
The 2026 Iced Afternoon Tea at the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme: Practical Information
The concept is based on a deliberately simple approach. No endless tasting menu or overly ceremonial construction: five frozen creations make up a seasonal collection that the customer can discover à la carte or in its entirety.
| Information | Detail |
|---|---|
| Place | Café Jeanne, Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme |
| Address | 5, rue de la Paix, 75002 Paris |
| Dates | From July 1st to September 30th, 2026 |
| Schedules | Every day from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m |
| Pastry chef | Naraé Kim |
| Number of creations | 5 frozen desserts |
| Collection price to be shared | 80 € |
| Prices for hot or iced drinks | 17 € |
| Format | A la carte or the complete collection to share |
This information is communicated directly by the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme on its dedicated page and in its official summer 2026 menu.
The choice of a daily service over a five-hour period, from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., deserves attention. It positions afternoon tea at the intersection of several uses: late dessert, afternoon get-together, break after a day of shopping around Place Vendôme, a moment before a show, or simply a gastronomic destination.
The product therefore does not depend solely on the hotel's clientele. It can function as a standalone gateway to the hotel.
Five frozen creations to tell the story of summer in Paris
The official menu is based on five options. Their strength lies less in the technical demonstration than in a succession of immediately understandable associations: citrus fruits, red fruits, watermelon, vanilla, chocolate, pistachio, coffee and fresh herbs.
Iced Tropézienne tart with orange blossom
First familiar landmark: the Tropézienne, a monument of French summer indulgence, leaves its exclusively brioche-like status to enter the world of frozen desserts.
Orange blossom provides a link to the Mediterranean imagination and holiday desserts. The choice is interesting for a Parisian establishment: rather than trying to literally reproduce Saint-Tropez, Naraé Kim captures a feeling of freshness, sunshine, and floral fragrance , and transposes it to the Rue de la Paix.
Pine nut, Menton lemon and basil tart
The second creation combines a pine nut tart, lemon zest, a Menton lemon spoom and basil.
The word "spoom," relatively rare on contemporary menus, belongs to the historical vocabulary of frozen desserts. Its presence adds a cultural dimension to the dessert while allowing the freshness of the citrus fruit to be showcased with greater lightness.
The Menton lemon, for its part, adds an immediately evocative geographical indication. In a luxury pastry shop, precisely naming an origin contributes to the perception of quality: the product is no longer just "lemon," it becomes a Menton lemon.
The bricelet, Madagascar vanilla and blueberry
Another gourmet heritage game: the bricelet, this very thin and crispy waffle, meets Madagascar vanilla, blueberry sorbet, and marbled milk ice cream. The creation encapsulates much of the contemporary pastry language : contrasting crispness and creaminess, fruit and milk, acidity and roundness.
This work on textures is crucial when it comes to transforming ice cream into a true pastry chef's dessert. The experience is no longer limited to a flavor served in a scoop: it is built through layers, contrasts, and temperatures.
Watermelon granita with strawberries and peppermint
With her watermelon granita, accompanied by strawberries and peppermint, Naraé Kim opts for a more immediately summery composition. Watermelon possesses an interesting quality in the world of luxury: it is popular, universal, and almost childlike. Bringing it into a palace demonstrates that the value of a dessert does not necessarily depend on the intrinsic rarity of its ingredient. Everything then hinges on the selection of the product, its ripeness, its seasoning, its texture, and its presentation.
Chocolate, pistachio and Arabica coffee disc
The final piece in the collection: a chocolate and pistachio disc, finished with an Arabica coffee. This creation adds greater aromatic depth to a menu dominated by the freshness of fruits and herbs. Chocolate, pistachio, and coffee combine to create a more roasted flavor profile, allowing the tasting to conclude with a longer, more indulgent sensation.
The collection thus avoids the pitfall of a summer menu built exclusively around lemon and red fruits.
Naraé Kim: the pastry chef becomes a signature of the hotel
The Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme , however, is not just this map. It's also the name that goes with it.
Naraé Kim has been the pastry chef at the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme since 2021.On November 6, 2023, at the Gault&Millau 2024 Gala held in Paris, she received the title of Pastry Chef of the Year 2024.Gault &Millau highlighted her focus on quality ingredients and her commitment to pastry that evolves with the seasons.
This recognition transforms the perception of afternoon tea. In a grand hotel, a pastry might be seen as just another service. But when it's linked to a recognized creative personality, it acquires a different value. The guest no longer simply comes to "have afternoon tea at the Park Hyatt": they come to discover the creations of Naraé Kim.
The mechanism is well-known in haute cuisine. The chef's name acts as a signature, a marker of trust, and a driver of desirability. Hotel pastry shops are now following the same trajectory.
This is all the more relevant given thatNaraé Kim's writing lends itself well to this type of format. Her creations give significant weight to memories, the season, the product itself, and reinterpreted French references, rather than an accumulation of spectacular effects. Thus, Le Goûter Glacé extends a territory already established around the afternoon ritual.
When the tableware also becomes a piece of the collection
One of the most interesting details of the 2026 edition lies beneath the desserts. The Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme is pairing its Iced Afternoon Tea with the work of Diane Benoit du Rey. As an extension of her LUMINANCE, the artist has designed a specific collection of cups, saucers, and plates to accompany the frozen pastries.
According to Paris je t'aime, five sets were created to complement the five desserts by Naraé Kim, in collaboration with a Parisian ceramicist based in the 20th arrondissement. This detail significantly transforms the project.
In a traditional restaurant, the tableware supports the dish. Here, it participates in the narrative. Container and contents are conceived as two sides of the same aesthetic experience.
This approach perfectly aligns with the codes of luxury: the creation is not isolated but conceived within its environment. The color of the plate, the texture of the ceramic, the light, the temperature, and the composition of the dessert all contribute to the final perception.
The collaboration also allows the palace to go beyond the strictly gastronomic territory to get closer to theart of living, contemporary art and design.
Frozen desserts are becoming a seasonal luxury item
Ice cream presents a particularly fertile paradox for premium brands. First, it belongs to a vastly popular imagination: childhood, holidays, cones enjoyed on the street, summer warmth. But it can simultaneously embody all the attributes of gastronomic luxury: select ingredients, chef-driven recipes, precise presentation, personalized service, exclusive tableware, and prestigious venues. It is precisely this tension that makes it so appealing in 2026.
Louis Vuitton is exploring a similar approach with the Monogram ice cream cones designed by Maxime Frédéric, another example of how a summer treat can become a branded item. Luxe Daily analyzes this strategy in " Louis Vuitton Ice Cream 2026: Maxime Frédéric's Monogram Cones in Paris." The two approaches remain distinct.
At Louis Vuitton, the edible product directly extends the graphic codes of a fashion house. At the Park Hyatt, the frozen pastry reinforces the identity of a place of hospitality. But in both cases, cold becomes a seasonal language of luxury.
Why has afternoon tea become a hotel-related medium?
The strategic success of afternoon tea lies in its unique positioning. It is less demanding than a gourmet dinner, more experiential than a simple visit to the bar, and accessible to a clientele that is not necessarily staying at the hotel.
This characteristic gives it a special function in the customer journey.
A person can discover the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme through a pastry shop even before booking a room. They might enter the hotel for the first time for afternoon tea, experience the service, the decor, the atmosphere of Café Jeanne, and then remember the address for lunch, dinner, a stay, or another occasion.
The tea time in a luxury hotel thus becomes a point of contact with the brand.
The Ritz Paris also strongly exploits this capacity of afternoon tea to become a standalone experience. To compare the two philosophies, see Afternoon Tea at the Ritz Paris: The Art of Luxury Tea Time.
In this model, the restaurant no longer serves only hotel guests. It helps to transform the hotel itself into a destination.
A limited-time collection to create desire
The concept of a collection also deserves attention. The Frozen Snack is only available from July 1st to September 30th, 2026. It therefore has a clearly identifiable start and end date.
This timeframe automatically creates a sense of scarcity. The customer knows they won't be able to return in December for the exact same experience. The season becomes an integral part of the product.
This is a logic very familiar to the luxury industry: capsule collections, limited editions, seasonal collections, temporary collaborations, and ephemeral activations. The hospitality sector is now adopting a similar approach, but applied to experiences.
Another story will follow the summer. Its temporary nature therefore does not weaken the offering: it helps to renew the reason to return.
Social media: photogenic as a consequence, not an end in itself
An ice cream dessert naturally possesses a strong visual appeal. Contrasting colors, condensation, the shine of a glaze, fresh fruit, and subtly nuanced ceramics: all these elements lend themselves to photography and the short formats of social media. The collaboration with Diane Benoit du Rey amplifies this dimension even further.
But a luxury hotel's strategy cannot rely solely on an "Instagrammable" dessert. An image may generate the initial desire; the quality of the taste and the service determine the lasting impression. This is a crucial distinction.
In the luxury sector, image works when it provides proof of experience. A recognizable dessert photographed in a cohesive setting can enhance the establishment's branding, but it never compensates for sloppy execution. The real challenge, therefore, lies in creating a product that withstands two scrutiny: that of the camera and that of the palate.
An interesting F&B lever, without fantasizing about margins
From an economic point of view, the Iced Afternoon Tea has several interesting characteristics for a hotel.
The complete set menu is priced at €80 to share, or €40 per person when shared by two. Individual creations are also available, and the official menu lists prices between €15 and €20 for the ice cream collection; hot and iced drinks are offered at €17.
The format also takes place in a time slot located between the main restaurant periods.
This data helps to understand why snacks, bars, brunches and one-off gastronomic experiences are playing an increasingly important role in the ecosystem of large hotels: they multiply the opportunities for guests to frequent the same space during the day.
However, a common shortcut should be avoided: no public data from the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme allows us to know the turnover, the cost of materials or the margin of the Iced Snack.
To claim that ice cream automatically generates a higher profit margin than a traditional pastry would therefore be speculative.
What we can observe, however, is the format's ability to create an additional commercial product without requiring an overnight stay. This is the very principle of Food & Beverage in theluxury hotel industry.
Luxe Daily has already studied this logic in another register with When Parisian palaces make wine a profitable art of living : gastronomy, sommelier services, pastry shops and bars are now all autonomous entry points into the world of a palace.
From hotel to lifestyle destination
This transformation goes far beyond dessert. Grand Parisian hotels are no longer conceived solely as places to sleep. They combine multiple experiences: restaurants, bars, pastry shops, spas, art, design, events, boutiques, and seasonal collaborations. The local clientele thus takes on particular importance.
A Parisian has no reason to regularly rent a suite a few kilometers from home. However, they might return several times a year for lunch, cocktails, a spa treatment, or afternoon tea at a luxury hotel. Creating seasonal experiences helps maintain this trend.
The Iced Afternoon Tea fulfills exactly this function: to offer a new reason to return to rue de la Paix for three months, without altering the deep identity of the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme.
Why does summer 2026 confirm the strong comeback of frozen pastries?
Summer 2026 shows that ice cream is changing its status in the world of Parisian luxury. It is no longer just a refreshment added to the bottom of a menu. It is becoming an independent creative medium.
At the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme, it takes the form of a collection of five desserts and an artistic collaboration. At Louis Vuitton, it is adorned with the Monogram. Elsewhere, sorbets, granitas, parfaits, and desserts served at contrasting temperatures are playing an increasingly important role in seasonal offerings.
This evolution reflects several simultaneous trends: a search for freshness, a summer preference for textures perceived as lighter, an appreciation of fruit, the importance of the visual experience, and the rise of limited-time gastronomic events. Frozen pastries, above all, possess an editorial advantage: they immediately tell the story of the season.
Naraé Kim, or the art of transforming a memory into a hotel product
The phrase chosen by the Park Hyatt to present the menu sums up the approach quite well: the collection evokes sun-ripened fruit, freshly picked herbs, and childhood memories. This reference to memory is not insignificant.
In contemporary luxury gastronomy, sophistication no longer necessarily implies seeking out the rarest ingredients or the most complex presentation. A Tropézienne tart, a watermelon, or a thin waffle can become vehicles for emotion as long as the product, the technique, and the context are coherent.
Value is shifting. It no longer resides solely in what the plate costs to produce, but in what it manages to convey.
This is probably one of the most interesting lessons from this Iced Afternoon Tea: gastronomic luxury can be born from a familiar memory when it is reworked with precision.
Practical information: Iced Afternoon Tea at the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme
Where?
Café Jeanne, Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme, 5 rue de la Paix, 75002 Paris.
When?
From July 1st to September 30th, 2026, every day from 2pm to 7pm.
Who designed the collection?
Pastry chef Naraé Kim, Gault&Millau Pastry Chef of the Year 2024.
What's the price?
The complete collection of five desserts is offered at €80 to share. Hot or iced drinks are listed at €17 on the official menu.
Can you choose just one dessert?
Yes. The Park Hyatt offers an à la carte selection in addition to the sharing menu.
FAQ: Everything you need to know about the Ice Cream Afternoon Tea at the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme
What is the Iced Afternoon Tea at the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme?
The Frozen Afternoon Tea is a summer collection of five frozen pastries created by Naraé Kim for Café Jeanne. It reimagines afternoon tea with fruits, aromatic herbs, citrus fruits, and delicious memories.
What are the dates for the Ice Cream Snack in 2026?
The experience is officially announced from July 1st to September 30th, 2026.It is offered every day from 2pm to 7pm.
What desserts make up the Iced Afternoon Tea?
The collection includes an orange blossom ice cream Tropézienne, a pine nut tart with Menton lemon and basil, a Madagascar vanilla and blueberry bricelet, a watermelon granita with strawberries and peppermint, as well as a chocolate-pistachio disc with Arabica coffee.
How much does the Ice Cream Afternoon Tea at the Park Hyatt cost?
The set menu including all five desserts is priced at €80 for sharing. It is also possible to order desserts à la carte.
Who is Naraé Kim?
Naraé Kim has been the pastry chef at the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme since 2021. She received the title of Pastry Chef of the Year 2024 Gault&Millau, awarded at the gala on November 6, 2023 in Paris.
Why do luxury hotels develop seasonal tea times?
These experiences allow hotels to bring their spaces to life beyond mere accommodation, to showcase their chefs, and to create events accessible to outside guests. They also reinforce the lifestyle dimension of luxury hotels and offer a new point of contact with the brand.
The iced afternoon snack, the palace's new summer signature
With its Iced Afternoon Tea 2026, the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme is not just adding a few sorbets to a summer menu.
The hotel is building a true seasonal object around three signatures: that of Naraé Kim on the plate, that of Diane Benoit du Rey in the art of the table and that of the Park Hyatt in the service and the staging.
The result illustrates a profound evolution inluxury hotels in Paris. The palace experience is now fragmented into a multitude of autonomous moments — lunch, cocktail, spa, brunch or afternoon tea — each capable of telling the story of the hotel.
Ice cream naturally finds its place in this new attention economy. Ephemeral, sensory, immediately identifiable and deeply linked to the season, it transforms a few hours of a Parisian afternoon into a brand experience.
And perhaps that is where true luxury lies: no longer just owning or staying, but having a good reason to return before the season ends.
Official French sources
- Park Hyatt Restaurants – Le Goûter Glacé, Café Jeanne
- Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme – Official 2026 Ice Cream Afternoon Tea Menu
- Gault&Millau France – Naraé Kim, Pastry Chef of the Year 2024
