JW Marriott Hotel Tokyo, which opened in October 2025 on the upper floors of TAKANAWA GATEWAY CITY, Tokyo's newly developed Takanawa district (2-21-2 Takanawa, Minato-ku, Tokyo), is hosting a limited-time afternoon tea in collaboration with Santa Maria Novella, the fragrance brand born in Florence. Running from Saturday, August 1 through Wednesday, September 30, 2026, at the 30th-floor JW Lounge, the "Santa Maria Novella Afternoon Tea — Giardini Medicei (The Medici Gardens)" draws on the brand's eau de parfum collection of the same name.
Inspired by "Giardini Medicei," from Santa Maria Novella — founded in 1221 and known as the world's oldest pharmacy — the hotel's culinary team has created four savory dishes and four sweets that capture the elegant sensibility cultivated in Florence. Notes of jasmine, pink peppercorn, and citrus that run through the fragrances are echoed in the flavors, while the color of each dish is designed to match the mood of its corresponding scent, inviting guests to wander, through taste, color, and aroma, through the vivid flowers and fruit of the Medici family's gardens.
A "Fragrance Bar" corner will also be set up in the venue, where guests can sample Santa Maria Novella's fragrances themselves, comparing them with the scents evoked in the afternoon tea and experiencing the elegant culture cultivated in Florence with all five senses.
Guests who order the afternoon tea will each receive a 2ml Santa Maria Novella fragrance sample, along with a voucher for the brand's engraving service, in which artisans hand-carve a name or anniversary date onto fragrance bottles purchased at any Santa Maria Novella directly-operated store nationwide.
Santa Maria Novella Afternoon Tea — Giardini Medicei (The Medici Gardens)
- Price: ¥10,000 per person; ¥13,000 with a glass of Veuve Clicquot champagne (available for the 12:00 PM, 12:30 PM, 3:00 PM, and 3:30 PM seatings only) — all prices include tax and service charge
- Period: August 1 (Sat) to September 30 (Wed), 2026
- Time: 12:00 PM to 7:30 PM (2-hour seating limit; last drink order 30 minutes before the end of the session)
- Note: Guests seated at 5:00 PM or later receive a complimentary glass of sparkling wine
- Venue: JW Lounge, 30th floor, JW Marriott Hotel Tokyo
- Reservations: JW Lounge Official Website
Santa Maria Novella Afternoon Tea — Giardini Medicei (The Medici Gardens)
Sweets
The sweets menu offers four items inspired by the "Giardini Medicei" fragrances. "Jasmine-Scented Mandarin Tart" pairs a white chocolate mousse infused with jasmine and a mandarin compote, echoing the mysterious aroma of "Gelsomino" from the Medici family's secret garden alongside mandarin's fresh scent. "Rare Cheesecake with Timur Pepper-Scented Pineapple Compote" takes its cue from "Iris," the purple flower long cherished as a symbol of Florence, with the spicy accent of Timur pepper — also used in the fragrance — enhancing the richness of the pineapple compote. "Panna Cotta with Jasmine Jelly" reflects "Magnolia," inspired by the magnolia trees at the entrance of a Medici family villa, layering a vivid pink jelly with the elegant aroma of jasmine for a delicate, floral effect. "Chocolate Macaron with Peach and Pink Peppercorn," inspired by "Incenso" and its warm, spicy character evocative of the Medici family's winter garden, hides a smooth chocolate mousse and peach compote inside a chocolate-coated macaron, with pink peppercorn adding a gentle kick and lingering depth to the peach's sweetness.
Savories
Four savory dishes translate the world of fragrance into food. "Snow Crab Tartare with Corn and Aqua Jelly" draws on "Acqua," inspired by the fountain in the Medici family's garden: a refreshing jelly colored with the superfood spirulina is layered with snow crab tartare, sweet corn, and a kelp tea jelly. "Cauliflower Mousse Coated in Bergamot and Shellfish" reflects "Ambra," combining the depth of amber with the brightness of bergamot; a bergamot-scented cauliflower mousse is coated in a shellfish stock and finished in an amber hue. "Duck Rillettes with Citrus and Potato Confit" is inspired by "Bizzarria," a rare citrus grown in the Medici family's garden — duck rillettes blended with grapefruit sit atop potato confit, topped with Timur pepper for a refreshing, spicy accent. "Braised Beef Cheek and Lavender" pays homage to "Quercia," the stately oak tree, with a beef cheek braise reminiscent of a tree trunk, its deep flavor developed through slow braising and layered with the fragrant aroma of lavender.
Welcome Drink
The welcome drink, "Acqua della Regina," pays homage to a fragrance said to be the origin of perfume itself — one that Caterina de' Medici, from a prominent Florentine family, is said to have brought with her in 1553 when she married the King of France. This non-alcoholic cocktail uses jasmine, elderflower, and rosemary, among other ingredients, for an elegant journey of scent.
Scones
Plain and raisin scones, baked to order, are served with house-made clotted cream, blood orange curd, and fig jam.
Guests can enjoy an elegant afternoon of fragrance and flavor in Tokyo's Takanawa district, evocative of a stroll through the Medici family's gardens in Florence.
