Unusual afternoon teas
by Simon Ward | 16 January 2013 | 
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From fashion to the London Underground, art to Alice in Wonderland, here are our favourite weird and wonderful afternoon tea experiences...
Freshly-cut cucumber sandwiches, a selection of petite pastries and cakes, a china pot of tea leaves… afternoon tea is a quintessentially British tradition.
But if you’ve done the sandwiches ‘n’ scones thing a few times, here are some different takes on the traditional afternoon tea.
An Underground tea
To celebrate the 150th birthday of the London Underground, Palm Court (a beautifully ornate art deco lounge, attached to The Park Lane Hotel) is hosting a tube-themed tea until March 10 2013. The menu is cleverly designed - a Coronation chicken roulade in saffron and spinach bread mimics the green and yellow of the Circle and District lines - and the highlight is the exquisite pastries, hand-decoated with teeny tiny white chocolate Underground signs. The best were a white chocolate Oreo 'Swiss (roll) Cottage' and a hazelnut 'pound' cake (Bank), but credit must also be given to light-as-air scones and extensive jam and curd collection, including an outstanding sharp rhubarb conserve. A Metropolitan 1863 cocktail (Beefeater 24 gin and blackcurrant tea) rounds the whole experience off very nicely.
Where: Palm Court, Green Park, London
Cost: £41 per person
Not Afternoon Tea
An afternoon tea without finger sandwiches? Good grief! The OXO Tower Brasserie pulls it off though, by replacing all things savoury with little sugary morsels, and swopping a cup of Earl Grey for a fruity cocktail. Each dessert plate (you can chose from four - 'wild thing', 'chocolate sensation', 'autumn fools' or 'Taywell preserved') is matched with its own cocktail, and you can expect treats such as whisky and honey cobnut cake, chocolate stout cake, pumpkin walnut cake, and raspberry and honey vodka jelly. And it has to be said, pastry chef Penny Wabbit is an expert at perfecting the humble English pudding. You'll be buzzing all the way home!
Where: OXO Tower Brasserie, Southwark, London
Cost: £22.50 per person
Prêt-à-Portea – the tea that changes with the seasons
Just like the fashion world itself, the Prêt-à-Portea afternoon tea at London’s Berkeley Hotel (pictured at the top of this article) changes its designs with the seasons. So you could be served a Stella McCartney polka dot sponge cake dress or a Burberry Prorsum stylish black and white double breasted chocolate biscuit coat with snow white vanilla icing.
Where: The Caramel Room, The Berkeley, Wilton Place, London
Cost: From £37.50 per person
An artistic tea
If you fancy indulging in some edible art, then head for the Merrion Hotel next time you’re in Dublin. Its Art Tea features cakes inspired by the works of artists such as Jack Yeats, John Boyd and Louis le Brocquy.
Where: The Merrion Hotel, Upper Merrion Street, Dublin
Cost: From €36 per person
Tumble down the rabbit hole
Heston Blumenthal would surely approve of the Mad Hatter’s Afternoon Tea at the Sanderson Hotel. Among the sensory delights are exploding hazelnut praline ice cream lollipops, chocolate rabbit’s clocks and a rainbow array of finger sandwiches on beetroot, saffron and spinach breads.
Where: Courtyard Garden, Sanderson London, 50 Berners Street, London
Cost: £35 per person
Fondant fancies
If you fancy a spot of cabaret with your tea, why not try the Voluptea or Afternoon Tease at the Volupté supper club? As well as sandwiches, scones, tea and a glass of bubbly, you’ll also enjoy some top-class burlesque and cabaret.
Where: Volupté, 9 Norwich Street, London
Cost: £42 per person (tea and show)
Indulge in some ceremony
“We’re putting the tea back into the ritual” says the blurb on TeaSmith’s website. To that end, its afternoon tea ceremony features cakes and chocolates paired with teas, rather than the other way round. You’ll also learn a lot more about the huge range of teas they serve.
Where: TeaSmith, 6 Lamb Street, London
Cost: £20 per person
Comments
by chriswoolfenden | on 23 February 2012
Sounds good......as long as you live in London!!
by Mike10613 | on 23 February 2012
£45 for afternoon tea? I'm so pleased that the toffs are pulling in their belts in such austere times. I won;t have a go at Royalty, they can't help it if they have to rely on state benefits.
by smithbuckley | on 23 February 2012
What a rip off, i'd rather go for a nice meal for that price!
by Sparky Marky | on 23 February 2012
Afternoon tea is a bit indulgent I will admit but for a birthday or anniversary, a nice suprise.
Took my Fiancee to the Thistle Hotel in Brighton the other week, using a Groupon special, it was £17. A nice Afternoon overlooking the Seafront.
Might not have 'Stella McCartney' themed cakes (or price tag) but the staff were friendly & the whole exprience is one to remember (& the clotted cream scones with strawberry jam was good too! :-) )
by rconsoli | on 23 February 2012
Being from the U.S, the brits afternoon tea ritual is a nice thing to partake in for a special treat on occasions. however, the high prices do take full advantage of a uniquely British experience!
£42.00 for a few cucumber sandwiches and fancy (but often not very nice) cakes! MMM
by JulietL | on 23 February 2012
Yes, afternoon teas are generally very expensive, but I've used Groupon and KGB deals for a few such outings, and they were lovely!
You can also get a well-priced afternoon tea at Browns, but I do dream of the day that I have enough money to try the teas described here...
by miramoore | on 23 February 2012
Sorry, but the beauty, lushness and ingenuity of this display makes me feel uncomfortable... In times of austerity, should we admire such indulgence? These cute artitic cakes which are meant mostly to impress and can only be eaten by the super-rich, should they be displayed for us to envy? Or should we be ashamed that such things can be made important enough to deserve our attention?
I am NOT confortable with this topic...
by lbrhants | on 23 February 2012
If you are paying £42 for such a poor tea you are definitely not going to the right places! Head north and go to any of the branches of Betty's. The choice, quality and service are superb.
Elizabeth Botham in Whitby do excellent teas and if you stay in Whitby for dinner you can go for fish and chips at the Magpie cafe thereby covering both traditional British food experiences in one hit!
Many National Trust properties do excellent teas and home made cakes for a very reasonable price and are a delicious part of a day out.
Finally if you fancy a French twist on an English tea head for Laduree in Covent Garden. If you are able to sit outside you may also get a free floorshow courtesy of any of the acts performing in the area for the tourists.
by fandango | on 23 February 2012
I feel obliged to defend these teas! They are not any every day experience but a lovely treat for a special occaision. The cakes are amazing, not a typical Victoria Sponge or Bakewell Tart! The staff, service and surroundings are impeccable and I would gladly part with my money to go again.
by Kaideejee | on 25 February 2012
These cute artitic cakes which are meant mostly to impress and can only be eaten by the super-rich, should they be displayed for us to envy? Or should we be ashamed that such things can be made important enough to deserve our attention?
I am NOT confortable with this topic...
Not comfortable with the topic? Super rich? sorry were you reading the same article? £45 per head for the most expensive one on the page is hardly breaking into the realms of the 'super rich'. Yes it's a special occasion treat for aomeone who enjoys that sort of thing. Yes it's a little extravagant but nobody is likely to be doing it every weekend. If I was to go and spend the money (and at £26 per head for example that would be well within the realms of possibility) then it would be for the experience rather than the tea. If you prefer your Gregg's coffee and scone for £1.80, eaten on a nice park bench somewhere then that's fine but it serves a different purpose. You don't go for afternoon tea in a hotel because you're peckish and fancy a brew. You go because it harks back to a more formal time where people made an effort in public; because it's something different to the everyday, or because it's something you will enjoy doing with a friend or family member and you will keep it as a pleasant memory. It's not all about the functionality of it, and you're not likely to be sitting beside Alan Sugar or Richard Branson.
-- Kev (not super rich)
by Nupeater | on 28 February 2012
I agree with Kev. A good friend of mine saved up and took a few friends and her mother and daughter to the Ritz to celebrate her birthday. I've no idea what it cost but it was a tremendous and very special afternoon. We dressed up and lapped up the luxurious atmosphere. The food was generous with a huge variety; buttery tea cakes, cream, jam and scones, huge choice of sandwiches, exquisite little cakes both traditional and exotic as well as a large choice of teas. None of us is likely to do this again but I cherish the memory of my friend's happy face for she died shortly after of cancer. I wouldn't spend £3.50 on a sandwich but 1000s do in London with a pint you are already up to £6.50. and it takes no skill to produce them and one cannot compare the atmosphere of a bar with one of these swanky hotels. Much more than five time better.
by TheTeaseMaid | on 15 May 2012
I'm reading this rather later than it was written as I have been blogging about afternoon tea for 2 years and will soon contribute to a magazine. I have never felt compelled to write into a website to air my views...but I just had to at some of the ridiculous comments this post has generated!
smithbuckley: afternoon tea IS a nice meal. You can pay as little as £20 for a lovely tea experience and you will walk out of there completely full. I have had afternoon tea at 2pm and have not felt compelled to eat until the next day - you don't just get a sandwich and a cake, you get a banquet. I think you'll find that in many cities including London you cannot get a decent meal in a restaurant for £20.
And miramoore "I am NOT comfortable with this topic": I suggest you read a newspaper and have a look at some genuinely uncomfortable topics, so that you may understand the absurdity of your statement. Afternoon tea, as mentioned, IS a treat. Am I to understand that you never go for a nice meal on a special occasion? You never wear a bit of make-up when you're feeling washed-out, never open a lovely bottle of wine to celebrate something?? If not, I would think that your time is perhaps better spent as a missionary in Africa than perusing the internet and reading about food at all. Surely food is some kind of disgusting indulgence and during these times of austerity we should make pies out of mud and eat them instead? I'm telling you now, my grand-father did not fight a war just so that I could sit here and starve myself and be holier than thou. I happen to make cakes for charities like 'Free Cakes For Kids' and sold cake at the Big Chocolate Tea Party for the 'Sick Childrens Trust'. Don't demonise cake - it's a symbol of generosity, kindness and sharing, a symbol of enjoyment of life and of creativity.
Get a grip. www.afternoon-tease.blogspot.co.uk
by Alison Morris | on 03 June 2012
I am not sure why people seem to think that afternoon tea is only for the rich. Some friends and I celebrate by having tea at the Balmoral Hotel in Edinburgh, no more expensive than an evening at a restraunt and much classier.
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