Tea, Anyone?

It depends on how much you want to spend. Our favorite is at The Orangery at Kensington Palace. Here are some idea's~~.....The Ritz, The Brown, The Dorchester and Fortnum & Mason all would be around £80.00 for two. The Orangery at Kensington is very pretty inside and tea for two would be around £24.00. We always have tea at The Orangery when we are in London and enjoy it every time. If you look on The Dorchester website..the afternoon tea is £35.50 per person...if you want something fancier then they have a Champagne Afternoon Tea for £45.50 pp and a Mad Hatter Afternoon Tea for £49.00 pp. Also, Harrods has a lovely afternoon tea.

My friend Robin is right. We always go to the Orangery at least once. Don't listen to anyone who tells you to go to the Crypt at St. Martins. That is to say don't go there expecting a nice tea. Do go to the Crypt. I love Browns Hotel. (There is also a chain of Browns Restaurants..great for a pre-theatre meal, I don't know if they serve afternoon tea) Also be aware that if you decide to go to a big Hotel for afternoon tea you might need to ring ahead for reservations. I like The Ritz and Browns my husband likes The Savoy. If you can get ahold of a copy of "Tea in The City:London", you will get all sorts of ideas about where to go and you can see photos of what to expect.

My wife and I loved the afternoon tea at the Wolseley, a long block from Picadilly Circus. The place is interwar Art Deco, the tea was fabulous, and they didn't seem to mind that we were casually dressed tourists. As I recall, the full spread without champagne was something like $60. You can check out their website, which has the menu and information.

Six years ago I went to the Ritz for tea and it was lovely. The food was good, the tea was amazing (and I'm not a tea drinker either) and the wait staff couldn't have been nicer and more attentive. Perhaps its changed since then but you should consider it.

Harrod's has a wonderful afternoon tea which you can actually make a meal out of! The waiter's are very attentive and just keep refilling your scone and sandwich tray. Enjoy!!

We have been to Harrod's for high tea. We were just there this May. It is upstairs in Harrod's. We totally enjoyed the food and the beautiful atmosphere. Elaine

Thanks for posting this topic-we've been wondering the very same thing! For those who recommended Harrods, would you be willing to share the price? Thanks so much, China

Tea at harrods should be on their website. Also ck into Fortunum & Mason in London- we had a great tea there.

Afternoon Tea in the Georgian Restaurant at Harrods is £24.00per person.

Elaine, Harrods does not do High Tea, they do Afternoon Tea there is a difference. Afternoon Tea had sandwiches, scones, pastries and tea. High Tea is the evening meal (meat, potatoes, etc) and tea.

Laurel says: "Don't listen to anyone who tells you to go to the Crypt at St. Martins. That is to say don't go there expecting a nice tea. Do go to the Crypt." I don't think this comment was sufficiently explained. St. Martin in the Fields Church (by the National Gallery and Trafalgar Square) has an inexpensive, cafeteria style restaurant in their crypt. Good food for the price. However, it is definitely not a "gourmet high tea" destination. But, they do have some nice deserts and of course tea, so it's a good alternative for afternoon tea is you don't want to pay a fortune for the "atmosphere" at an expensive hotel.

The Savoy. Make reservations online or by phone. They treat you like royalty.