Afternoon Tea at Kensington Palace

I have to admit that recently I've been rather spoilt when it comes to afternoon teas. When a best friend visited from Australia, it was top of her wishlist to enjoy an Afternoon Tea in London, even a few of my meetings recently have been over tea and scones in some of London's most decadent hotels. Absolutely spoilt. What many teas do not offer, however, is the grandeur of an incredible building - a palace, perhaps would quite literally be the icing on the cake to create the most fabulous experience. That is why, today's post is all about Afternoon Tea within The Orangery of Kensington Palace. Once the setting for Queen Anne's raucous parties, with ornate ceilings and 18th century architecture, it makes for by far the most grand of Afternoon Tea locations I am yet to encounter.

Last weekend, while still feeling a little delicate following our Christmas Jumper Party the night before, I was invited to try out their Festive English Afternoon Tea. Mum and I took our seats within the bright and airy room before being given a brief history of the building and it's colourful past. Before long, our table was decked with a three tiered selection of sandwiches, scones and sweet treats, but I did struggle a little to see what made it festive! Nevertheless, each 'course' was exactly what I was hoping for, hearty sandwiches including an Egg mayonnaise roll, smoked salmon and cream cheese mini bagels and turkey and cranberry sandwiches (oh, there's the festive part!).

The scones and cakes were traditional and tasty - many teas choose to make their sweet courses outlandish and incredibly creative but sometimes loose the quality of the food itself, but at The Orangery the selection was simple yet delicious.

While munching our way through the tiers, we enjoyed a festive tea as well as a traditional English Breakfast, on beautiful china emblazoned with the royal crown.

The tea itself is very well priced in my opinion, at �26 per person including tea, it's certainly one of the better value teas in town, especially given the grandeur of the surroundings!

And what does one wear to Afternoon Tea in the grounds of a palace? Well, as much as a fan as I am of getting all dressed up, my 'delicate' state lead me to opt for an outfit that I felt comfortable in for the mild December morning; a wine coloured leather skirt, brown jumper and my favourite new neopolitan striped faux fur scarf.

SHOP THE LOOK

Have you visited Kensington Palace Gardens for Tea?

xoxo

Afternoon Tea at Betty's

I don't travel 'up North' as often as I should do, but when I next make the road trip, I have one more thing to add to my To-Do list; Afternoon Tea at Betty's. Last weekend, the lovely folk from the Yorkshire based Tea Rooms packed up their crockery and set up shop in North London. What resulted was the most instagrammable, flat-layable blogger event that you ever did see.

The event began with a brief history of Betty's, before we watched one of the expert cake-icers (I mean, imagine that being your job!) show us the nifty tips and tricks used to create their delectable creations. Soon though, it was our turn, and in true GBBO style we had just 25 minutes to ice our very own cakes ready for them to be judged! What resulted was a selection of incredibly iced cakes that would possibly have bought a smile to even Paul Hollywood's face.

Next up, we were challenged to create the most instagram-worthy table set up, choosing from delicate pastel coloured crockery which the team had bought down from their Yorkshire tea rooms.

Scroll on down to see more snaps from the day as well as my #OOTD!

Bloggers being bloggers!

My mini cakes came in second place in the icing contest!

Top & Trousers both Topshop, bag by Jessica Buurman.

xoxo

The Best Afternoon Teas in London

Next week sees the launch of Afternoon Tea week in London, and to celebrate I thought I would round up some of my absolute favourites from across the capital. After all, an Afternoon Tea is one of life's little luxuries; consisting of endless finger sandwiches, scones, and mountains of jam and cream, and often some of the prettiest cakes you'll ever lay eyes upon. This British tradition is my absolute favourite - who can say no to drinking bottomless tea and eating cakes all afternoon, right?! It's also a tradition that I've been lucky enough to sample a fair few of across our capital, and so I thought i'd offer you some tips for some of my favourite places to go. I'll try to add to this whenever I can, so make sure you keep it bookmarked!

Afternoon Tea at Gong within the Shangri La hotel certainly takes afternoon tea to new heights! Up on the 52nd floor of The Shard, it's London's highest tea, and is certainly a memorable experience. The kitchen will cater to the most obscure of dietary requirements, and still are able to whip up one of the most delicious teas I've ever tasted. Even the egg mayonnaise sandwich is given a luxurious twist with its truffle flavour, and the pastries include delights such as the Soft Chocolate Cream Carible, with chocolate sable Breton and banana compote, and the Yuzu - a baked and cold mousse cheesecake with yuzu juice soaked sponge and orange marmalade.

A classic tea is �49, and with a glass of champagne, �57. 

The newly updated Afternoon Tea at The Sanderson is one that I always recommend to friends that have 'seen and done it all' and really want a unique experience. The tea is Mad Hatter's themed, and the experience starts with you flicking through a vintage book to find the menu, napkins wrapped with riddles, and a whimsical themed tea with dainty sandwiches and 'Tick Tock' macarons, 'Drink Me' potions and Marshmallow Mushrooms. I wrote a post on the tea before the updated menu here, and the update is just another level of crazy fabulousness. Tea is priced between �38 and �58 per person.

Although mostly renowned for their incredibly stunning hotel, The Corinthia is one of the absolute greatest teas in London. With the lobby area constantly filled with the most instagrammable of floral displays, it's the kind of place you want to while away the afternoon, enjoying the daintiest of finger sandwiches, and a constantly changing pastry menu which always consists of the most beautifully crafted treats. We visited while they were serving their Chelsea Flower Show tea, and you can see more about it here.

For a very reasonably priced, London themed tea that doesn't have a bonkers waiting list, Biscuiteers is a perfect option. If your visitor is from out of town then they will adore the British twist to the cakes, with Union Jack brownies and a telephone box biscuit as my highlights! Tea for two is just �48, and includes sandwiches, cakes, biscuits and, of course, freshly baked scones and clotted cream. For more pictures and my full review, click here.

And finally an Afternoon Tea which I still feel is very much under the radar, and one which again you can book in with just a few days notice (although probably not for long, as it's so good!) is Afternoon Tea at 108 Pantry. Guests can enjoy the classic afternoon tea with all the guilty pleasures or a 'healthy' option with gluten free and low sugar options. The tea is specially selected from the Rare Tea company, and includes exotic blends all expertly explained to us by our very knowledgable server. 

Where are your favourite Afternoon Teas in London?