While I was in London, I was fortunate to have a reservation afternoon tea at the historical and legendary Palm Court at The Ritz (£47.00 per person or $78.96 at the exchange rate of £1 = $1.68 US). The local Londoners would pretty much tell you if you want a traditional afternoon tea, you should go to here.
The Palm Court at The Ritz is absolutely stunning. It is a destination for glamorous guests from high society to “see and be seen” dating back to 1906. The Palm Court is a dramatic room with high ceilings and its walls of gleaming mirrors, a ceiling seemingly woven together with intricate gilded trellis, birdcage chandeliers adorned with ornate metal flowers, a striking stone fountain inhabited by large gilded statues and at the center of the room a tall floral centerpiece.
If you want a experience the luxury (or what the Brits would like to say, posh) and sophistication of London, this tea is it.
My fellow Londoner and friend, Louisa joined me one late Friday afternoon for this lovely tea.
When our ordered teas (they have an extensive 17 varieties of teas to choose from) arrived and poured by our head waiter, passion fruit and orange and Earl Grey, a young waiter pushing an ornate wooden cart carrying a silver tray of toffee cake and I opted for a slice.
My tea was wonderfully fruity and has a pleasant tartness from the passion fruit. It works with the moist, decadent but thankfully not too sweet toffee cake.
We had tea sandwiches: ham sandwich with grain mustard mayonnaise on white bread, cheddar cheese sandwich with chutney on onion bread, cucumber sandwich with cream Cheese, dill, and chives on caraway seed bread, chicken breast sandwich with horseradish cream on white bread, Scottish smoked salmon with lemon butter on rye bread, and egg mayonnaise sandwich with chopped shallots and watercress on white bread. These sandwiches were nicely done. Moist, flavorful and elegant.
Their well known fresh baked scones with raisins were the last to arrive to our tier of treats and it’s worth the wait. Piping hot, fluffy, and wonderful with true English clotted cream (meaning, it’s so much richer than American whipped cream) and strawberry preserves.
The top tier of pastries were slices of a flaky mille-feuille, intense chocolate layer cake, French macaron filled with dark chocolate ganache, and a vanilla and strawberry dome cake in a pink glaze.
We left very content and kicked off our weekend on a high note. It was memorable and perhaps when I revisit London, I will have tea again at this historical place.
To view more photos of the visit, please CLICK HERE for my photo set or click through my gallery below:
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The Ritz
Website
Afternoon tea at The Palm Court
150 Piccadilly
London W1J 9BR
United Kingdom
Phone:+44 20 7493 8181
