There's any number of places you can grab a cup of tea and something to nibble between 3 and 5. Even in Islington.

The question is, though, whether cindysphinx (or the children) think production values out of a Merchant Ivory film are essential as well. Because that's what escalates the cost from £3 to £30.

Cindy--The tea is at St Anne's Church near Kew and is only on Sunday, 1:30-5:30. The grave of Gainesborough is in the church cemetery. Sorry but I can't find the website in my notes.

http://www.saintanne-kew.org.uk/index-2.html


http://www.saintanne-kew.org.uk/sub%20pages/teas.htm

"A full afternoon tea will have enough food so you can really cut back at dinner"

Not really, especially if you are talking kids -- and especially if the kids skip the sandwiches in favor of sugary cakes, which fuel the appetite.

London is just too expensive for me to enjoy right now. It is a very expensive city anyway; combine that with the weak US dollar and I just can't handle what things cost. There are so many other places to go that London will just be "off my list" for a while.

With that said, how long do you think you will spend at tea? Are you going to any shows in the West End? You might want to compare the cost to that...think of it more like entertainment than a snack.

janis

Tea is not supposed to replace either lunch or dinner, it is precisely an afternoon snack. If you want to gorge yourself on enough buns and sarnies to last you till bed-time, good luck.

Sounds like the hotels and tearooms are making a packet out of gullible tourists who've read too much Jane Austen.

The setting for an afternoon tea at St. Anne's Church seems like it would be a nice opportunity to meet locals and get to know them. It seems like it would be more authentic, proceeds go to a good cause, and not as touristy.

I <u>know</u> what tea is meant to be.

But - for a special occassion, a full set afternoon tea w/ sandwiches, scones and so on would replace another meal.

(BTW - we are now probably going to get the argument that Brits never do these frou frou set teas at the posh hotels - it is only crazy tourists. Well, every single time I've had a set tea at the Ritz, Grosvenor House, the Savoy or whereever - 50% to 75% of the other diners have been British. Probably 20-25 times over the years. Now, maybe they were hicks visiting London from oop nooorth - but they weren't from the colonies)

&quot;Sounds like the hotels and tearooms are making a packet out of gullible tourists who've read too much Jane Austen.&quot;

Last time I was in London, a British friend of mine insisted on taking me to afternoon tea over much protest from me. I finally made her forego the Savoy in favor of the chearper Goring (which was excellent, but still more than I like to see paid for a snack).

American tourists are having a very hard time meeting London's current prices. If hotels are depending on us, you can expect afternoon tea to disappear in short order. But I don't think they are depending on us. It's the British who are willing to fork over the money in London for all that overpriced -- yep, overpriced -- food.

When we took our then-10yo to London several years ago, we had an afternoon tea that was also our late lunch at Richoux. In terms of formality, it's like a normal restaurant, except it looks a bit more like a tearoom (there are several locations).

An advantage of having tea at Richoux was that my husband could order something less tea-like (and a beer), and my son got the &quot;whole thing&quot; - tea, little sandwiches and little dessert things. I had just some little sandwiches. But compared to how he gets tea here at home in the U.S., the amount of ceremony with the tea, and the pot, etc. was just what he had in mind.

In terms of this being a first visit, and wanting to do it all - I definitely understand! However, in working out trip plans with our kids, I present it to them as a time and money analysis. &quot;We can do this, but then we don't have time/money to do that.&quot; Then have them think about which activity is more important to them. Not only does it make sense, but it's a good life lesson.

We had our tea/lunch at the Knightsbridge location, then later in the trip, had just tea (son) and wine (adults) at another location. You can see their menu at http://www.richoux.co.uk/knights.htm. They have afternoon tea for 16.50 pounds (sandwiches, scones, cakes), cream tea (scones) for 8.50 pounds; sandwiches only for 6.95 pounds.

Let's turn this around: where's the best caff in London? I mean a real English tea -- industrial strength, sausage roll or chip butty, formica and chrome. I hear the New Piccadilly in Denman Street is closing down -- cultural murder. I'd take half an hour in a place like this over all of the afternoon teas in all of the fancy hotels in Europe. What's left?

Having afternnon tea at one of the classic hotels is a wonderful experience. But - if the trip isn't such that you're staying at one of those hotels - it may just be over the top - esp for kids.

I would do somethig like Richoux - which will be afternoon tea - and completely unlike anything they have seen before - and still not break the bank.

bookmarking

Is every kid on board with this expensive tea concept? Maybe one is particularly, and the others would prefer another activity.

Wow! You've got great kids! Nothing in my life will top my Tea at the Ritz London experience, and I think it's personally worth the splurge. Part of the whole British experience. Fortnum and Mason is a nice runner up though.

$305 for tea and biscuits, sweetie darling? Are you daft? I'm sodding rich and I wouldn't pay that for tea (maybe gin).

Could you imagine Brits lining up at the Four Seasons in Philly and paying $300 for coffee and donuts? Silly unless you are on an expense account.

Blimey

The Wolseley has an afternoon tea for 19.50GBP. It is served until 5:30 during the week &amp; 6:30pm on Sundays. I would say that if you're going to spend the $$ on a full tea, then the kids need to eat all the little sandwiches before digging into the cakes. Then the tea can double as dinner.

The Wolseley also has a cream tea (scones &amp; tea).

http://www.thewolseley.com/Menu.aspx

Cindy;

Maybe it's because I'm from another generation (b.1929), another world...but thank you for your valuable post.

I'm sending copies to our children (ages 53,50,46, 42, 40) and to our adult gandchildren (27,24,20,20 and even the 16 year old...but not to the five much younger
ones).

Call it an important adjuncy to their individual value systems.

Much obliged.

Stu Tower

Cindy:

The word above should be &quot;adjunct&quot; , of course.

Stu T.

&gt;&gt; would say that if you're going to spend the $$ on a full tea, then the kids need to eat all the little sandwiches before digging into the cakes&lt;&lt;

I'll say. I was brought up on the principles of &quot;bread and butter before bread and jam&quot; and &quot;no pudding till you've eaten all your greens&quot;, and all the better for it.