Crumpets don't taste anything like pancakes !!! you can buy them in any supermarket and they are cheap.Pop them in the toaster. As well as them dripping with butter,add jam. My husband likes his with butter,and salt and pepper. They freeze well too !! Enjoy

I don't believe I've ever seen them in the supermarkets in Minnesota. I'll ask at the &quot;fancy&quot; grocery store next time. See, I'm still obsessing about that crumpet!<BR><BR>Beany

You can't make crumpets from pancake batter. You need to use a lot of yeast in the mix and let it &quot;rise&quot;, which is what makes the holes. There's a recipe here - www.lunched.co.uk/Breads/crumpets.html

I checked out two of the websites - gofortea.com (which only lets you access their info if you buy the book - which you must wait for delivery ... no online access that i can find) and patriciastearoom.com which does not seem to exist anymore.

any other ideas?

Buy a cup of tea in McDonalds,County Hall,and then take it on the London Eye &amp; open it when you get to the top. This will be High Tea.

Garrick excellent idea!.. I would add some Guarana, and some stuff from Amsterdam too...then STAND on the seat, at the top - can you add?

terryb there's some info here
http://www.travelbritain.org/newhome...eatime.htm#top

Hi Xenos,

I checked your recipe. Sure looks like a pancake to me.

The addition of yeast or other rising agent, such as eggs or baking soda or baking powder, is not unknown in the making of pancakes.

BTW, there is a very interesting recipe for &quot;Scottish Crumpets&quot; at http://www.scotlandforvisitors.com/crumpets.php

anyone done tea at fortnum &amp; mason's? your thoughts? reservations needed?

My daughter and I had tea at Fortnum &amp; Mason. The notice said they served until 5:30 pm, and we got there about 4:45 and were seated quickly. And then we waited and waited and waited. Eventually, I waved down a waitress who eventually brought us quite a nice tea, but at those prices I thought the service should have been much better. Also, the tablecloth was not perfectly clean. Try earlier in the afternoon, and I believe you will find it a good experience. The tearoom was pretty, someone was playing the piano, and the food was good.

Recently we had a cream tea at Richoux (scones, clotted cream, strawberry jam, and tea), and it was lovely.

While scanning through the posts, this one appeared. I would like to thank everyone for the wonderful suggestions. Some of the comments helped clear up some questions I didn't even know I'd had, like what a crumpet is, and what 'cream' tea is.

We had a wonderful time in London, but because of two of my three daughters' flight changes, we never did get to do tea while in London. We had a reservation for Dorchester, but ended up canceling, unfortunately. However, we did get one in while in Stamford, and it was wonderful. It was complete with sandwiches, clotted cream, and some assorted pastries. That turned out to be our dinner that day, since afterward, we were too full to consider anything else! It was such a pleasant afternoon, and the building we were in [from the 1500's] was so charming. It's something I'd want to allow time for on future trips. And, Stamford was a wonderful place to spend the afternoon.

I definitely would vote for Claridge's Hotel in London. This was kind of a last-minute thing we wanted to do while in London - have tea in a very nice English environment and it ended up being one of the best experiences on our trip. Very relaxing, excellent tea (they also offer champagne), wonderful tasty sandwiches and the best scones I've ever had and a wonderful environment with strings and piano. Very English. I would recommend it.

Message: What you are asking about is &quot;afternoon tea&quot;, not &quot;high tea&quot;. (High tea really means a dinner-type meal but the term isn't really used much any more)

High tea is still very much alive in the North of England and Scotland. It's usually just called &quot;tea&quot; and is a substantial meal.

sorry to learn that the previously-recommended websites are no longer operational.

Here are some new ones
Basic information: http://www.oewoodierpr.com/Jul032001f.cfm
http://www.dine-online.co.uk/teatime.htm

tea etiquette and recommendations: http://www.elegant-lifestyle.com/afternoon-teas.htm

also
http://guide.10best.com/list.process...D_120/SID_137/

The afternoon tea is terrific at both the St. James Club and at Le Meridien in Piccadilly. Le Meridien also does a beautiful breakfast which includes smoked Scottish salmon omelettes. The best I have ever had. As you can tell from this board, wherever you go, it will be memorable. Dress the part and have fun with it.

We're staying at the Thistle Charing Cross and I've been told they offer a nice afternoon tea - any opionions?

I'd reccomend going to the restaurant at the top of Fortnum's in Picadilly, I believe that they have dancing too which is popular with Americans.

My sister and I took afternoon tea at Thistle Charing Cross at Ben Haines' suggestion in April and enjoyed it very much. Price around 14 GBP. Included tea, little sandwiches, pastries, and other sweets. Don't remember time exactly, but think it was served from 3:-5.m. Just ask at the desk. Room was on second or third floor with windows and lots of light. Very pleasant experience for a bit of relaxation time.

For what it's worth, I just returned from London and my driver and I had a lengthy discussion about the best tea in the city. He raved and raved about the Muffin Man (mentioned by a previous poster) - he said how foolish people were to go to the Connaught (where I stayed), when even more lovely tea could be had a fraction of the price.

I will give it a try next time I am back on the Isle.

Per some of your suggestions, I went to the www.gofortea.com site, but all I kept finding was that they want you to buy a booklet for 3.99GBP. How do I get in to read about the specific places that offer tea?

Thanks!