Afternoon tea is a rip off largely aimed at ripping women off

Fortunately we don't..
So more profit for the Cafè.

You're doing women a major disservice if you think they don't know what they're paying for/the probable markup. If people want to buy it, they can.

@Coddy reading all your posts, I think we may be kindred spirits. I want you as my friend!

It does make me laugh to think this is being pondered on as sexist though. Men are literally paying hundreds to see strangers feet wiggle across the globe and paying cam girls to moan a bit and call them "big boy" on the regular and there's all of us women having actual conversation with tea and CAKE! World has gone mad, indeed 😅

And if you sit there sipping your tea for an hour, £2.50 is very cheap to hire a table.

But that post which that poster was responding to wasnt talking about that at all unless men are also getting their nails done at male nail salons which charge less, or buying manbags that are massively less expensive

They were answering a post claiming only female coded items are frivolous and expensive like getting your nails done and buying handbags. Hence the comparison to cars, bikes and gadgets.

And given all the places I have seen that have a gentlemans afternoon tea as well as a standard one charge the same the idea that a "feminine" afternoon tea is somehow more expensive and worse quality cant really be backed up.

I do like the idea that the womens afternoon tea is the standard though and the male specific one is less available and prefixed with the gender. If people are going to claim that afternoon tea is expensive because its aimed at women lets at least appreciate the fact that women are also the default.

Although Ive no idea why men insist on paying more for mens football when football tickets are cheaper and the skills are just as good. Must be their silly man brains.

I’m baffled how so many people don’t like sandwiches. I can understand not liking some fillings, but all sandwiches?

I have hovered over the “book now” button for afternoon teas a few times; I held back at the last moment because I find them essentially absurd. However, I’d go if someone else paid.

Very pricey restaurants will offer afternoon tea as a more affordable option to go out and celebrate. You get the high class dining experience without paying for a three course meal. It's also a good choice for older people who don't want to eat so much and don't like going out late in the evening.
Is it good value for money? Well, obviously, you could make yourself a sandwich, cut a slab of cake and pour yourself a mug of tea for less than a fiver, but I really don't think people go out for afternoon tea because they're hungry! 😂

Everything seems overpriced these days but I would imagine that tourists are the main target, not women per se.

🤣🤣🤣

Not the full afternoon tea, but was only talking with DH yesterday about how much a Cafè charge for a cup/pot of tea.

Having just purchased tea bags from a wholesalers, 720 for 12.99 most cafés we go to charge £2.25/2.50, and yes I know they do have overheads but that's an awful lot of profit for a tea bag and some hot water.

These examples don't work. Yes of course there are very expensive things marketed at men as well. But this is talking about when you have two products which are identical (eg razor, pen, shampoo, tea and sandwiches), with one marketed primarily at women and the other at men, the so-called women's products are always more expensive, AND usually worse quality

If anything it's the tea and sandwiches example that doesn't work. Both men and women drink tea and eat sandwiches. And, just like with other foods and drinks which both men and women consume in restaurantsand cafés, you pay a premium for ones in swanky places or which are served in a posh way, often regardless of quality.

I used to go to a salon in Swindon called Cellys and have a wash and cut for £11. The sign outside said everything is £11, so a blow dry would be another £11. I just looked to check the prices since the couple of years I last went, and the salon I thought of as cheap now charge £21 for just a wash and cut, so no longer cheap.

Maybe a sign of the times with the increased energy costs.

You still make me laugh after 20 yrs

Ooh yes, good musical accompaniment really helps. I do like a harpist, if the room isn't too big or noisy, and not getting the opportunity to hear one live very often makes it more of a treat.

I have spent almost twice that in some London places. Like anything, if you appreciate it, it’s ’worth it’.

I'm not 'missing the point'.
I'm answering the question - which is about whether Afternoon Teas are a rip off or not.

If someone wants to start a post about why things that are essentially the same item, but then coloured pink or blue and put on shelves of 'women things' or 'men things' then that's a different question.

I buy razors, deodorants, and the like from the 'men shelf' when I need them. It is bizarre to me that everyone doesn't.

I went the other week to Brown's and there were men at every table.... I didn't know it was a "woman's thing". When you go for a really special one it's lovely. I had 4 different pots of tea, about 10 sandwichs, scones, 5 different stunning cakes. And a box to take home. I love going!

"Best Afternoon Tea | Llandudno North Wales | Bodysgallen Hall" https://www.bodysgallen.com/wine-dine/afternoon-tea/

We treated a friend to a spa experience on her birthday. Eight of us then snuck in to surprise her with afternoon tea.

They put us in a private study, open fire, afternoon tea for nine, they kept the tea coming and there was prosecco. We were there for a couple of hours. It was lovely.

Women ARE an easier target though. You wouldn't catch a man paying £50 for afternoon tea. You also don't find them paying:

£30 for quick hair trim

£30 to get their nails coloured in

£300 for a handbag

£50 for a pot of face cream

Nor would I. Nor most people I know.

What a lovely story!!
We all recall different things and your story is really nice - best wishes

There certainly are some afternoon teas that are rip offs, and if you don’t like sandwiches and/or cake then it’s not a great choice for you even if it the price were less than the cost of the ingredients. But good afternoon tea places provide exquisite patisserie which require exceptional skill to develop and create and they are often served in expensive environments. I don’t think those are a rip off, though that doesn’t mean they are what everyone would want to spend that sort of money on.

Afternoon teas often showcase a wide variety of different breads, fillings, cakes and other treats, made fresh, that you can’t really recreate at home, even if you have the baking skills, because you need just a little bit of each one. That isn’t practical to do for just a few people and could well be impossible in a small domestic kitchen.

There’s plenty of high priced stuff marketed at men to part them from their money - football, golf, whisky, steak - no reason women should be ignored.

😀that made me laugh but I really do. Maybe I’ve got old but I genuinely love it on the rare occasion we go. And as an added bonus my children are instantly better behaved if there’s a musician somewhere and that gives a moment of zen compared to when they’re in a pub squabbling.

I'm always up for a pot of tea and a slice of cake in an independent cafe. Not only in the afternoon. I can do without dainty bits and bobs served on vintage cake stands and fizzy wine in a chintzy tea room.