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

TBH who would spend 50 quid on afternoon tea?

I would, if it were somewhere fancy! I've twice been to the Ritz for afternoon tea (many years ago). Absolutely wonderful, and well worth the price.

Me. And quite happily.

TBH who would spend 50 quid on afternoon tea?

Afternoon tea is the Xmas gift of a young chef to his grandma who is nearly 90. At the hotel he works in, there are dainty sandwiches, followed by a savoury, then scones and finished with delicate pastries. Nothing heavy, and all washed down with masses of tea. In an exquisite salon with a Repton garden to admire through the window. It's a treat.

Well, if you are daft enough to pay £50 or more for an afternoon tea, then yes, you are being ripped off, but men are presumably charged the same amount ?

I do enjoy an afternoon tea, but wouldn't dream of paying that.

However, it isn't directly to do with the price of ingredients is it ?

Think about the cost of any meal out, compared with the price of ingredients.
Consider what you get charged for a glass of wine when eating out - or a spirit or a pint or (in fact particularly ) a soft drink.
Think what you pay for a coffee out, compared with popping the kettle on at home.
Think what you pay for a taxi, rather than driving yourself somewhere.

I went for one but I’m not a big fan of English sandwiches OR sweet stuff so that was a bit of a miss for me.

I assumed that a ' round of toast ' was two slices! No idea why or even if that's correct.

100% this. I’ve hunted for an afternoon tea that has at least 50% savoury, but have failed. Just a few more sandwiches would help! Love me a finger sandwich. Is that what those little sandwiches are called? I don’t mean a sandwich with a finger in it.

Total rip off! nice experiences but could get a full meal for the same price as some bread and butter!

we still fall for it thoogh 😝

If you have such a problem with women then why are you even on mumsnet? A site intended for mums (women) and what does pink hair have anything to do with this thread? Never have I been to afternoon tea and saw anyone one there with pink hair.

I was going to take my Mum to Claridges for afternoon tea for her 80th, but decided to go for lunch instead as it was cheaper!

wouldn't it be better?

What actually is a round of sandwiches? Is it the same as a round of toast? How many slices of toast make a “round”

It’s always confused me and I’m not sure if it’s a set portion or just how much the individual wants. Is a round of toast 2 slices for some but 3 or 4 for others? Why don’t people say slices?! Everyone knows what they want/are getting with a slice and another word wasn’t necessary.

I worked in a little tea shop when I was 14 as my first job. The staff were all girls and as I live in a very popular area for tourists we had to wear dresses with frilly aprons and a cap on our heads to look traditional for the tourists who would come in for “tea and buns” or “rounds of toast”
I live in a northern town where a bun is a bread roll with sandwich fillings in and on my first few shifts there was a lot of confusion when they were ordering a bun because I wasn’t sure if they wanted bacon, cheese, tuna etc… in it or if they wanted a cake.
At least it was cleared up easily by asking if they wanted a sweet bun or one with savoury filling, the rounds of toast were more confusing as everyone had a different idea of what constitutes a round.
I got sick of being told off for assuming someone was greedy for bringing two slices or looking confused and asking why I’d only brought one. You would think it’d be simple to just ask but it was treated as an offensive question and 9/10 the conversation went like this:

“Can I order a round of toast for two please?”
”of course, how many slices each?”
”Just bring us a round each!”
”Is that one slice each or two?”
”A ROUND!”

It’s been over 20 years and I’m still traumatised 😂. Whenever a round of toast is mentioned I find myself contemplating it for ages afterwards like a form of PTSD.

Maybe I’ll start my own thread and try to finally get some answers and closure.

I love afternoon tea and have paid €60 for a really nice one. Yes a lot of money for tea, sambos and cakes but me and my friends were there for almost 3 hours of lovely chatting and feeling fancy. One i went to had the cakes matched to the art on the walls (in a gallery) and that was especially nice.

That is sooo random!

Agree. And each time I have been for an afternoon tea, it has been (I feel) mainly cakes 🍰/sweet treats etc. Too many and not enough savoury selection..

Wow, you must have been to some really wild cafes. Give me the address, please.

Stupid prices but highly supported by WOMEN.
Whose forcing them, they have brains to choose not to support this but yet they do?

By the way, I've always gone in mixed company, so is particularly partial

That’s so the cream actually stays on the scone and doesn’t slide off the jam, you taste all of it when you eat it and I have never seen Devon cream anyway! Lol

Actually no, it's far more labour intensive to make afternoon tea compared to many meals. The cost varies a lot of course, but so does the intricacies

Why are we clutching our pearls? Has a waiter slapped his cock where a cream éclair should be?

Goldenspraint

• I have just re-read your post, and at £25 total and from what you described, it sounds like you only ordered one afternoon tea. That's why is was 'only' £25, even a few years back, and there was only one scone, etc.

As I said, it's now almost £40 per person and you can ask for more savoury and drinks, which is included in the price.

What's pink hair dye got to do with this thread?.

I feel like I just travelled back 150 years just reading the comments.
Had to check the calendar. Yep, 2024. Except for the pearl clutching ladies with pink hair dye on Mumsnet.