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

Yeah, he definitely seems like a bloke who’d afternoon tea.

Amateur Psychoanalyst time:

I suspect maybe Coddy has no mates to sit and giggle and sip Prosecco with.

So she has to sit in McDonald’s on her own with her £4.49 cheeseburger meal and it’s pissing her off 🤷‍♀️

And she can’t wear her Sosander in McDonald’s - she has to slob about in trackies and a tshirt 😂

I really like afternoon tea at decent places.

Is it a rip off? I don't really think so.

It's about economics.
Venues have to cover their costs and make a profit.

For afternoon tea you can probably look at being seated and served for at least 2 hours. £30-£45 per head is about what a 2-3 course meal plus a bottle of wine would cost for 2 people.

If it were less, venues wouldn't / couldn't offer it.

It's amazing that there are people out there who think the cost of the food is the only expense the establishment has. If you think that way, then any food eaten out is a 'rip off'.

As you say they have all sorts of other costs. Not to mention that they are businesses, so the whole point is to make a profit. Most of them operate on a very thin margin, however big a 'rip off' their prices might seem to some.

I get the giggling and tittering op. People should behave as if the experience is the norm for them

I like the gentle tinkle of teacups and the clink of spoons and all the genteel chatter in hushed voices. Makes a nice backdrop to a celebration, when meals can often be accompanied by loud music and people talking at the tops of their voices. The lack of alcohol is probably a large part of this, I admit.

You are paying to be able to sit in a hotel or nice establishment for 2 plus hours, socialising.

If we go for an early dinner the food comes out quickly. I feel that we are moved on sharpish if we don't keep ordering. Not everyone wants to have 3 courses and lots of drinks. If we go for dinner we order a main, maybe dessert and wine. We are out the door after 1.5 hours despite haveing spent lots. I order a second coffee to get another 30 mins there and you can see the faces of the waiting staff!!

The afternoon tea is great for people who don't want to eat loads, but still want to spend 2 or 3 hours sitting in a nice place.

Last time we went to Maccy’s a few weeks ago we as a family of 4 including a child getting a happy meal spent £28!! I could have bought us all a pub lunch for that. Not been since and have no plans to go.

I agree OP. I go out for steak and chips and a bottle of good wine with my mates. But lots of women enjoy afternoon tea and all the beautifully handcrafted cakes.

Tell that to my DH who loves an afternoon tea more than me 😂 however YANBU about it generally bring a rip off. Where I live there is a Betty’s and it’s about £30 for afternoon tea. Whilst it’s lovely and the brand is prestigious, £30 for a couple of cups of tea, cucumber sandwiches, a scone and a macaroon made me feel like the waitress should have been wearing a mask and a striped jumper.

It’s not my cup of tea. 🤣 If people want to waste their hard earned cash, it’s up to them. Like everything else!

I know! I couldn’t believe it either! It was 40 something quid, but basically very little change from £50.

kids are older and swim a lot so they were hungry.

have just looked at menu- burgers £6 then fries and drink. Also had sides, then dessert. It all adds up. I had a coffee in addition to my meal drink.

£50 - is about £16 a head

She’s on a windup that’s what!

Yes, it is very Chris Martin. All feeble and beige and anaemic.
😗 Though I think I would like to go for the robust Jamaican afternoon tea I saw advertised recently. At somewhere posh.

We did afternoon tea at the Ritz for my brother's 60th birthday (his suggestion). It was about 50/50 men and women in there (and it was bloody AMAZING).

Chips and gravy are British too but you wouldn’t expect them to be served for afternoon tea.

Afternoon tea is about dainty tea sandwiches with light filling, cucumber and cream cheese, smoked salmon, ham and mustard.

If you want a bacon sarnie get to your local greasy spoon. I’d be clutching my pearls if I was served a bacon & sausage sarnie for afternoon tea!

I’m not a great fan of afternoon tea, or rather I wasn’t, until my friend took me to The Ritz at Christmas. It was bloody gorgeous. Loads of food, champagne, candlelight, and a choir.

And, her husband paid for us, so neither of us were ripped off!

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
Add you own to this

I do recognise the some men do and some women don't argumrnts but you gotta admit spending money on frivolous shit is predominantly female hobby

I quite like an afternoon tea especially if I’m away and have had a cooked breakfast. Skip lunch, have afternoon tea and then just have olives/ cheese/ wine/ leftovers in the evening. I don’t think I’ve paid more than 25 quid a head though in smaller places rather than posh hotels. I always get a little box of leftovers to take home too.

Happy to pay £20 to eat nice little sandwiches, lots of different tiny cakes and drink tea from pretty china in a local cafe or pay a bit more in a smart hotel. Afternoon tea is one of life's pleasures imo, right up there with fish and chips on the seafront and cocktails at sundown.

My American friend always wants me to take her to afternoon tea. She is invariably disappointed every year. Just as she is disappointed to see everyone in London in athleisure rather than tweed and hats.

I would rather take her to Brick Lane, frankly.