Afternoon Tea - how can anyone eat it all?

Certainly not. Indulging in an afternoon tea occasionally to celebrate birthdays does not reflect how I eat the rest of the year.

This is why I look forward to having an afternoon tea as a treat . . . I eat much more sensibly the rest of the time. An occasional treat never hurt anyone . . . .

The only correlation you'll get is e.g. most women (since men don't have a dress size so will be excluded from your study) commenting on a thread about afternoon tea are a size 12.

I don't think that would be terribly interesting.

I don't see the relevance either, not least because my dress size is on the lower end of the scale and I would have zero problems eating a whole afternoon tea plus at least some lunch and a normal dinner because afternoon teas just aren't that big generally! I don't know why anyone is referring to it as a blowout. The sandwiches and cakes are 1-2 mouthfuls each everywhere I've been (mostly London). Four sandwiches and a few cakes of that size is basically a substantial snack.

How on earth would dress size be relevant as the teas are only had rarely (if ever)?

It's the same as asking what do you have for Xmas Dinner and what size are you?

🙄

Yes I’m a bit of a grazer usually.
I cannot manage big meals which is a bit annoying as I don’t like to see food wasted .
I do like afternoon tea , I’d eat a normal breakfast like maybe toast , fruit and yoghurt.
Then maybe a small banana and half a sandwich to tide me over till 3ish afternoon tea time .
I would ask for a little takeaway box for any leftover cake and eat a small dinner as I find I cannot skip meals ever .

I am sooooo fascinated by the behaviour on this thread. I would just love to know the dress sizes of everyone commenting. Could we do this going forward?

Jane, size 10

Last time we went for Afternoon tea in a posh hotel, I took so much home we dropped it all off at my mother's so her and her partner had a full afternoon tea too. They offered us boxes we hadn't asked.

PHEW! 10/10 top marks. I did wonder if you were serious 😂

Thanks for the tactics! I am going in a couple of weeks for a posh afternoon tea and can't wait!! I can always eat it all but with your strategic planning may be able to see my mam's leftovers off too

I thought 'oh goodie...another competitive under eating thread'!! haha

Good lord, that's my ideal day's food. Especially if the champagne supper includes steak.

I'm absolutely going to do this one day #lifegoals

Cakes and sarnies are small. I feel just nicely full after it.

@Bjorkdidit a lot of places do a savoury afternoon tea these days
and a proper afternoon tea always consists of (unlimited) warm savoury items such as quiche, sandwiches and pastries
I don't think I have ever been anywhere that tea is not unlimited!
in the good places you don't have to ask, they keep harassing you with the tea menu/trays of sandwiches and cake for you to have more

I suggest you go somewhere decent to try it. the scones are tiny and airy. pastries also very light.
delicate sandwiches
nothing stodgy about it

And why shouldn't people eat excessively occasionally?

They aren't going to put on weight or damage their health if it's occasional.

I love food and eat well. I also bloody love a good occasional blow out. I'm still a size 10, after all these years of eating like that.

@shearwater2 I am now craving a proper ploughman's lunch! Not had one in years.

😋

You obviously went to a crappy cheap afternoon tea in that case..

Full English Breakfast
Ploughman's Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Champagne Supper

Sorted! [Skips off into the sunset draped in my Union flag]

Exactly. Have a Ploughman's Lunch then!

Of course it's less satisfying than a normal balanced meal. But it's permissible to have unsatisfying food from time to time. When we go to the seaside I often have a couple of hot doughnuts which contain quite a lot of calories but may as well be fresh air as far as my stomach is concerned.

But I don't say "Oh no, I can't have them as they are so unsatisfying and a UPF!" Likewise I will probably be having a few baguettes, croissants, patisserie and quite a lot of wine in France this summer which are a total fucking diet disaster normally. They don't form part of my usual diet- well, a very small amount of wine does, but not the gallons that I could potentially guzzle quite easily.

No-one is suggesting that afternoon tea should be part of your daily eating pattern.

I don’t find them at all unsatisfying personally.

Yes and unsatisfying is a good word too.
I'm not a carb fearing person either but if I'm hungry, I want to eat proper food with protein and veg. If I fancy a treat, it'll be one scone or one generous slice of cake so then afternoon tea seems a waste of money.

Some of us have been in training our whole lives for a challenge such as this.

Well, clearly afternoon teas are not for you.

I'm going to stick my neck out here and say that on the rare occasion I've provided an afternoon tea at home or helped with a garden party tea to raise money for charity I've provided a LOT more food than I've ever been given in a tea shop. And, disappointingly for me, I've never been left with much food at the end of it . . . Perhaps it's because men & children have attended these occasions whereas when I go to a tea shop it's only ever with other ladies