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Original poster

Afternoon tea difficulty

388 replies

TheAverageJoanne · 14/01/2026 22:29

Well it's ATBU. Booked afternoon tea for a few friends on Saturday for a birthday. One person only eats cheese on sandwiches but she'll have chutney and things like that on them.

Unfortunately they are being rather difficult. When I requested cheese sandwiches when I booked she had to check with her manager who said it would be OK. They phoned today saying they could only provide cream cheese & cucumber, but not plain cheese! I pointed out plain cheese was available on the children's menu but they weren't able to change the sandwich selection, only for allergy or food intolerance.

AIBU to not leave them a tip, grumble on Trip Advisor and complain to them? We want it to go ahead. I'm going to make some and take along in a sandwich box for this person, too. She doesn't eat meat or fish.

This is a prestige hotel that charges a lot btw.

OP posts:
ShowMeTheSea · 14/01/2026 23:10

What's the point in her going to an afternoon tea if she won't eat half the stuff there?!
It's not the fault of the restaurant's, they can't be expected to cater to every faddy, picky eater.
(Obviously not including allergies, coeliacs or vegans/vegetarians in there)
I mean, where would they draw the line? Ok to hand pick any onions out of the Bolognese sauce?
A menu is a menu.
You can't just open up your Tupperware box in a restaurant either, I mean come on 😁

Original poster
TheAverageJoanne · 14/01/2026 23:06

3luckystars · 14/01/2026 22:31

Well if she will only eat one specific thing then the afternoon tea is pointless waste of money for her.

The rest of you can get the afternoon tea and she can order off the kids menu on the day. Then the hotel don’t have to change anything.

No it isn't! She eats all the sweet things. Other places have provided a range of cheese sandwiches in the past. Also vegetarian vol au vents and sausage roll equivalents have been available.

Also I don't think there's anything fussy about not liking certain foodstuffs. How many of us will eat absolutely anything?

OP posts:
Delphiniumandlupins · 14/01/2026 23:03

Afternoon tea is usually a set menu. Sometimes you may pick sandwich fillings, flavour of scone, type of cake but still from a list. Even a prestige hotel will be working to a budget. What if a fussy eater asks for extra sausage rolls rather than sandwiches, no scones but extra cakes? Although, if it's a sizeable group booking and with plenty of notice you would think they might have accommodated.

Foggybottomblues · 14/01/2026 22:57

That's crap customer service. Any hotel should be able to knock up a plain cheese sandwich. Unless they outsource their sandwiches and they're not as freshly made as the price would suggest.

Springflowersyay · 14/01/2026 22:48

The hotel will be imagining a scenario where they provide plain cheese sandwiches and their guest complains that they’ve been charged the price of afternoon tea and only been supplied with cheese sandwiches, rather than their full menu……

MindYourUsage · 14/01/2026 22:42

I dont think either is being unreasonable actually.

The hotel want to maintain their menu of what they consider true afternoon tea and/or dont want to start agreeing to alterations for fussy eaters for their afternoon tea sittings.

But on the other hand the cheese is in the fridge already I can see why you'd be frustrated.

It's the problem of the fussy eater. She can wait until the scones come out.

Chalo · 14/01/2026 22:39

I can see both sides to this.

On one hand, they have the cheese, they have the bread, and it’s presumably pretty quick and easy to knock up a cheese sandwich.

That said, the menu is the menu, if it’s not to someone’s taste, outside of serious allergies, it must be annoying to have to pander to everyone’s preferences.

Also, these things are usually priced based on the ingredients. I know you’re not asking for expensive cheese but I suppose that might be a factor.

Overall, I think they should do it, if only because it’s good customer service.

sprigatito · 14/01/2026 22:38

That is poor. I would mention it in my review for sure.

RichardTemplethatbeatingRythm · 14/01/2026 22:37

The cheese is already in the hotel fridge as it's used for the children's menu.

InterestedDad37 · 14/01/2026 22:36

I mean, she's fussy, but come on hotel, it's only a few slices of cheapo cheddar!

Hillarious · 14/01/2026 22:35

That’s poor on the part of the hotel. A very easy request to accommodate.

PhantomAfternoonTea · 14/01/2026 22:33

She can skip the sandwiches then. I don't blame the hotel for not changing the fillings on offer, they're not required to cater for fussy eaters.

3luckystars · 14/01/2026 22:31

Well if she will only eat one specific thing then the afternoon tea is pointless waste of money for her.

The rest of you can get the afternoon tea and she can order off the kids menu on the day. Then the hotel don’t have to change anything.