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Original poster

Afternoon Tea or High Tea?

116 replies

Sunshineismyfavourite · 24/02/2026 22:29

A hotel I visit sometimes is currently advertising a 'High Tea' for Mother's Day. The menu is sandwiches, quiche, scones and cakes. But that's not 'High Tea' is it? That is an 'Afternoon Tea'. A high tea where I come from is a late afternoon meal like a 'proper' dinner - meat, veg, potatoes etc. of some description.

The hotel do brand themselves as being a bit top tier. It irritates me that they are calling it a 'High Tea' as if they are being too posh to do an afternoon tea or something. And don't get me started on the whole 'cream tea' debacle!

YANBU - it's afternoon tea - they are unreasonable to call it a high tea.
YABU - it's a high tea/who cares what they are calling it!

OP posts:
Tooearlyfortea · 25/02/2026 18:08

Sunshineismyfavourite · 25/02/2026 17:32

Well, I have heard some people call an afternoon tea (sandwiches, scones and cakes) a cream tea! Obviously (I think!) a cream tea is just the scones with jam and cream.

And then of course it's the whole jam or cream first ... (cream for me as that's like butter and then jam on top). I mean, you don't put jam on your toast and then butter on top of that do you? Weird ...

Show quote history

Thank you, I see what you mean. Where I live in Ireland the term cream tea isn’t really used though. It’s just tea and scones (scone to rhyme with cone obviously😉)

There was a whole thread recently about whether the jam or the cream goes first!😁 What I learned from that is that it very much depends on the type of cream used. Clotted cream goes on first, but if you’re using whipped it goes on second. Before you protest…whipped is delicious and clotted wasn’t available where I live until recently. Whipped cream is still the standard served here with scones.

Some people seem to use butter, jam and cream! Now that’s odd 😂

Needspaceforlego · 25/02/2026 18:01

Squareblob · 25/02/2026 17:46

I can't say I've ever actually eaten High Tea, but in my mind, it's a proper meal, eaten at 5pm ish. The final meal of the day, in place of dinner which would usually be later.

Yes its proper main meal followed by cakes and scones. Not really something you'd serve up at home.

deeahgwitch · 25/02/2026 17:59

I wouldn’t consider quiche part of Afternoon Tea.
During Covid my Mum had Afternoon Tea delivered for 2 special occasions from 2 different 5 star hotels in our city - a lovely treat and it helped the business / staff.
Neither served quiche and never do. It’s always sandwiches, scones and the most fabulous individual cakes.

Needspaceforlego · 25/02/2026 17:58

Klug · 25/02/2026 17:40

When you do an internet search for high tea all you get are afternoon tea places. It’s really irritating.

Where’s good for a proper High Tea (presumably only a Scottish / northern thing)?

The Hotel in Callander that someone posted the menu for up thread looks like it has it right!

IamMummyhearmeROAR · 25/02/2026 17:47

It’s not High Tea unless there’s a buttered toast course!

Squareblob · 25/02/2026 17:46

I can't say I've ever actually eaten High Tea, but in my mind, it's a proper meal, eaten at 5pm ish. The final meal of the day, in place of dinner which would usually be later.

leaflikebrew · 25/02/2026 17:42

Has anyone had high tea since 1948?

Klug · 25/02/2026 17:40

When you do an internet search for high tea all you get are afternoon tea places. It’s really irritating.

Where’s good for a proper High Tea (presumably only a Scottish / northern thing)?

Original poster
Sunshineismyfavourite · 25/02/2026 17:40

Thanks everyone! Some great replies and experiences which have been really interesting to read. I love a bit of social history.

I'm half Scottish (my father) so I reckon that's where I have the understanding of high tea - I think it may well be a regional thing. My Dad used to take his Mum to a hotel for high tea back in the day.

I think we are safe to report, based on the replies here, that afternoon tea and high tea are very different and my fancy hotel has it wrong. Shame on them! Perhaps a staff member is following along - I'll let you know if they change their ad!

OP posts:
Original poster
Sunshineismyfavourite · 25/02/2026 17:33

StrawberrySquash · 24/02/2026 22:39

High tea should have generous slices of ham carved off the bone by a jolly farmer's wife in an Enid Blyton book. Doesn't need to be hot though.

haha love this! With home churned butter from their own dairy and washed down with lashings of ginger beer. Sounds idyllic!

OP posts:
Original poster
Sunshineismyfavourite · 25/02/2026 17:32

Tooearlyfortea · 25/02/2026 14:26

YANBU @Sunshineismyfavourite, but what is the ‘whole cream tea debacle’ that you refer to?

Well, I have heard some people call an afternoon tea (sandwiches, scones and cakes) a cream tea! Obviously (I think!) a cream tea is just the scones with jam and cream.

And then of course it's the whole jam or cream first ... (cream for me as that's like butter and then jam on top). I mean, you don't put jam on your toast and then butter on top of that do you? Weird ...

OP posts:
Ophir · 25/02/2026 17:19

TabbyM · 25/02/2026 15:59

We used to take my Gran out for high tea at a (now closed) local garden centre on a Sunday - scampi/fish & chips/ steak pie followed by massive treacle scones and cakes.

This is high tea!

ginasevern · 25/02/2026 17:10

I've always associated High Tea with Scotland.

LatteLady · 25/02/2026 16:39

Having been brought up in a home that did high tea, let me break the week down to you...

Mon - Fri: Breakfast, lunch, dinner and often a late supper
Saturday: Breakfast, lunch and high tea
Sunday: Breakfast, dinner and afternoon tea or high tea

Breakfast: 8:00am
Lunch: 1:00pm
Dinner: 7:00pm or 1:00pm on a Sunday
Supper 9:00pm

High tea did not include sandwiches, was usually savoury but not necessarily hot, so could be a cold collation like a ham or egg salad, cheese pie and salad etc, but bread and butter was served with home made jams. Afternoon tea was much sweeter, with finger sandwiches, scones and a cake.

Late suppers were another cup of tea with a slice of cake, often Dundee cake.

Guess whose mother was in service in the 1920s and 1930s...

TabbyM · 25/02/2026 15:59

We used to take my Gran out for high tea at a (now closed) local garden centre on a Sunday - scampi/fish & chips/ steak pie followed by massive treacle scones and cakes.

Ophir · 25/02/2026 15:54

It’s afternoon tea, and this irritates me too!

Brefugee · 25/02/2026 15:52

I'm from Yorkshire. High tea to me is served later and is a substantial meal. And the drink is often tea (or sometimes beer). Not at all dainty.

And looking at Valerie's description, i'd say they agree.

Velentia · 25/02/2026 15:50

StrawberrySquash · 24/02/2026 22:39

High tea should have generous slices of ham carved off the bone by a jolly farmer's wife in an Enid Blyton book. Doesn't need to be hot though.

Will ye take an egg with your tea?
Boiled or my favourite, poached.

Needspaceforlego · 25/02/2026 15:35

Thats something totally different to what the Northern and Scottish folks are thinking of a as High Tea.

TotHappy · 25/02/2026 15:23

Oh and served at normal tea time (6 o clock).
Basically like a Boxing Day buffet tea

TotHappy · 25/02/2026 15:23

High tea is lots of things on the table, pick your own. Savoury and sweet. Teddy cake, ham, tongue, pate, salad, crumpets, cake, Trifle, whatever mum had baked that week. Growing up in Cornwall we didn't call it high tea but we had it every Sunday. We called it tea. Now we call it Sunday tea but my husband always serves pizza instead of the ham, Teddy cake etc which is wrong but he's lazy.
My dad did say that when he was Growing up though they didn't have any of the savouries, it would've just been a buffet of sweet things. Don't know if that was traditional or Granny just had a sweet tooth. My parents must have modified it to make it less nutritionally dubious for us.

mindutopia · 25/02/2026 15:21

Genevieva · 25/02/2026 14:21

In my experience, I think you’re right. I think it’s a Northern thing.

A cream tea is scones, jam, cream and a lot of tea, along with dainty sandwiches. It replaces a mid-afternoon cuppa with a biscuit, whereas high tea replaces the need for an evening meal.

Show quote history

Cream tea is just scones, clotted cream and jam with tea (or sometimes coffee). Nothing else. It’s a bit like coffee and cake, rather than a full afternoon tea.

Cream tea you’d have as a snack in a tea room after a windy dog walk. Afternoon tea in a fancy hotel for Mother’s Day.

The debate is whether you put jam on first and then cream on top (Cornwall), or the correct way like we do here in Devon 😂 cream first and then jam.

It’s taken very seriously. Our local councillor runs on a platform of ‘cream first’ (slightly tongue in cheek but not entirely 🤣).

justasking111 · 25/02/2026 15:18

A place near us does a Gentleman's tea which I love. Mostly savoury, pork pie, sausage roll, sandwich, cup of soup, pate on toast, just delicious. I like one piece of cake and done.

Abra1t · 25/02/2026 15:14

High tea is what Canadians call it.

Needspaceforlego · 25/02/2026 15:06

High tea low table is the name of an Irish book! But I'm guessing the saying came before the book.