If I invite you round for afternoon tea, what will you expect to eat?

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I'm inviting my sister and her daughter (15) over for Afternoon Tea and am looking for ideas.

What would you provide?

Only absolute must haves are scones, cream & jam and tea in a teapot.
Additional items such as sandwiches, traditional cakes etc all great

I thought afternoon tea was just a small filler until the evening meal so I'd provide scones or sandwiches and cake with cups of tea

Sandwiches, cake and tea are your basic afternoon tea.
Scones, clotted cream and jam, plus tea is a cream tea.
But of course you add whatever you fancy, maybe some mini puff pastries, or crackers, there aren't really any rules.
Personally, I would like it to be nicely laid out as well, with nice china cups and saucers, paper doilies, just to make it feel special.

Traditional finger sandwiches - probably coronation chicken and any other one I know they like (egg and cress mayo or cheese and chutney or cream cheese and cucumber or smoked salmon)
Scones with jam and cream
A cake I know they like
Home made brownies
Fresh strawberries
Tea in a pot with lemon or milk in a jug
Prosecco
A summery cordial (elderflower or grenadine or cherry) with sparkling water

A few dainty sandwiches (maybe 3-4 different “rounds” of bread, with 2-3 different fillings, 1 per round, cut into 4 triangles each or even into smaller fingers). Fillings like plain ham and (grainy) mustard, maybe just ham for those who don’t like the mustard (could alternate those as 1 white and 1 brown bread round to distinguish), egg mayo, tuna mayo, tomato (very last minute made) with lots of freshly grated pepper, smoked salmon and cream cheese, thinly sliced cucumber etc. Some of these could be open sandwiches on nice sourdough or brown bread rather than sandwich bread, if you have it.

Some dainty sized scones with real butter, clotted or whipped cream and jam for people to fill themselves.

And some kind of dainty cake things - meringue nests with cream and strawberries, chocolate brownies, lemon drizzle squares, those pastry/raspberry jam/almond mix buns in small squares, individual cupcakes, individual cheesecakes, individual fruit tartlets or small slices of cakes, maybe a few biscuits or dainty cookies etc....

And in terms of quantity, I would allow maybe 1.5 “rounds” of sandwiches (each round being 2 slices of sliced pan and it’s filling) per person, 1-2 scones and 2-4 dainty cakes/pastries per person. If you know your guests well, you can judge if they are more likely to veer towards savory or sweet and adjust accordingly.

Small sandwiches
Scones with cream and jam
Some small bitesize cakes/tarts

Pot of tea

A glass of fizz goes nicely too.

A cream tea is just the scones, cream and jam. With a pot of tea.

Sandwiches, scones, and cake.

For me the scone is the core element, and it wouldn’t be afternoon tea without a scone with jam and cream

Only absolute must haves are scones, cream & jam and tea in a teapot.
Additional items such as sandwiches, traditional cakes etc all great

I agree with this, I wouldn't provide a full on spread, perhaps I don't get it but if I said to someone, do you want to pop in for afternoon tea, I'd mean a cup of tea and a choice between scone/jam/cream and a biscuit on a good day!

I can't imagine faffing around making egg sandwiches for family popping in, but perhaps I'm not with the programme...

Afternoon tea has to include tea, scones, crustless finger sandwiches and tiny cakes.

A good afternoon tea will involve a choice of looseleaf teas, the sandwiches will include cucumber as an option, the scones will come with clotted cream and jam, and the tiny cakes will be tiny but decadent.

Things like crisps and sausage rolls (which have been mentioned) are picnic food, not afternoon tea food.

However, you're catering for family, so I would expect to bend the rules to include whatever your sister and DD actually like. I mean, if they hate cucumber, don't make cucumber sandwiches - there's no point.

As for 'Best China', I'd feel like I was in a Miss Marple film, which I actually would quite like.

Feel like there's a whole afternoon tea sub-culture I might not be participating in...

Croquet on the lawn with your vicar

I don't care about anything else but want scones with clotted cream and jam.

Mug of builders tea and a packet of chocolate digestives is what I'd expect!

I want to come for tea at all of your houses!

Sandwiches, some salad bits, maybe quiche or other savoury pie/roll.
Lovely cake, and a cup of tea or a cold drink.

If I had been invited for afternoon tea I'd expect more than a biscuit! That's just a cup of tea.

A good afternoon tea in a hotel is quite something. At home I wouldn't provide so much, but definitely a sandwich or two, scone and cake, all small.

And invited for tea would mean a cooked meal at around 6pm, but that's regional I know.

Sandwiches
Mini quiche
Plain scones jam and cream
cheese scones
tray bakes
cakes
Lashings of tea
Possibly moving on to prosecco...

Posters who are saying that if they had invited people round for Afternoon Tea and would simply serve ‘tea and maybe a biscuit or a bit of cake’ clearly don’t know what Afternoon Tea actually is! It is not an cup of tea in the afternoon with maybe a biscuit to dunk’! It’s an actual traditional meal (in the UK...maybe if you’re not in the UK you don’t quite get it, which is understandable.

Usually served instead of lunch (or maybe as well if you’re greedy like me 😂) somewhere between 2 and 4pm.

It most definitely involves tea...and sandwiches...and a choice of ‘sweet stuff’ which is usually cake based.

Here: afternoontea.co.uk/information/the-afternoon-tea-menu/

To add: if you invite someone for Afternoon Tea (note the capital letters...it’s not ‘afternoon tea’ 🤦‍♀️) they will be expecting a minimum of sandwiches, cake and tea! They will probably have skipped lunch in delicious anticipation of this mist British of traditional culinary treat, and will be MIGHTILY disappointed (and hungry!) when you give them a mug of Tetley and a custard cream!

‘Most’ not ‘mist’ 😂

Agree there is a HUGE and very important distinction between,

“Come round for a cup of tea this afternoon”

(tea, coffee and biscuits and cake, even if it’s just a cheapo supermarket one)

And

“Come round for Afternoon Tea”

Which at an absolute bare minimum should involve a pot of tea, at least two types of sandwiches, scones with jam and cream and decent quality cake/cakes. A cake stand is a must.

And then High Tea is a completely different kettle of fish all together. Growing up, High Tea involved a proper meal like steak pie, a toast rack, a tea pot that was constantly refilled and a cake stand with lots of little cakes. Dependant on geography High Tea has different traditional features on the menu.

It really depends on the occasion not just the afternoon tea bit. If we were celebrating a birthday or something special I'd push the boat out a bit but for 3 people - I'd go simple. I'd personally rather have one good quality homemade scone with lovely jam and clotted cream than a big spread of mediocre stuff from a supermarket.

@GinWithRosie surely scone with jam and cream is more critical than cake?!

Tea, sandwiches and scone could pass for Afternoon Tea.

Tea, sandwiches and cake is merely tea, sandwiches and cake. I’d be fuming tbh.

@Hedgehog26

M&S do sandwich platters that are good for afternoon tea. My family always gets them for get togethers.

Sausage rolls are a must for me, but not traditional

It has to be homemade all the way. You can't buy pre-made for a made with love treat meal. Just my opinion, obviously. You could buy in the jam and cream, I concede. But the baking should be home-baked.

Finger sandwiches :
Smoked salmon and cream cheese
Cheddar and pickle
Egg mayo
Ham

Scones:
Plain and fruit
clotted cream, strawberry jam.

Mini Cakes:
Brownie,
Meringue filled with fresh cream and strawberry,
Carrot cake with frosting,
Lemon syllabub
Millionaire shortbread
Blueberry muffin with icing
Coffee and Walnut cake