To be shocked at the price for an Afternoon Tea?

[Writerwannabe83]

It is my friend's birthday on Saturday and a group of us (about 15) casually agreed a while ago that we'd go out for Afternoon Tea at a local restaurant. I had never been to one before, wasn't too sure what it was all about so I just agreed to it.

Today I received the Menu of this Afternoon Tea we are having and for some finger sandwiches, a cake and a cup of tea it's £20 per person

Maybe I live in a little bubble but that sounds crazy? This restaurant is going to get £300 out of us for supplying some sandwiches and some cakes?

The menu comes across as very pretentious and is written in such a way that by the designer throwing in some posh words and an over exaggerated description of a bit of lettuce it makes people happily hand over £20 for such 'luxury'....

The tea is "loose leaf" apparently - what does that even mean? Am I going to get a cup of tea with foliage floating on the top it?

I can have a ham and mustard sandwich, a cake and a cup of tea at home for a lot less than £20

But anyway - I just needed to vent.

I'm obviously still going to go as it's a good friend's birthday but I think it will be the last time I commit to an Afternoon Tea

It's my own fault really for agreeing to it without actually fully knowing what it was

Maybe I'm just not posh enough for such things

Can people tell me about any Afternoon Teas they have experienced and how U I'm being because actually I'm in for a treat that is well worthy of £20

this was ours when we went, it was £25ph.

It was served with lots of cream, jam and fondue chocolate and fruit for dipping.. and endless refills of tea or Coffee. Very Nice!

so it was 3 finger sandwiches, 2 scones, 3 cakes each.. very filling when you added in all the marshmallows and fruit for the fondue, an the jam and cream for the scones, and the tea/coffee.

Well worth it!

I wouldn't view the 'men's' one as being sexist (I've actually been to that venue and we all had the 'men's one to try something different as tried lots of sandwich and cake ones in the past).

Afternoon tea is traditionally seen as a girlie thing where as other posters have said you can have a get together and have tea and cake - calling it a 'mens' one and offering pies etc is just another way of marketing it and opening it up to men as well.

Lighten up and enjoy the experience.

Yes, nowt to stop anybody ordering the gentlemans tea.

I used to have a gentlemans wardrobe, very practical it was too.

Going out and having afternoon tea is lovely and that price is average.
I have been several times to different places and treat it as a meal because I have never come away feeling hungry, and I love my food!
Hope you enjoy it.

This was a Groupon £20 ish for two that I had with pfb in September. I'd class this as a fairly modest version, particularly compared to my absolute best at The Grosvenor, but it was a really relaxed setting and felt very grownup and gentlemen's club ish. Pfb (then 7) absolutely loved it.

I was just about to hunt for my pic of Betty's Morris! Go there every time I'm in York.
OP I think £20 is reasonable for afternoon tea and an afternoon with friends. Enjoy it

Had one in Fortnums a couple of years ago.
£35 per head, they kept coming round with sandwiches on a huge tray for us to choose which ones we wanted and filling up the teapot and when we had filled up on the sandwiches they brought round the scones and again large trays of cakes for us to choose from. When we had finished they brought round more till we were fit to burst.
Expensive yes, I wouldn't normally spend that much on a meal but totally worth the money.

Not sure if anyone's already made this point, but at the major London hotels, you can also have as many sandwiches as you want (you just have to ask) and most hotels will also give you a doggy bag for any leftovers (I always one have one scone and take the rest for the kids). I normally go to at least 2 a year in Scotland and love it. It's much more expensive to go for lunch.

Its a gorgeous venue :) I'm jealous!

You don't have to order the afternoon tea. Someone I know isn't keen on cake, and when they go for an afternoon 'tea' just choose something else off the menu. Any decent restaurant should be able to do this.

I don't mind afternoon tea, and have had quite a few from £12.95 for two in M&S (excellent value), to £30+ which is expensive for where I live. The best I have had is one which my friend treated me too in a small place in Saddleworth. I think it was £13.95 per head and included unlimited tea and coffee (including cappuccino, latte etc). There were loads of sandwiches and homemade scones, cakes etc. Fantastic.

I hope you enjoy your afternoon out, whatever you end up eating.

I love going for afternoon tea. Prices of ones I've been to have ranged from £12-£22 pp.
It's expensive but a lovely treat, the more expensive ones I've been to had live music ( someone playing piano or stringed instruments) and the overall atmosphere/venue has been very lovely.
Wouldn't do it often but don't mind spending a little extra for s special occasion.

What is a chocolate salami? It sounds like rude interracial pornography.

Have you factored in the £2 parking charge?

Morris I could eat all those sandwiches myself

That's the going rate. It was increased a lot since it became popular in the last 5 (10?) years or so.

I love afternoon tea. It is definitely a rare treat though. A good one is worth that price imo.

Have you factored in the £2 parking charge?

The cost just keeps climbing

I am actually looking forward to it now as 99.999% of the responses are saying how brilliant afternoon teas are so I'm feeling much more positive about the experience.

Who knows - I may love it and fancy it regularly

I've had them priced from £8.50 up and to be fair I've always enjoyed. Usually get proper filling food with the cheaper ones though

Fwiw I'm doing an afternoon tea on Monday for friend with a 5mo who doesn't feel comfortable taking her out (long story, poorly child, lots of medical equipment to take out) and hasn't gone out for an adult meal since her birth.
I have a 3 tiered thingy and am doing 4 fillings for finger sandwiches, including the salmon one, 3 types of cakes, scones with jam, clotted cream and a bottle of fizz (£5 cava!). I have just checked my online order after reading this thread and the ingredients are costing me £28.85! Ok that's for two of us but I think you definately have a bargain given its all made for you and the place looks lovely

I love them, but the picture of Betty's afternoon tea looks like a massive disappointment!

The first afternoon tea I went for had 4 finger sandwiches each.

They then brought out another batch.

Then there were 2 scones each with all the trimmings.

Then 8 - 10 petite fours. Really pretty perfect ones.

This was all washed down with jugs/and tea pots of coffee.

I could hardly move at the end.

Four finger sandwiches is surely barely a sandwich.
I am a greedy guts I think. I look at those platters for four or whatever - I'd have one myself.

I have never been to the hotel but I have heard rave reviews about the afternoon tea. My friend from school is a pastry chef there. The parking is quite expensive I think.

You could say the same about any food you eat out; I could whip up a bowl of pasta for pennies but I don't mind going out and paying a lot more for it in a restaurant. £20 is about the usual price for afternoon tea, just box up any cake you don't eat and take it home to get your money's worth!

I was a bit of a curmudgeon about being invited out for a posh afternoon tea, not my. Thing at all.

However I am a greedy fucker and it hit the spot right there. This was a posh hotel in a genteel spa town in the north of England, we got savoury mousse stuff, mini posh pies, prawn thingies ( I know all the technical terms me) THEN they brought out the sandwiches and cakes. And scones and jam. Plus unlimited refill on all tea. I had to get a doggy bag in the end. And was presented with s beautiful cake box stuffed with amazing cakes.

I think this was around £20 per person. Totally worth it imho.

Go what I did, go, grumble then stuff your face. :)