Afternoon tea is a rip off largely aimed at ripping women off

[Coddy]

Somebody suggested this to me and I’ve never thought of it that way.

You don’t get very men going for afternoon tea do you? The Mark up on afternoon tea is absolutely enormous aside from staffing and cost of the building and stuff- it must be money for old rope for the businesses concerned. Specially the ones that charge over 50 quid ahead.

Are we being conned by the whole afternoon tea debacle?

(yes cake is nice I get that)

There's an amazing cafe near us that does nothing but afternoon teas, and weekends only, at that. Gets sold out, has a waiting list. She makes everything fresh for each sitting and is super creative about it - so just did a Willy Wonka one with everything created for the theme. Her teas are worth it. The Christmas one had a gingerbread house that opens up and is actually a tea stand, with everything hidden inside. The kids get so excited. And my husband loves her food on taste grounds, as does my son, so not a women's thing, either. Though the Mother's Day tea was, admittedly.

Local fancy hotel ones, not so much, agreed. But it can be a good option to meet with friends when everyone has kids, because they can pick at food in a less pressured way, and adults talk. It works a lot better than a standard meal and feels more of an event for the children.

I miss the Landmark's Sunday brunch, though, which Covid put paid to. Unlimited Champagne and the most amazing array of lovely food, all buffet. You could eat a full English, an American breakfast (all made to order), have a full Sunday lunch, or sushi, or seafood, or salads... an omelet bar, soups, and an amazing range of patisserie and fruit salads and cakes. If memory serves they even had a chocolate fountain. It was lovely for special birthdays (the kind with a zero at the end) as literally everyone had something they loved. Twice the cost of a London hotel tea, but infinitely better value.

Is it linked to the disappearance of tea shops (taken over by coffee bars)? Nothing poncey or 'sophisticated' about them, just wee cafes where you could buy a pot of tea, got proper cups (ie not Starbucks bag-dunked-in-cardboard-cup), and homemade cake and buns? I do miss those places; the 'afternoon tea' providers have seen a gap in the market and are making a packet with massive mark-ups for basically the same stuff. So no, YANBU.

I love the opportunity to eat several cakes and drink prosecco.

I've been for afternoon tea twice and enjoyed both occasions very much. The first time was at a very posh hotel in London and I went with 3 friends as part of our wonderful day out which included going to the David Bowie Is exhibition at the V and and A. A perfect day in every way. Second time was for a birthday so and I really enjoyed that too, it has never occurred to me to consider the economics, I have just enjoyed the ambience, the company and the food which luckily was really good.

Move to Gloucestershire - there are literally six on the local independent shopping street near us, and lots more sprinkled through the towns. All homemade cakes, nice tea, proper cutlery and not an afternoon tea option in sight (though scones, jam and cream are on offer in half). Decent coffee and good sandwiches as well.

Totally depends where you go! There are a lot of mediocre sandwiches and cake out there.

But I did take DM for afternoon tea at Claridges once and it was worth every penny.

God I'd love a scone.

I can't stand scones which is why I don't bother with afternoon tea. Instead I'd like more savoury sandwiches, a cake or two and a meringue with fresh cream. High tea is much better value

Where are people having afternoon tea at £40 a pop?

My Dad also loves afternoon tea, I'll let him know that he's really a lady.

Ah yes, in order to make some sort of feminist point, roll out the snobbery and stereotyping. Brilliant.

Some people like afternoon tea. It doesn't make them fluffy headed morons of the vagina variety. People like all sorts of things that cost money, and other people think it's a waste. So what 🤷🏻‍♀️

I have never done an all-woman afternoon tea. We have always done afternoon tea for special family occasions.

We live in London so have done the big hotel ones eg Claridges, the Ritz, the Dorchester, the Savoy etc as well as the smaller ‘trendier’ places eg the Sanderson, the Dean St townhouse (my fave), the Charlotte st hotel etc. I love it! The only one that was disappointing was Fortnums.

We don’t drink alcohol and my parents don’t like late meals. So afternoon tea feels like a way to celebrate special occasions in a way that includes all. We don’t spend on alcohol so are happy (and lucky) to spend money on teas instead.

And I love the food. Given a choice, my final meal on earth would be scones and tea.

It’s £75 at the Ritz! Just looked as this thread reminded me of the last time (which was lovely) and I thought maybe I’d treat my BFF and I… not booked after all.

@Babyroobs the Bridgerton afternoon tea was very good. Make sure you have the gin based cocktail too.

I bloody love afternoon tea

I’ve only been twice, but each time they offered unlimited sandwiches! I don’t think it’s a bad deal at all. I’m not sure why this is a gendered issue though, as both times I’ve been with men and women and all equally enjoyed it.

We went there for my parents’ 60th and stayed the night. It was lovely!

This is the best place I have ever been to for afternoon tea. The £40 includes wreath making, and the most expensive non activity afternoon tea is £29.

The place is quirky and brilliant and the food is excellent and (too) plentiful.

There's a tea room in Conwy we visit. I prefer the savoury one because I don't have a sweet tooth. It's a stunning building, the loos are lovely. I just checked the prices. £17.95 for afternoon tea. The prosecco one for two is £57.

I guess in cities the business overheads would be higher. My friend takes her granny out for afternoon tea regularly, she prefers it to a conventional menu.

Oh no that's so sad. We went for a Hen Party for my niece around 2016 and it was such a lovely day, tea and walk around the parks.

Family live close but we are about 160 miles away.

I say YABU and I don't even like afternoon tea. You completely discount the major costs which is venue, overheads and staffing. The food itself won't actually be cheap if you get a good quality one. The cakes should be freshly prepared on site at a decent hotel.

It's like complaining a fancy restaurant (another thing I don't like) is a rip off due to cost of ingredients.

I don't like afternoon tea because it's too late for lunch, too early for dinner, not that bothered about sandwiches, tea and cake as a treat meal. The only exception is a home made afternoon tea when a friend cooks scones and makes some sandwiches (cheese or ham or tuna acceptable, I can't abide cucumber sandwiches and ideal some smoked salmon is good).

I'm with you there. I don't like afternoon tea as I don't like cake. If there was a savoury option with sandwiches, a cheese scone and a bowl of chips I'd be all over it 🤣

Gosh that looks amazing

My partner is diabetic so an afternoon tea is something we can't do together.

A few years ago I watched a group of women in a country house hotel having afternoon tea at the end of January. It looked like Granny, Daughters and granddaughters. They looked like they were having a lovely time and it was nice to get together post Christmas.
I don't have a lot of close female relatives and those I have live far apart from each other. But I would have loved to sit and eat ridiculous food with a cosy group.
Is it a rip off if you enjoy it?

A lot of places do that now. The one we go to does a children's one as well. The children love it.

You can order from noon which is a better time for us. Children get hangry 😂