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)

Last time we went to Maccy’s a few weeks ago we as a family of 4 including a child getting a happy meal spent £28!! I could have bought us all a pub lunch for that. Not been since and have no plans to go.

You are paying to be able to sit in a hotel or nice establishment for 2 plus hours, socialising.

If we go for an early dinner the food comes out quickly. I feel that we are moved on sharpish if we don't keep ordering. Not everyone wants to have 3 courses and lots of drinks. If we go for dinner we order a main, maybe dessert and wine. We are out the door after 1.5 hours despite haveing spent lots. I order a second coffee to get another 30 mins there and you can see the faces of the waiting staff!!

The afternoon tea is great for people who don't want to eat loads, but still want to spend 2 or 3 hours sitting in a nice place.

I do accept that, unless it’s in amazing, bakery or hotel, getting stodgy baking powdery kind of shop bought cake is not a treat.

I like the gentle tinkle of teacups and the clink of spoons and all the genteel chatter in hushed voices. Makes a nice backdrop to a celebration, when meals can often be accompanied by loud music and people talking at the tops of their voices. The lack of alcohol is probably a large part of this, I admit.

I get the giggling and tittering op. People should behave as if the experience is the norm for them

It's amazing that there are people out there who think the cost of the food is the only expense the establishment has. If you think that way, then any food eaten out is a 'rip off'.

As you say they have all sorts of other costs. Not to mention that they are businesses, so the whole point is to make a profit. Most of them operate on a very thin margin, however big a 'rip off' their prices might seem to some.

I really like afternoon tea at decent places.

Is it a rip off? I don't really think so.

It's about economics.
Venues have to cover their costs and make a profit.

For afternoon tea you can probably look at being seated and served for at least 2 hours. £30-£45 per head is about what a 2-3 course meal plus a bottle of wine would cost for 2 people.

If it were less, venues wouldn't / couldn't offer it.

Amateur Psychoanalyst time:

I suspect maybe Coddy has no mates to sit and giggle and sip Prosecco with.

So she has to sit in McDonald’s on her own with her £4.49 cheeseburger meal and it’s pissing her off 🤷‍♀️

And she can’t wear her Sosander in McDonald’s - she has to slob about in trackies and a tshirt 😂

Yeah, he definitely seems like a bloke who’d afternoon tea.

Don't forget that Carmela and Meadow Soprano always donned special white gloves for their afternoon tea experiences.

Dying

D E A D

😂😂😂

Which obviously Tony's money paid for.

As a boomer

I would never eat an afternoon tea so would never bother….I like a cream tea tho….far more reasonably priced

I'm not remotely twee or girly, but I enjoy a good afternoon tea with my daughters. At the level of our spending I don't think they're any more of a rip of than any other 'two courses and a drink' meal. The £4 comment is stupid. The sandwiches and cakes are hardly at the level of Tesco's offerings. If you bought them at a posh cake shop they'd be expensive too. And a pot of tea in a nice cafe isn't far off £4 on its own.

“The huge mark up guarantees exclusivity” in relation to some sandwiches and scones must be the funniest thing I’ve read on here.

i don’t mind an afternoon tea. I’ve heard about savoury ones though which would be more up my personal street. My daughter took me for a buffet one for Mother’s Day last year, that was great, loads of sandwiches and scones and just a few wee cakes for me please.

But was it an exclusive sandwich?

Ooh, I love afternoon tea!
Little dinky cakes and fancy charity shop china. I like to go and pretend I'm the queen. I bet she has afternoon tea every day. Leave me alone and don't burst my bubble

Replacing broken crockery, cutlery, laundry costs, staff holidays, profit, advertising and investment, rent or mortgage...

Not any more Ken. Not any more.

I'd love to have afternoon tea with Chris Martin . I imagine he'd decline (nicely) , but it would be awesome!

I would love to go for an afternoon tea.....but I just can't justify paying the price!!!! Did try to go to one for my 50th birthday but too tight 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Gosh, MN has changed.

Check. Me. Out

Hahaha I’ll enjoy the Rosewood Art Tea even more next time. I go by myself so might even have a tragic, ripped-off girly solo giggle. If I see any men though I’ll be sure to note them as gay or imaginary.