Afternoon tea is a rip off

[Yeahyeahyeahyeahyeahh]

Or maybe it's just the ones I've been to?
£25 per head- tea, coffee and water. Sandwiches, sausage rolls and crisps, and cakes with a couple of biscuits.
The scones were from Costco as I used to work somewhere that sold the exact same ones. There was the equivalent of about 2 Sandwiches each, very basic plain fillings too.

I expected so much more for the price, haven't been to many afternoon tea places so maybe this was just a bad one?

The ones I’ve been to were really nice, all homemade and local produce. Suspect the ones you went to were just low quality.

It depends what you were expecting really - tripadvisor or marketing materials will give you an indication of the quality you can expect. Depends on the context of where you had it also - cafe? Beautiful garden?

I just got back from Cornwall, and I'd have paid double 🤣

It was a café/bakery. I'll just keep my eye out for better quality ones next time, it just felt like kid's party food to be honest. Some of the cakes were nice and looked homemade but as I say I could tell the scones weren't, and there were just random biscuits out of a packet thrown on.

It’s not what I think of as proper afternoon tea if it contains crisps. A traditional finger sandwich, scone and small, well-made cakes is lovely. Although I agree very expensive. I still do really enjoy it as a treat though. (Especially if I’m alone with my book!)

Entirely depends where you go, my local tea shop does an amazing afternoon tea, themed for the time of year. Everything is home made and plentiful. We go every Christmas and end up bringing a box of goodies home because there's so much food.

We have afternoon tea a lot and there is such a variation. We went to one the other week which really wasn't great. The cakes were like the ones you get on a European all inclusive dessert buffet, the scones were dry and the sausage roll was like the cheapest end of a supermarket selection. We've decided we are giving them a miss now for at least six months. I would honestly rather do my own and have friends round. I have all the nice crockery and cake stands and it's easy enough to do yourself. have been to some really lovely ones but they are the ones you pay £20 + for per person.

I agree they can be overpriced, I do love a cream tea though!

I’ve never had afternoon tea that has included crisps! If it’s a decent place, then afternoon tea will be expensive - it’s very labour-intensive. Normally it’s nice finger sandwiches and a selection of cakes, as well as scones with cream and jam. Your afternoon tea sounds very bargain basement, with crisps and random biscuits.

It is a total faff we take my mum occasionally she loves a sandwich and a scone, I get bored wading through it and cake AND scone it imo should be either or, and it is expensive! Hate the whole experience.

I love a proper afternoon tea. That has a choice of tea and is frequently replenished. A choice of four sandwich fillings, scones, jam and cream and cakes.

The best one ever had little savouries and small pots of dessert too. We took a doggy bag home.

Crisps and biscuits? Sounds more like a buffet at some ghastly conference centre next to a motorway interchange.

I’ve been to 2 places for afternoon tea this year and both were excellent. Examples Per person included:
2 sandwiches/rolls
mini cornish pasty
sausage roll
mini cheese scone
milkshake
tea/coffee
4 different types of dessert/cake and a chocolate covered 🍓

Cost £21.50 pp

Everything has to be homemade and fresh, otherwise it’s just a cheap party buffet.

I love an afternoon tea, and would happily pay a lot more than that. But for me, it’s the experience as much as the food. And really good quality actual tea.

I've just had a look back at the last one I went to. We had sandwiches with smoked salmon, turkey & cranberry and cucumber & cream cheese. Pigs in blankets and wholemeal cheese scones.
and for cakes - spiced vanilla cake, coffee& walnut cake, chocolate brownie, baileys truffles, mince pies, cheesecake and of course scones with cream and jam. All home made.

Some can be really good; but many cafes have just latched onto offering afternoon tea because they can make it much more cheaply and with less effort than they can many hot meals and it fills the often quiet trade gap between lunch and closing / dinner service, and command a higher price than if they just served hot drinks and cakes by putting it on a fancy stand.

At £25 I'd be quite annoyed if they used shop bought biscuits from a packet. I'd want everything home made!

I've had a really nice afternoon tea before. Really fresh sandwiches, mini quiche, home made sausage rolls, lots of miniature cakes, scones with clotted cream etc... I think it was about £25 per person.

It's usually still a rip off even if decent quality, as the portions are ridiculously tiny.

I suppose you’re paying to sit in the surroundings as well though.

The ones in London cost over £90 sometimes but you do pay for the location/atmosphere. I quite like them 😂 - the shard did a super cute Peter Pan theme

The only place I’ve been is Betty’s in York.
It’s £44.95 a head but you pay for the experience! Vey posh!
No crisps!

I judge a cafe by the quality of it's scones, so I would not be happy to be served mass produced scones at all.
At that price I would expect home made produce.

I think £25 a head is really cheap for afternoon tea. Of course it wasn’t the same as at The Ritz. I love afternoon tea, the fancier the better!

At the main London ones the sandwiches are unlimited , they just keeping bringing you more until you ask them to stop!