Afternoon tea

One of my favourite things to do here is to visit the tea house in a little village about 15 min drive from home.  They have lovely home-baked scones, clotted cream and jam.  It's about £3 with the tea.  We take everyone who visits there to share our little piece of heaven!

Elliejean, I love your sunday afternoon tradition!  i bought the tea set for my china after we moved here and I have yet to use it.  Maybe i'll invite my new neighbours over for an afternoon tea. 

We did a formal tea on the QM2.  It was nice, but I was a bit disappointed at the fact they served whipped instead of clotted cream (which I still haven't had the chance to try). 

We used to have a group that got together for afternoon tea before I moved over here.  We never did the tea service that was more like a formal tea (which was offered), but it was a sort of regular thing (every few months).  It was a lot of fun though.

We've done nothing like that here yet.

I'll add my recommendation for a fancy tea! It's lovely! And, for me anyway, it's nice to have an excuse to dress up a bit. 

I haven't been to one in years, but it was always a fun treat when we went.  We used to go to the Four Seasons in Pasadena - fancy shmancy!

A British friend introduced my mother and me to a cute little tea room in Santa Monica about 25 years ago that we still visit whenever we're in town.  Sigh... now I want to go!

Afternoon tea is such fun! I've been to tea at the Ritz, and while expensive, it was a worthwhile experience as my mother and I really enjoy going out for tea. It was way better than Empress or the Four Seasons in Seattle. The best one I've been too was the Fashionistea at the Berkeley.

clotted cream (which I still haven't had the chance to try). 

they sell it in supermarkets... you should buy some next time you go shopping. 

they sell it in supermarkets... you should buy some next time you go shopping. 

There's not much sense in getting it if I am not eating what people usually put it on.

There's not much sense in getting it if I am not eating what people usually put it on.

why not just eat it from the tub?
i've done that... it's nice!   

why not just eat it from the tub?
i've done that... it's nice!   

I might try that someday. 

The first time I had proper afternoon tea it was in a little tea room in York...and I loved it.  I think it's £3.50 for a cream tea (scones, clotted cream, jam and a huge pot of tea!) So lovely.  Whenever I go to York I always make it a point to go back and have tea there, but I don't do it otherwise (although I really should!)

Has anyone heard the song English Tea by Paul McCartney?  It seems apropos for this thread...

The Empress!!! We went there on holiday EVERY summer when I was a child! It was my home from home!

I love Vancouver Island and the Empress is gorgeous!  I used to live on Whidbey Island, just south of the border 

My in-laws live in Devon.  When we go visit them, I love to leave our kids at their house and go for a ramble with my husband down the lanes from the village and along the river, stopping at a tea room for a full clotted cream tea.  My husband is happy to go along for the walking and the tea.  But even though he grew up in Devon he can't stand cream of any kind, especially clotted cream.  Never mind - that's more for me!   

Ross and I actually tried making clotted cream when we were living in the US, we missed it so bad.  Didn't work.  I won't say it was the major factor in our moving back, but it played a part....

We're heading off for tea at the Merchant Hotel in Belfast! It's been on my list of things to do for a while--I'll report back afterward.

Update: had a lovely time. The restaurant is spectacular--it has the largest chandelier in Ireland! Our scones took forever because they had to make a fresh batch, but they only charged us for one rather than two. They were yummy when they finally showed up, though!