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Afternoon Tea, Anyone?
- Thread starter TastyReuben
- Start date
I love that design!
Egg and cress sandwiches? Mashed sardine and vinegar? Cheese and Branston Pickle? Cream cheese and cucumber?
(Don´t forget to cut the crusts off)
(Don´t forget to cut the crusts off)
Each plate is a different William Morris design. Bought at Heathrow airport from the Harrod’s shop there.I love that design!
Kinda, sorta…
I threw together a (late) afternoon tea with stuff I had on hand.
I did trim the crusts, but I used the last loaf of bread I made, which was an oblong loaf, hence the sort of elliptical shape for the sandwiches (which were egg mayonnaise and turkey with cheese).
The only thing I made from scratch was the oatmeal scones, and we had maple butter to go with those.
Top tier was chocolate muffins (from a box mix I had lying around), Linzer cookies from a box (fancy Jammie dodgers), and clotted cream fudge from the Christmas hamper goodies.
Lowest-effort tea I’ve ever done.
I looks very pretty though.
Thank you!
Actually, you might be surprised…less than £35, and the dollar was just about even when we bought it.Harrod's store... at the airport... I'm sure it was a real bargain.
CD
I’m sure the shop assistants still think about the day when the dignified serenity of the shop floor was interrupted by a loud, “HOLY CRAP!!! LOOK AT THIS!!!” coming from a nicely-turned-out, though slightly pudgy American on the far side of the boutique.
Thank you!
Actually, you might be surprised…less than £35, and the dollar was just about even when we bought it.
I’m sure the shop assistants still think about the day when the dignified serenity of the shop floor was interrupted by a loud, “HOLY CRAP!!! LOOK AT THIS!!!” coming from a nicely-turned-out, though slightly pudgy American on the far side of the boutique.
I would have guessed a lot higher than that from Harrod's, and at the airport. It's a bit too feminine for my tastes, but my ex-wife would have loved it. We had afternoon tea someplace fancy in London, and she was in heaven. It wasn't my "cup of tea." Although, I do enjoy a properly steeped pot of good tea, the sandwiches did nothing for me.
CD
IIRC, they were originally more than that, but marked down. I sure it also made a difference that, even though they’re Spode, they’re made in China. Looks like they’re about $50US, more or less, on the internet right now.
We have afternoon tea at least once (and usually more than once) whenever we’re in the UK. It’s nice doing so in London, because there’s every kind of afternoon tea available there, from the more straightforward ones, to the super-luxurious, and some wildly OTT themed ones.
But the ones in the countryside outside the city are just a nice (if not nicer), just because it’s a lot less fussy.
You’ve got me laughing now, because I remember when we were in Cheltenham for 10 days or so back in 2018 (I think), we had afternoon tea just about every day, in the hotel bar.
I´m still amazed folks can eat "afternoon tea" and then go out for a full-blown dinner at 7pm.
Still - it´s a huge attraction in London. Some of the top places are The Savoy (£65-70 per head),The Berkeley (£90), Fortnum & Mason (£75-80), Claridges (£85), Corinthia (£65), Café Royal (£70), and Brown´s (£75). Typically, you´ll get smoked salmon, egg and cress, cucumber, roast beef, ham, coronation chicken, cheese sandwiches (no crusts), a plate of scones and a pile of spectacular patisserie - plus real tea (no ratbags)
Harrod´s is not included on my list. Firstly, because they use ratbags, and secondly, because my last visit there gave me the impression the place has turned into a highbrow marketplace rather than a store. Yuk.
Still - it´s a huge attraction in London. Some of the top places are The Savoy (£65-70 per head),The Berkeley (£90), Fortnum & Mason (£75-80), Claridges (£85), Corinthia (£65), Café Royal (£70), and Brown´s (£75). Typically, you´ll get smoked salmon, egg and cress, cucumber, roast beef, ham, coronation chicken, cheese sandwiches (no crusts), a plate of scones and a pile of spectacular patisserie - plus real tea (no ratbags)
Harrod´s is not included on my list. Firstly, because they use ratbags, and secondly, because my last visit there gave me the impression the place has turned into a highbrow marketplace rather than a store. Yuk.
The only time I’ve ever come close to breaking the famed British reserve is whenever we’ve ordered afternoon tea and asked the waiter to please keep the salmon and sub in some additional egg mayonnaise, if possible.
When we bought that afternoon tea stand pictured at the top of this thread, I was disappointed that there were no matching cups/mugs, and salad plates on offer.
When we got home, I figured I’d just go online and certainly find some at their website…nope! Nothing specifically made for it, and nothing that even really matched, that I liked, anyway.
Next option…just find some other maker’s stuff that matched. I was simply looking for solid colors predominate in that bottom plate, so some shade of yellow-gold, or a grassy green, or a pale rose. No problem.
Wrong again! I couldn’t find anything, online or in-store. The closest I found were some cups at my neighbor’s house, which she’d bought at Walmart years ago.
Finally, since I couldn’t find what I wanted, I bought what I could find that was tolerable, which meant grey mugs (solid) and grey salad plates (patterned), knowing they’d be replaced as soon as possible. Spent a whopping $9US on two mugs and four plates.
…and what did I find today at ALDI? Mugs that I actually liked, in rose and in a muted green. MrsT opted for the green, so that’s what we got:
You can’t really tell it from the pic, but there’s a good part of the green that matches perfectly. Now if they’d just make some salad plates in that color…
When we got home, I figured I’d just go online and certainly find some at their website…nope! Nothing specifically made for it, and nothing that even really matched, that I liked, anyway.
Next option…just find some other maker’s stuff that matched. I was simply looking for solid colors predominate in that bottom plate, so some shade of yellow-gold, or a grassy green, or a pale rose. No problem.
Wrong again! I couldn’t find anything, online or in-store. The closest I found were some cups at my neighbor’s house, which she’d bought at Walmart years ago.
Finally, since I couldn’t find what I wanted, I bought what I could find that was tolerable, which meant grey mugs (solid) and grey salad plates (patterned), knowing they’d be replaced as soon as possible. Spent a whopping $9US on two mugs and four plates.
…and what did I find today at ALDI? Mugs that I actually liked, in rose and in a muted green. MrsT opted for the green, so that’s what we got:
You can’t really tell it from the pic, but there’s a good part of the green that matches perfectly. Now if they’d just make some salad plates in that color…
Here are some interesting afternoon teas:
Unusual afternoon teas
I love the “gentleman’s tea,” which can include a pint and has a meat pie, mini fish-and-chips, and a Yorkshire pud included, among other things. MrsT harrumphed at that and said she’d be quite happy with it herself!
Unusual afternoon teas
I love the “gentleman’s tea,” which can include a pint and has a meat pie, mini fish-and-chips, and a Yorkshire pud included, among other things. MrsT harrumphed at that and said she’d be quite happy with it herself!