When is afternoon tea in the uk

When afternoon tea became fashionable in the early 19th century thanks to the Anna, the Duchess of Bedford , it was never intended to replace dinner but rather to fill in the long gap between lunch and dinner at a time when dinner was served as late as 8 p.

Lifestyles have changed since those times and afternoon tea is now a treat, rather than a stop-gap. The working lives of many do not allow the time to sit down to enjoy scones and cakes in the late afternoon, so for many, the ritual is now saved for holiday and special treat.

The tradition is still quintessentially British, and many Brits still make time to sit and enjoy the propriety and civility of this the quaintest of English dining customs, just not on a daily basis. One renowned place to find a true afternoon tea is the Ritz in London.

Their afternoon tea service is in such high demand that bookings generally must be made months in advance. In Yorkshire, there are the famous Bettys Tea Rooms which have barely changed since the day they opened in The origins of afternoon tea show clearly it was the preserve of the rich in the 19th century. For workers in the newly industrialized Britain, tea time had to wait until after work.

Afternoon tea was introduced in England by Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford, in the year The Duchess asked that a tray of tea, bread and butter some time earlier, the Earl of Sandwich had had the idea of putting a filling between two slices of bread and cake be brought to her room during the late afternoon. This became a habit of hers and she began inviting friends to join her. This pause for tea became a fashionable social event.

Traditional afternoon tea consists of a selection of dainty sandwiches including of course thinly sliced cucumber sandwiches , scones served with clotted cream and preserves. Our drinks were followed by a tiered stand filled with little quiches, cucumber sandwiches and cute little cakes and pastries, all decorated in a Halloween style. I could see why afternoon tea is such a lovely way of social gathering.

Finger food is nice to have while talking to your friends. And drinking tea also gives it more of a cosy feel. We were full after having the sandwiches only. And they gave us small boxes to take away all those cute Halloween cakes with us. Having afternoon tea in London was a great experience, and I would definitely like to do it again. I liked it so much that I had already started planning to have more afternoon teas at home, just like ladies in the 19th century would have.

However, as always, all opinions are my own. Royal tea is a pricier version of afternoon tea due to the addition of Champagne. If you want to dress like a factory worker in the 19th Century and serve kidney pies and mugs of tea, please go right on ahead! This post may contain affiliate links. Join my free email list to get this NYC afternoon tea checklist! This was a really fun informative read, had a gr8 laugh!