My friends at Expedia.ca sent me on a journey to London as part of their #BigWorldExplorer campaign so I could share some gems with you. This is the first of five posts featuring one of my favourite cities on the planet!

Much like my ever-expanding waistline, London’s food scene seems to be growing by the millisecond. I’ve been visiting the culinary capital for decades and find it increasingly difficult to decide where my limited dining hours should be spent. Although I like to jam each trip with new culinary adventures, there’s one quintessentially British experience that’s on my list every time: afternoon tea (not to be confused with high tea). You see, I’ve been on the hunt for the best afternoon tea in London for quite some time. The issue isn’t with variety (there certainly isn’t a shortage of places to choose from), but rather quality. While most establishments excel in one category (tea selection, food quality, ambiance, service), there are only a select few that hit the mark on all fronts in my opinion. Here are my top three…

1. The Ritz London

Wowing guests for over a century, The Ritz London is the place to head for a traditional afternoon tea experience. Palm Court is truly an institution. Lined with walls of mirrors, luxurious chandeliers and exotic palm trees, it’s a charming room that will transport you back in time. Tea at the Ritz is a formal affair, so expect waiters donning tuxedo tails and guests in their finest attire (gentlemen are required to wear a jacket and tie). Every detail is refined — from the elegant chinaware and floral display in the centre of the room to the delicate sandwiches and silver teapots. The ambiance is warm with candles dotting each table and soft music in the background (the resident pianist played a surprisingly diverse repertoire — Stairway To Heaven, Wicked Game and even A Whole New World!). There are several tea menus to choose from: Traditional Afternoon Tea (£52.00 per person), Champagne Afternoon Tea (£68.00 per person), Celebration Tea (£63.00 per person) and the ultra luxe Epicurean Tea (£95.00 per person).

Our Champagne Afternoon Tea Menu: 

Tea and Champagne 

• Reserve Ritz Champagne (produced exclusively for The Ritz London)
• 18 different types of loose leaf tea to choose from. We had the Ritz Royal English (a blend of Kenyan malty Assam and Ceylon Orange Pekoe), The Ritz Chai (crafted by the in-house Master of Tea, it had beaut notes of caramelized ginger, Szechuan pepper and garam masala) and Milk Oolong (a medium body tea from Taiwan that is off-menu)

Sandwiches

• Ham with grain mustard mayonnaise on brioche bread (our favourite)
• Cheddar cheese with chutney on tomato bread
• Cucumber with cream cheese, dill and chives on granary bread
• Chicken breast with parsley cream on malt bread
• Scottish smoked salmon with lemon butter on sourdough bread
• Egg mayonnaise with chopped shallots and watercress on white bread

Scones

• Freshly baked raisin and plain scones with Cornish clotted cream and strawberry preserve

Pastries

• Assortment of British afternoon tea pastries and cakes

Highlights: The Ritz Chai, coconut passionfruit mousse, chocolate-orange sponge cake, apricot white chocolate almond cake and by far the best clotted cream I’ve ever tasted! I’m also convinced that they serve the best afternoon tea sandwiches in the city. But most impressive is the Master of Tea onsite: Giandomenico Scanu is well-travelled, incredibly passionate about tea and has devoted 14 years to The Ritz London.

Tips: There are five sittings for afternoon tea (11.30 am, 1.30 pm, 3.30 pm, 5.30 pm, and 7.30 pm). I suggest booking the last slot for a more leisurely experience: the staff will be in no rush to prepare for the next sitting. Also, the Master of Tea has a roster of off-menu teas so take advantage of this and ask him to bring out some of his favourite rare teas to sample!

2.TĪNG – Shangri–La Hotel at the Shard

Located on the 35th floor of The Shard, TĪNG is the place to head if you’re looking to enjoy exceptional teas with breathtaking 360-degree views of London. Perched above the River Thames, our table had a perfect view of the city and Tower Bridge. We felt like London was giving us a big hug as we made our way through the tantalizing menu. TĪNG offers two afternoon teas: a classically English experience and an Asian-inspired alternative (both at £54 or £62 with champagne). We couldn’t decide so we ordered both — which in retrospect was a fantastic idea. The restaurant is modern with an Asian twist: floor-to-ceiling windows, fresh flowers on each table and beautiful porcelain tea sets…

Our Summer Berries Afternoon Tea Menu:

Tea

• They have an exclusive selection of over 30 teas to choose from! We tried the Welcome Tea, Signature Afternoon Tea, White Apricot Tea, Milk Oolong and Teh Tarik (a Malaysian milk tea).

Sandwiches

• Dorset crab (5 spiced Dorset crab and papaya gel)
• Smoked chicken (smoked coronation chicken with apricots and toasted almonds)
• Cucumber (cream cheese, cucumber with Champagne vinegar)
• Duck egg (organic duck egg mayonnaise and winter truffle)
• Roasted angus beef (roasted angus beef, English mustard butter with Winchester watercress)

Scones

• Classic English scones and raisin scones with English clotted cream and strawberry jam

Pastries

• Raspberry Breton (raspberry curd and raspberry chantilly)
• Blueberry cheesecake (an almond macaron with blueberry compote and cheesecake mousse)
• Cherry and milk chocolate (chocolate brownie with cherry jelly and very berry tea ganache)
• Summer berry shot (summer berry cremeux, raspberry foam and macerated berries)
• Strawberry and pistachio (pistachio cream, English strawberry and dark chocolate)

Our South-East Asian Afternoon Tea Menu:

Savouries

• Banh mi (Asian chicken sandwich)
• Gunkan (Japanese spiced tuna Gunkan)
• Vietnamese crab (spiced crab wrapped in an iceberg roll)
• Chinese “har kau” (steamed prawn dim sum and tobiko)
• Peking duck (spring roll, hoisin sauce, cucumber relish)

Scones

• Classic English and sesame crusted scones served with Cornish clotted cream and passionfruit curd

Pastries

• Ube macaron (almond macaron with ube cream)
• Chinese egg custard (puff pastry, sweet egg custard)
• Malaysian layer cake (vanilla and raspberry sponge layers)
• Thai pandan sticky rice (pandan custard, glutinous coconut rice)
• Indonesian mango pudding (mango pudding, tapioca, pomelo)

Highlights: The Welcome Tea was outstanding as were the scones (buttery, well-risen and crumbly), strawberry and pistachio pastry, smoked chicken, spicy gazpacho with pineapples, Chinese “har kau” and Malaysian layer cake. The service was the friendliest we’ve ever experienced in London.

Tips: Although it’s not always possible to accommodate, request a table by the windows for premium views. Also, take the opportunity to taste a few different teas throughout your sitting – there are no limits on how many you try!

3. The Lanesborough

My jaw dropped as soon as I stepped foot inside Céleste. There I was, standing under a domed glass roof and softly lit chandeliers with my eyes darting from wall to wall. Everything about the room was impressive — from the gold accents and plush furniture dotting the space to the exquisite tableware and piano tucked in the corner. It’s the dining room dreams are made of: the perfect place to enjoy intricate pastries, delectable sandwiches and the best tea I’ve ever tasted. Yes, let’s talk about the tea for a minute (there’s a reason they’ve won the UK Tea Council’s Award of Excellence multiple times). The Lanesborough Afternoon Tea is truly a special blend (Assam, Sumatran and Ceylon black tea exclusively made by Camellia’s Tea House) — a complex, versatile and multidimensional tea that pairs well with everything on the menu, be it savoury or sweet. It’s beautifully-balanced, has an incredible aroma and leaves a hint of rose on the palate…

Our Lanesborough Tea Prestige Menu: 

Tea and Champagne 

• While there are dozens of teas to choose from, I highly recommend the signature blend mentioned above. The Earl Grey Supreme is lovely as well.
• Ruinart Blanc de Blancs Brut Champagne NV

Sandwiches

• Egg & truffle
• Scottish salmon and caviar
• Ham and aged cheddar cheese, honey mustard
• Cucumber with Greek yogurt and mint
• Coronation chicken

French patisseries and fruit tartelettes

• The Lanesborough Rocher
• Rhubarb cheesecake
• Tartelette with fresh strawberries and vanilla mousse
• Chocolate brownie
• Vanilla and cinnamon shortbread
• Carrot cake
• Hazelnut, chocolate and salted caramel brownie
• Raspberry cupcake

Scones

• Homemade scones served straight out of the oven with home-made fruit preserves, lemon curd and clotted Devonshire cream

Highlights: The dining room feels regal without pretension or posturing. The service is incredibly attentive and subtle (somehow my tea cup was always topped up without me noticing). But the pastries… oh, the pastries stole our hearts. All hand-crafted by chef Nicolas Rouzaud and his team, they’re truly works of art: both in appearance and flavour profile. They alone are enough reason to visit The Lanesborough for afternoon tea…

Tips: Book your table asap as Céleste is still a hidden gem in London. No tourists, no rushed sittings, no compromise on quality — just a brilliant afternoon tea with exceptional service. Oh, and make sure to stop by The Garden Room when you visit the hotel: they have an impressive cigar and vintage cognac collection.

A huge thanks to Expedia.ca‘s #BigWorldExplorer program and the hotels listed above for hosting us as we searched for the best afternoon tea in London. We’ve visited dozens of establishments over the years and these three really do reign supreme. Would love to know what your fave spots are via comments below! And if you need to do more “research” you can always find amazing flight deals to London here and hotel deals here.