Go out for JUBILEE TEA
Toast The Queen with a cuppa (or glass of fizz!) at one of these special venues…
THE GORING, LONDON
This refined hotel in Belgravia – the only one to have a Royal Warrant for hospitality services – is the closest you can get to Buckingham Palace, so where better to indulge in a Platinum Jubilee afternoon tea? Enjoy Coronation Chicken and Roast Beef finger sandwiches, as well as a Strawberry and Raspberry Crown Diplomat Tart and Her Majesty’s Royal Fruit Cake, all served in a beautiful pavilion overlooking the private garden.
Platinum Jubilee Afternoon Tea costs £60pp, or £70pp with a glass of Bollinger, until 1 September. Visit thegoring.com
THE ASSEMBLY HOUSE, NORWICH
The Queen had lunch in The Assembly House on 18 June 1951, the year before her accession, and now – more than 70 years on – you can take tea in its opulent dining room in her honour. As well as classic sandwiches, savouries and scones, this delicious tea includes a Chocolate Biscuit Cake crowned with gold leaf (The Queen’s favourite teatime treat, prepared to her own chef’s recipe), along with other biscuit-inspired pastries, including a Jammy Dodger Macaron.
The Queen’s Teatime Afternoon Tea costs £24.95pp, until 30 June. Dairy-free, gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian afternoon teas are also available. Visit assemblyhousenorwich. co.uk/afternoon-tea
BILLESLEY MANOR, STRATFORD-UPONAVON
Cream first? Or jam? At this 16th-century hotel in the heart of Shakespeare country, the question is whether to have your tea in the Stuart restaurant, Great Hall Bar or outside on the patio. Throughout June, it’s serving a royal-themed tea with finger sandwiches, tarts, chocolate eclairs and scones.
Platinum Jubilee Afternoon Tea costs £29.95pp, until 30 June. Visit billesleymanor.com
CLIVEDEN HOUSE, TAPLOW, BERKSHIRE
This beautiful Grade I-listed stately home has had every British monarch from King George I to our current Queen to stay. Its Platinum Jubilee Afternoon Tea will be served in The Great Hall on Sundays (4.15-4.30pm) and in The Cliveden Dining Room Monday to Saturday (from 12-2.30pm). Enjoy traditional British savoury treats, freshly baked scones and pastries, including Queen Elizabeth’s favourite Chocolate Biscuit Cake and Victoria Sponge (Queen Victoria often enjoyed tea at Cliveden’s Spring Cottage). A vegan tea is also available.
Platinum Jubilee Afternoon Tea costs from £45pp or from £62pp with a glass of Laurent-perrier Champagne. Visit clivedenhouse.co.uk
BALMORAL CASTLE, ABERDEENSHIRE
Each summer, The Queen escapes to her Scottish holiday home, which is open to the public until she arrives in August. Over the Jubilee weekend (2-5 June), a special afternoon tea will be served in the Pipers Hall, 70 Corgis will congregate on the lawn and there will be vintage bus rides around the grounds. But afternoon tea, which includes a ticket to the castle and this year’s Life At Balmoral exhibition, is served daily from 1-4pm, until 2 August.
Balmoral Platinum Jubilee Afternoon Tea costs £45pp over Jubilee weekend or £37.50pp at all other times. Visit balmoralcastle.com