I really don’t drink tea or coffee on a regular basis (I don’t like to make them for myself), but both are nice to have on a special occasion. And as I needed to plan a special event for my group, I decided to check out the new tea room in town.

A century ago, there were lots of tea rooms, because this was considered to be a suitable place for women to meet, tea was a the beverage of choice, and little cakes and sweets were always on the menu. This custom expired 50 years ago or so (which is before my time!). But I do enjoy a cup of tea every now and then.

The very best places to enjoy a nice cuppa are in London. This one is located at Foyles, a lovely bookshop that I always try to visit. One can eat and read or just look out over the masses of books and pick one for later.

I also like going to Peter Jones, a department store, for a cup of tea with a view over the city. And after all that shopping, one deserves a break.

So getting a cup of tea in London is no big deal, grab a tray, stand in line, and the tea comes out of a big urn. But it’s a different matter to have tea locally.

The group had previously scheduled tea at the former mansion of the town founder and it was quite elegant ($$), and featured all sorts of different teas. The founder had built this mansion to entice his missus to move here. She came out from back east and looked at it, then decided to go live in London instead (she probably moved there for the tea, or perhaps it was the shopping).

So this what is available at the new place ($). They do have all sorts of lovely china in floral patterns that marks this as a feminine space. The scones were a bit different than the ones in England and were quite sweet, rather like a soft cookie. There were a large number of different sorts of tea to choose from, but I had the plain one.

And it had an interesting decor, with sparkly chandeliers everywhere and old books glued to a wall. (I do think I like Foyles better, but it’s a long way for a cup of tea). At any rate, I think it will be popular with the group, and that is all I seek, along with a nice cuppa from a tea urn.