London · Mayfair
Claridge’s
The Foyer at four
Claridge’s in Mayfair pours the most balanced afternoon tea in London in the Foyer and Reading Room, under the Dale Chihuly chandelier, with a pastry kitchen that changes its tiers with the season.
The art deco hotel on Brook Street has been the London address of royalty and film stars since the 1850s, and its afternoon tea in the Foyer and Reading Room is the one Londoners themselves book: a room in black and white with a silver chandelier by Dale Chihuly, a string quartet, and a tea that balances the savoury and the sweet better than any other in the city. The pastry kitchen bakes the scones in relays and builds the pastries around the season, with a Christmas tea that sells out in the summer.
Claridge’s also runs a bakery counter, Claridge’s ArtSpace café next door, and its own chocolate and cake shop for the guests; the Foyer remains the destination, and the raisin and plain scones with Marco Polo jelly are the pieces to remember.
The signature
Scones with Marco Polo jelly and Cornish clotted cream
At a glance
