London · Park Lane
The Dorchester
The Promenade
The Dorchester on Park Lane serves afternoon tea along the Promenade, a marble and gold gallery the length of the building, and sells its cakes in a shop of its own by the entrance.
The Park Lane hotel opened in 1931 as the most modern in London and settled quickly into being the grandest. Afternoon tea is served on the Promenade, a long marble gallery with columns, palms and a pianist, where the tiers come with a choice of teas from a dedicated tea sommelier. The pastry kitchen, one of the largest in London, also supplies the restaurants and the Dorchester’s cake and flower shop by the entrance, where the hotel’s cakes, biscuits and chocolates are sold for the street.
The Dorchester tea is the generous one: bigger scones, a heavier pastry tier and a room that seats without a wait on most weekdays. Ask for the corner tables at the far end of the Promenade for the calm.
The signature
The Dorchester scone and the seasonal cake of the shop
At a glance
