Afternoon Tea at Corinthia London — Restaurant in London

On Boxing Day we had afternoon tea at the Corinthia Hotel in London; it was in a single word sensational. We have had "high brow" tea service in a number of wonderful places in the states and in the UK but none of them were quite like this. What made it so different? Happy to tell you...

First off the staff was energetic, up beat, and youthful (not all young but most). It was later in the day, just about all the usual places were booked and had been for weeks; we got lucky and got a table for two. Everyone serving that day had a spring in their step and they had been at this for hours already. A sense of relaxation immediately upon being seated felt by me and my partner absent of pretense. There was no rush, no hurried moments. All staff eager to help, eager to please, genuine in their approach. No question we asked food, drink or otherwise was met with anything other than an answer that went above and beyond in response. Exceedingly thorough this team knew their craft, the menu, ingredients, and history of the hotel group down cold. Everyone wanted us to have a lovely time and we did! These folks loved where they worked and self-choreographed with ease.

Tea is served in the lobby area steps off of Whitehall Place, past the grand piano and the fireplace. The seating area is like a rotunda. Concentric seating in an inner, middle, and outer circle area. Yes, amid corinthian columns the room is reminiscent of the Temple de l'Amour in Versaille but of course in doors. The ceiling hangs a huge chandelier made of of scores of cricket ball-sized crystal balls in the form of a huge ball itself. The roof opens to glass and although we were there after dark there is no doubt that the room is filled with beautiful natural light most days.

Table settings were perfect, everything in its correct place and position. The tea service itself was modern contrasting design (see photos) which was whimsical and refreshing. Nothing felt 200 years old, everything new, no chips, no poor polish on the silver, all contemporary without being overly modern, just all class all the way. Menus spotless and cleverly written. We ordered Champagne otherwise selected our teas and let the whole event begin.

The scones. All I can say is we wanted more. Of course all we had to do was ask but I think you get the picture. They came in a box with a wonderful quote adding some whimsey and theater to the whole experience. Sandwiches were good, better than most, the real stars were the scones and the sweets, jams, jellies, and clotted cream. Upon receiving the box of scones that's when I realized we were seemingly participating in theater, in the least this entire experience is a product. Well thought-out aiming to please. The stripes on the plates and the cup saucers changed shape as you moved the teacup. You see, the exterior of the cups are mirrored and reflective so any position on the saucer yields a new view, and new perspective on the design; what fun and brilliant!

We did not have to do or ask for anything. The staff timed everything perfectly. They worked the room like a well-oiled machine attending to everyone. No one in the room needed anything because they were all well cared for. Timing of the drinks and foods spot-on. More of everything was offered, it was all too good.

The sweets were, well, over the top. Entirely too many (but that's what the take home boxes are for) each one a small but mighty work of art. We both had Earl Grey mine bold and my partner's light both house blends. The tea descriptions are dead-on, trust them, if you know what you like then you will be pleased.

This hotel group is relatively young or new to the marketplace. They are expanding globally and they know what they are doing. We signed up for the mailing and marketing list and we are eager to stay at some point in the near future. The tea service is just one delight at the Corinthia we are sure there are many, many, more. We will be...

I usually do not have a habit of writing negative reviews as I know that staff often have to manage situations that they are being put in by management.

Our experience on a Saturday at this prestigious place was disappointing. To start with, we felt we were treated like a number throughout. The waitress rushed through her standard / scripted introduction way too fast to understand what was happening. It did not feel she took much effort in making us welcome and was more interested in getting the show on the road asap. We were told to quickly finish the sandwiches as they had to bring the scones, we were rushed to finish the scones to bring other deserts, constantly being made to feal we were being processed where the whole purpose is to enjoy everything together in peace and to relax.

The waitress was also very keen to constantly push the hotel's agenda of making us have champagne as if she was paid on commission. The pressure to have champagne was unpleasant, and felt intimidating at some point.

When I had a simple request to start my £85 experience with a simple coffee, that request was totally ignored..

In the end we did not have enough time to finish our tea / experience and therefore had to ask staff if we could finish the tea in another area of the hotel. There was not enough time to finish all the items, so 7 items were packed in two boxes. However, the way it was packed, meant that by the time we arrived home, all the items were squashed and crumbled. It had been packed without much common sense of packing, as one of the two smaller packages were placed in a half standing position hence all beautiful , nice looking cakes were smashed into one piece.

The five tiny sandwiches were ok, but I would not combine bread and cucumber. The scones with jam were very tasty.

The piano started playing approximately an hour into our visit.

The venue itself was beautiful.

The hotel says on its website that its afternoon tea is "A slowly unfolding pleasure that must never be hurried. A delightful reminder that time is a luxury to be savoured". However, as explained enough, we never felt this during our experience.

Having to pay £100+ ( without champagne) for the above experience was definitely not value for money and the hotel should seriously think about either reducing the price or giving people much more time to enjoy this experience as there is currently too much of a focus on milking this to the max at the expense of the customer.

P.S We had dinner later that evening at The Northall (the same hotel) and it was an...

My wife and I visited The Corinthia on 26/10/2019 to have champagne afternoon tea, having watched a documentary about the hotel last year. The documentary featured the afternoon tea and the Crystal Moon Lounge where it is served. It looked great and I thought it was an experience we had to have. So I bought a gift voucher and presented to my wife as a Christmas present (albeit it was for both of us 😀). The voucher came in a beautifully presented presentation box.

I have to say that we were far from disappointed!

We arrived for our 4.15pm booking and were warmly welcomed by staff. As we were shown to our table we were  instantly struck by the Crystal Moon Lounge and it's ambience and decor. Our table was directly beneath the chandelier that is the namesake of the lounge; and it was perfect.

We were offered our glasses of champagne and then  given time to look at the choices of tea that were offered; I have to say that we are far from being connoisseurs and the tea sommelier offered us expert advice and assistance in making our choice. We both chose the Darjeeling first cut tea which proved to be absolutely delicious and  perfect  with our sandwiches scones and fancies. It lived up to everything that was described in the menu and that the sommelier said of it and we ended up having a number of refills.

The sandwiches were lovely and were also tailored to my wife's preferences. They were replenished when we finished them and then replenished again!

After our sandwiches we were served warm scones with clotted cream and two of the tastiest jams ever. Then it was time for the fancies. Well....all I can say is they exceeded our expectations! We could not eat them all and as such they were boxed up for us to take away at the end. This was our own fault as we ate too many sandwiches and is far from a criticism of the menu

We have nothing but praise and compliments for the staff and the delicacies that the afternoon tea offers. The staff were professional, charming, attentive and sociable and clearly knew their job inside out, making our experience wonderful.

Lastly but far from being least was the wonderful background piano playing by pianist Kevin Lee. Mr Lee is a truly unassuming yet talented individual who took time to visit our table and speak with us, asking if we had any requests for tunes he could play. We mentioned a few, each of which were played perfectly. Mr Lee really made the afternoon pleasurable.

In a nutshell a very well deserved⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. This is an experience we shall definitely...