Don’t you just love having a proper tea in proper surroundings? Taking out-of-town guests to tea is one of my favorite things to do. And it’s one of the items on my daily agenda when I’m traveling.
I’ve probably drunk more tea in more places than anyone who’s not a traveling tea sales representative. When done right, the whole experience is one of life’s unsung civilized pleasures. But it’s "doing it right" that makes all the difference. Sitting down to a freshly brewed cup of tea at home is relaxing and enjoyable, of course, but it’s not the same as have a full afternoon tea in a fine hotel or a cozy tearoom.
Making a good cup of tea is no routine matter. Dunk a teabag in a cup filled with hot water, and you might as well be drinking "instant" hot water. But although I know that making truly good tea is no simple matter, I’m not very good at it myself. I do try, though, to follow the rule that Charles Laughton laid down in the very old movie, Ruggles of Red Gap. "Never bring the teapot to the kettle. Always bring the kettle to the teapot." Nevertheless, my own teas are never as good as those I’ve had elsewhere, so I go looking for afternoon tea wherever I may be.
In London there are any number of places for afternoon tea, but my favorite is the Beaufort Hotel. The surroundings are strictly English country house, the cakes and finger sandwiches are divine, the tea superb and the service calculated to make you think they’ve mistaken you for royalty.
In Glasgow, it’s got to be the Willow Tea Room, designed by Scotland’s premier architect, Charles Rennie Mackintosh. Here, the tea is accompanied by scones with plenty of jam and heavy cream, of course, but also crumpets and Scottish pancakes!
In Calcutta (I’ll never be comfortable calling it Kolkata) it’s the Hotel Sonar Bangla Sheraton, where tea is served in tiny screened tea rooms—ideal spots for reading or meditating when the heat and humidity make it bearable to be out of air-conditioned interiors.
I could go on and on, but instead, why don’t you tell me about some of your favorite afternoon tea rooms? I’m sure there still are others I haven’t tried.
Paula "One Lump, Please" Gifford