Elldrew Endorses

Did Someone Say Tea?

Afternoon tea

We can’t tell you the number of suggestions bounced around when we decided to catch up with friends for High Tea in central London…the woes of a group committee we guess. “The Ritz?”. “Too stuffy and expensive”. “Fortnum & Mason?”. “Full of tourists” (valid point considering the Paralympics are in town). Then we remembered The Mandeville in fashionable Marylebone Village…the venue was booked. 

Served in the ‘Reform Social & Grill’, they have taken the stress out of long complicated menus and offer a choice of Vintage or Gentlemen’s Afternoon Tea from £26.50. A simple but adequate combination of sandwiches, scones and pastries (of course with a range of teas and a cocktail included), we struggled to finish everything on our plates. And for the more manly or adventurous of you, the Gentlemen’s menu replaces traditional sandwiches with a nice and hearty alternative of a Wagyu burger, pork pie and steak & snail sandwich. The cocktail substituted for a classic old fashioned whisky!

Our waiter (whilst very charming) was new so accidentally served us a glass of Champagne without asking and then advised it was on the house due to the error (no complaints here), and then the maître d’ proceeded to top up our Champagne glasses which thankfully also didn’t appear on the bill, so definitely a value for money outing.

Simple and stylish décor (the music was a tad too loud which made it hard to hear on a large table…although I think we were actually louder than the music after the free Champagne), the room has lost the previous flamboyant décor designed by Zandra Rhodes which we think is a slight shame as it was rather quirky. But still a great place to relax and chat with friends over a cuppa, with attentive staff and a buzzy atmosphere, well worth a visit – hope you get a newbie waiter!

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