Honey Bee Afternoon Tea at Dalloway Terrace

My friend Laura from Laura Patricia Rose and I do love a good themed afternoon tea. I think my favourite one we've tried together is still the Autumn Afternoon Tea at Emmeline's Lounge in the Conrad London St. James hotel, but the Honey Bee Afternoon Tea at Dalloway Terrace – a location beautifully decked out in vibrant flowers and buzzing bees befitting the tea's theme – has got to be a very close second.



If you follow any London-based Instagram accounts then you're probably already familiar with the stunning surroundings of Dalloway Terrace. It's a hotspot for local Instagrammers, vloggers and bloggers and it's obvious to see why. The terrace is entirely covered in (fake) flowers and bees, and once you've sat down behind one of the very photogenic marble-topped tables it's easy to forget you're just minutes away from the hustle and bustle of London's West End.



The beautiful decorations aside, the star of any afternoon tea should of course be the food and drink and it was absolutely delightful. We started with the savoury platter (as I always do, as I tend to gear towards savoury more than sweet): Honey Roast Ham & English Mustard Mayonnaise on Wholemeal Bread, Cucumber & Dill Cream Cheese on Pain De Mie, Whiskey Smoked Salmon & Lemon Crème Fraîche on Lemon Palmier; and Shropshire Blue & Spinach Quiche. On the surface the spread sounds similar to other afternoon teas, but the variety of breads and the touch of honey throughout made these finger sandwiches deliciously unique.



Before diving into the sweets, we took a break with a Vanilla Scone and a Morello Cherry Scone (a nice alternative to the traditional raisin scone), generously covered in Clotted Cream, Homemade Jam & Raw Honey (in that order, it's cream first guys, it's the butter to the jam's topping). Scones are always one of my favourite parts of any afternoon tea as small bites of the crumbly pastry covered in sweet clotted cream and jam are absolutely delish when alternating with small sips of a good tea. And these were no exception. They were scrumptiously crumbly and still a tad warm from the oven, yum.



Last but certainly not least it was time for the sweet honey-filled platter structured by the location of the honey's origin: Original Beans Dark Chocolate & Pine Mousse, Gluten Free Cacao Sponge, Candied Orange Honey, Crystalised Pine Leaves (forest); Sweet Potato & Cashew Cake, Cashew Milk Glaze, Honey Cashew Nuts (garden); Lemon Shortbread, Lavender & honey & Blueberry Cream, Blueberry Glaze (field); and Honey Sponge, Honey & Jasmine Centre, White Velvet Crust (mountain). I don't even know where to start with this one as it was all so beautiful and delicious but if I had to pick, my favs would be the honey sponge (which had a surprisingly cold centre) and the colourful blueberry cream and lemon shortbread. Absolutely divine.



Top tips: Rarely advertised but something which most afternoon teas allow is not only free refills on your tea, but also free refills on your food platters! We loved some of the savoury treats so much we requested a second helping to share between us and this was no problem at all. And if you're not hungry enough for a full-on afternoon tea fare but you still want to visit Dalloway Terrace? You can also have brunch or dinner in the same lush settings, just make sure you specify the location when booking.



We visited the Honey Bee Afternoon Tea in spring time and it has since been replaced with an equally delightful looking Summer Afternoon Tea, which can be enjoyed at the Dalloway Terrace, 16-22 Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3NN. Served Monday to Sunday between 12pm and 5pm for £35pp with gluten free, vegetarian and vegan options available (when notified at least 24 hours in advance).

Now to decide what our next (themed) afternoon tea outing will be! If you have any recs, let me know in the comments below. And why not check out my other afternoon tea reviews?

🎵 Listening to: Taylor Swift – Mean