Dorset, Somerset &amp; Bristol


<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Georgian luxe</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="749" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/summer-lodge-afternoon-tea-1000x749.jpg" alt="summer lodge afternoon tea" class="wp-image-85602" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/summer-lodge-afternoon-tea-1000x749.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/summer-lodge-afternoon-tea-800x599.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/summer-lodge-afternoon-tea-400x300.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/summer-lodge-afternoon-tea-768x575.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/summer-lodge-afternoon-tea-701x525.jpg 701w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/summer-lodge-afternoon-tea.jpg 1500w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Afternoon teas here are as elegant as <a href="https://summerlodgehotel.co.uk/dining-and-drinks/afternoon-tea" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Summer Lodge Country Hotel</a> itself, a Grade II-listed Georgian country house hotel with a drawing room designed by famous author Thomas Hardy, in the quintessentially Dorset village of Evershot. Admire their beautiful gardens from the terrace as you nibble on savouries like Chesil Smokery salmon and cream cheese finger sandwiches and Dorset Blue Vinny, Dorset honey and broccoli quiche; scones with clotted Dorset cream and jam; and sweet delights like passion fruit, coconut and cashew tartlet, and Red Velvet Opera cake. More of a savoury than sweet tooth? Plump for cheese and herb scones, Dorset charcuterie, Dorset cheeses and smoked salmon instead of the sweet treats. Both trad and savoury afternoon teas are £40 per person, £55 with a glass of local Bride Valley Crémant Dorset Champagne, £60 with a glass of Lanson Black Label.  </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Olde English</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="667" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-Upwell.jpeg" alt="afternoon tea upwey" class="wp-image-85639" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-Upwell.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-Upwell-800x534.jpeg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-Upwell-400x267.jpeg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-Upwell-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-Upwell-787x525.jpeg 787w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>When you’re in the mood for that olde worlde cottage experience &#8211; floral china, homemade cakes and warm service – the <a href="https://upweywishingwell.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Upwey Wishing Well</a> in Upway, near Weymouth is our best-kept secret. Set in sub- tropical water gardens, traditional scone, cream and jam can be yours for just £6.75 or the savoury cheese and onion chutney option for a pound more. Add smoked salmon and cream cheese for the Lord Nelson, or to truly savour the breadth and depth of what the Wishing Well does best, go for the High Tea (£23.95). The full works arrive on a cake stand brimming with finger sandwiches, extraordinary home-made cakes and fresh scones all baked on the premises. Served from 2.30pm each day, combine with a wander round the magical water gardens, and you’ll emerge fully restored, as if out of a fairytale.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Hampers on the terrace</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="733" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-BathPriory.jpeg" alt="afternoon tea bath priory" class="wp-image-85636" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-BathPriory.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-BathPriory-800x586.jpeg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-BathPriory-400x293.jpeg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-BathPriory-768x563.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-BathPriory-716x525.jpeg 716w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>The beautiful <a href="https://www.thebathpriory.co.uk/dining-drinking/afternoon-tea" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bath Priory </a>hotel, all honey-coloured Bath stone and endless gardens, just a short stroll from Bath city centre, offers afternoon tea wherever your fancy takes you. Choose from the terrace, lounges, the Pantry or the restaurant, or, if you want to find your own romantic nook, order the hotel’s afternoon tea hamper. Featuring scones, sandwiches and cakes, with tea or coffee kept warm in a flask, the wicker hamper comes fully loaded with crockery and cutlery and can be enjoyed anywhere in the hotel’s extensive gardens. (£96 for two). If picnicking isn’t your thing, then full afternoon tea (£48pp or £66 with a glass of Champagne) won’t disappoint. A rotating menu of inventive sandwiches range from a traditional Coronation Chicken to smoked salmon with wasabi mayonnaise. Cake options might include a tonka bean choux bun with almond brittle or an Earl Grey Milk Chocolate Ganache with ginger biscuit. An impressive tea menu offers yet more choices or you can add a glass of something cold and fizzy at separate cost.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tea-with-a-sea-view">Tea with a sea view</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="667" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-HotelAlexandra.jpeg" alt="aftenoon tea alexandra hotel" class="wp-image-85637" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-HotelAlexandra.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-HotelAlexandra-800x534.jpeg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-HotelAlexandra-400x267.jpeg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-HotelAlexandra-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-HotelAlexandra-787x525.jpeg 787w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>More in the mood for a traditional seaside hotel with theatrical views over the Jurassic coast? The family-owned boutique <a href="https://www.hotelalexandra.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Alexandra Hotel</a> in Lyme Regis is for you. Get on your Agatha Christie vibe with a table in the lush gardens or head inside to the Ammonite Restaurant. A traditional cream tea with scones, cream and jam will set you back £17 but we’d recommend booking ahead and going ‘full beast’ (to quote Logan Roy) with the Sparkling Tier Tea (£45). An architectural marvel of finger sandwiches, cakes and of course scones with tea and a glass of the local Furleigh Estate Classic Cuvée is so generous it will leave you with two options. Either walk it off by following the winding footpath leading directly from the hotel to the beach or give into a snooze in one of the hotel’s cane armchairs.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On the river bank</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="667" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-PrioryWareham.jpeg" alt="afternoon tea priory wareham " class="wp-image-85638" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-PrioryWareham.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-PrioryWareham-800x534.jpeg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-PrioryWareham-400x267.jpeg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-PrioryWareham-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/dorsetsomerset/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/07/00-PrioryWareham-787x525.jpeg 787w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p><a href="https://theprioryhotel.co.uk/dining/afternoon-tea/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Priory Hotel</a> on the banks of the River Frome in Wareham is well-known for its dining experiences created under the watchful eye of head chef, Stephan Guinebault. Residents and visitors (if you book) can sink into the tasteful comfort of the drawing room or on sunny afternoons the terrace for afternoon tea. All tastes are catered for from the traditional cream tea to the Priory Ritzy Tea – finger sandwiches, cakes and scones and a glass of Prosecco (£37). But there aren’t many establishments that can offer you the cheffy delights of the Priory Savoury Tea. Here finger sandwiches come with savoury lobster brioche rolls, zingy crab wraps, chicken liver parfait macaroons and cheese scones enlivened with a chilli chutney and washed down with a Bloody Mary shot. (£47 with a glass of Prosecco). This takes the afternoon tea concept to a totally new level – afternoon tea for those who aren’t really fans of the scones-and-jam variety.</p>


Pinkies poised! 5 of the best al fresco afternoon teas in Somerset & Dorset

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