Visited for afternoon tea, to celebrate an 83rd birthday. The staff were impeccable and the prices were as expected. The afternoon tea was well presented and staff were attentive without being overbearing. The choice of teas covered every taste from traditional teas, fruit and herbal teas and some more exotic blends, all of which (I believe) are available to purchase to take home. The sandwich selection included the kind of fillings I'd expect for a cream tea, including cold meat, salmon and egg (4 different sandwiches in total). The cake selection again was a selection of various cakes including a chocolate orange cake and macaroons as well as a scone (choice of plain or fruited) with clotted cream and a choice of jams. The only negative I'd give here is that butter is not provided with the scone. All in all, the afternoon tea was excellent, as was the service. There are a few negative issues. The tea room lacked atmosphere. The tables were all clean and well laidout but the room itself just felt a little ordinary for such an otherwise atmospheric building. Arriving early, we were asked to wait to be seated. The waiting area was effectively the foyer bar area, which was a very busy, bustling area. For me, the worst thing was the compulsory, 12.5% service charge. This is a personal objection, based on the fact that I expect all employees to be paid according to minimum and living wage standards and, having agreed to pay for a service, I object to an additional charge which I have no control over and which I have no assurance will be paid to the employees, in full, without deductions, or used as a separate incentive by the employer. I actually find this tactic abhorrent and, for this reason, no matter how good the service, food and environment, I will not be returning.

I came here for an afternoon tea included with a spa day package from the Rena Spa (which I also highly recommend!) and I had a fabulous time. I haven’t been to very many places as classy as this and I felt underdressed and a little nervous but the staff were all absolutely wonderful, so friendly, attentive, polite and welcoming! The service was excellent and the food was absolutely amazing - every item was delicious and beautifully presented, and I got to enjoy their vegetarian menu, which was excellent and did not feel like an afterthought to the “normal” at all. I cannot recommend this place enough - thank you for a wonderful afternoon!