There’s nothing better on a rainy day in London than a spot of Afternoon Tea. Lounging on plush chairs, chatting with a friend over a delicate feast is all I ever crave when the skies open up, as they do so often here. Today Michelle and I fancied giving The Athenaeum a try.

The Athenaeum is a gorgeous, luxury hotel in Mayfair completely covered in a vertical garden. The living wall is unlike anything i’ve ever seen and is very hard to miss. The tea room was relatively empty as it was reserved later for an evening event. We chose an oversized chair that made us look like dolls in a giant’s home. From our spot, we had a view of the hotel’s garden, and all the party planners running around trying to set up this evening’s do.

I love anything different and unique. It wouldn’t be worth going to Afternoon Tea if every stand was filled with the same sandwiches followed by the same desserts and scones. I’m always on the look out for what the hotel or venue has done to separate this Tea from the others.

We were handed wooden tea menus, with little capsules of the actual tea leaves encased in the menu itself. We chose our teas and chatted, waiting for our Tea to begin. Soon after, the waitress brought over a selection of sandwiches to choose from. We tried one of each of the Smoked Salmon, Ham and Onion, Prawn, Egg and Cress, and Cucumber sandwiches. The sandwiches were good, and I enjoyed the different flavoured breads, but nothing spectacular. Following the sandwiches, we were served our Scones and Crumpets. They were warm and fresh, served with Clotted Cream, Lemon Custard, and Strawberry Jam. After our Scones and Crumpets were sampled with each one of the spreads, a glorious tray was wheeled towards us. Cakes, cookies, tarts, and jellies were beautifully presented with scattered, edible pansies. I chose several of the cakes to sample and a delicious champagne jelly with fresh strawberries.

What a successful rainy day! If you’d like to have Afternoon Tea at The Athenaeum, I suggest you reserve in advance.