London's sweet side - Tea quest in The Big Smoke: Part 1 • Pegs on the Line

Trivia question. I’m enjoying a cup of tea and slice of cake. Which country am I in?

In reality, I could be anywhere in the world. But chances are you answered England!

Enjoying a cuppa and a cake or scone is such as British thing to do. After all, the UK is the birthplace of the indulgent practice of afternoon tea, which has evolved from the need of the Upper Class to tide themselves over between lunch and dinner to an extravagant art.

I like my tea! I’m no expert and we won’t be having debates about first-flush versus second-flush Darjeeling or how I can possibly add sugar to that type of tea – but I worked in Vancouver’s (if not Canada’s) most popular tea house and I’ve carted a gorgeous china teacup while backpacking halfway across the world. I don’t go out for coffee, I go out for tea. And in my opinion, offering a green or herbal tea does not an extensive tea menu make.

There are incredible tea houses scattered around the UK and I hope to visit many. But with four wintery days in London recently I decided to test the capital. For budget and health reasons, I didn’t take part in the super-trendy afternoon teas offered by so many establishments. I wanted to find nice places serving excellent tea and associated goodies.

Now four days is a drop in the earl-grey flavoured ocean in terms of visiting tea houses in London. They. Are. Everywhere. With a bit of research I narrowed it down. This is not a “best of” list of any kind – it’s just where I ended up.

Gillam’s Tearoom – Ulverston

Not sure where Ulverston is on the Tube? No wonder. It’s about four hours north-west. My trip to London started with an early bus out of the Lake District and breakfast in Ulverston. After leaving my almost-snowed-in home in Coniston a cuppa was required. I’d spotted Gillam’s when I arrived in the South Lakes a few months ago, but it was late and closed. This time it was open and the table in front of the log fire was free.

What it’s like: Gillam’s is a place I would love to be a regular. There were some in there on this morning – greeted by name and served “their usual”. It was quiet, although I was in there early. There’s a seating area downstairs, which seems to be more for the casual lunch crowd, and a further room upstairs where I suspect afternoon tea is served.

Menu: It would be hard not to find something to eat. Their tea menu includes some hand-blended teas, including the Darjeeling and Elderflower combination I had, Chinese and Indian black and green teas and even a chocolate tea – which as tempting as it sounds I just couldn’t bring myself to try. The menu is standard country-tearoom; sandwiches, soup, salads and oven backed potatoes. They serve afternoon tea and Lady Fells Drawing Room Afternoon Tea for Two. The cafe uses a lot of fair trade, local and organic produce and sells a lot of that in its retail section. There weren’t a lot of cakes out, but that’s because they were still being made (an excellent sign). The freshly made fruit scones carried through the cafe to the retail section were very tempting, but I settled for eggs on toast.

Loved: The log fire. Outside it was wet, cold and the fells were covered with snow so the fire was absolutely perfect!

Didn’t love quite so much: The sugar was served in packets on the table. It was fair trade, which may be more important given the cafe’s focus on fair trade and organic products, but sugar cubes would be a nice touch to the tea house.

Camellia’s Tea House, Soho

Type “London tea house” into Google and Camellia’s is the first establishment to pop up. Now, perhaps it just has a great SEO manager, however I wanted to know if it deserved top billing in the search results. Tucked away on the top floor of Kingly Court (a couple of turns off Regent St) it’s a place you’re unlikely to stumble upon. Which is both a shame and a blessing. I suspect getting a table here is hard work. Many were reserved when I went in at 3.30pm on a Monday. The shop is half retail and half seating area. The biggest tables seat four so if you’re in a larger group call ahead.

What it’s like: Camellia’s has a very charming, homely feel to it: wooden floors, a mixture of larger rustic tables for four and quaint court-yard type chairs and tables for two. The retail area is separate so guests aren’t bothered by other customers browsing around them and the music is just loud enough so you can’t hear the expected girly chatter.

Menu: I didn’t pay much attention to any lunch offerings as I was too distracted by the cakes: impressive servings of some mouth-watering cakes including red velvet, coffee and walnut and a traditional vanilla sponge. I had a cream tea (£6), which included two scones (one plain, one fruit), clotted cream, jam and a pot of tea.

Loved: The super impressive selection of teas. The one I chose, Earl Grey, Orange and Tea (tea tree leaves), was delicious. I’m usually a milk and sugar girl when it comes to black teas, but I loved this one straight. OK I added sugar to a couple of cups.

Didn’t love quite so much: The tea is served in cute, vintage cups…or is it??? I turned mine over and instead of a Bone China England or something similar it simply read “dotcomgifts”. I also would have expected full table service. Instead, once I was seated, I had to get up and order at the counter. A bit rich considering the menu reminds customers service is not included in the bill.

Cocomaya, Marble Arch

This wasn’t on my initial list, but a place I did want to visit turned out to be retail only so I needed a replacement. While visiting a book shop I found a book on afternoon tea in London. So I did what anyone would do – flicked through it and made notes of what I liked. (Come on it was £11). Most of the places featured were the high-end hotels with rather formal afternoon tea sittings that would have required me to consult the dress code. But one stood out from all the rest: Cocomaya. It has two stores – a funky looking chocolate shop and a bakery. They are side by side, but essentially separate.

What it’s like: I chose the bakery store, which has the display of food at the front rivalling a French bakery, a large table that seats nine, a small bar at the window that seats about three and jars of pickles and other foods on display that add a nice touch. The china is vintage and mismatched. It’s the kind of place I could have sat for hours. In the end I only left because they were closing, although even then I didn’t feel I had to. I just know what it’s like to wait around for customers to leave.

Menu: Oh I will definitely be returning here. Coming in at 6pm I only wanted a little bite so I had a honey cake. Amazing! I was picking at the crumbs. Lunch includes soups, salads, sandwiches and quiche. The baked goodies include croissants, muffins, cakes etc. There are gluten, dairy and gluten + dairy free items. Those born without a sweet tooth (seriously??) can have savoury brioche, leek or ham béchamel croissants and cheese straws. The tea menu isn’t huge, but it isn’t just the usual suspects. I sipped the mountain grey (without milk!).

Loved: Communal seating. I’m a big fan. It just adds something to a place, and is especially appreciated in a big city where most of the time people are just shoving you in the Tube. Also, the knife that came with my honey cake was the same style my grandmother had in her cutlery set so that brought back memories.

Didn’t love quite so much: Hmmm, I actually can’t fault this place. Although £7 for a pot of tea and a muffin is a bit much. But then, it was delicious and I’d totally pay it again.