In the mood for some themed afternoon tea? Feeling mad or curiouser and curiouser? Make a booking to visit the Sanderson Hotel for their Mad Hatter’s Afternoon Tea party for some sandwiches, cakes, scones and tea.
Date Visited: 20th February 2020
Location: Sanderson Hotel, 50 Berners St, Fitzrovia, London W1T 3NG
Getting There: A short (6-8 minute) walk from either Goodge St, Tottenham Court Road or Oxford Circus Underground stations.
Cost: Wallet burner at £48 per person, with £35 for kids between 4 and 11 years. Thankfully, the kind staff waived Cara’s cost
Review:
What else is there to do during half term holidays when the weather is bucketing down and the wind is blowing you backwards? Why not stay indoors and have some tea? Mash that together with Alice in Wonderland, and you have yourself a pleasant Mad Hatter’s Afternoon Tea party at Sanderson Hotel.
The hotel itself is nicely decorated with lots of funky seats in the lobby. Cara’s favourite was the lips sofa and the suspended egg seat. There’s plenty of other families enjoying the Mad Hatter’s Afternoon Tea. You have the option to sit inside, or enjoy the tea in the outdoor section. For whatever reason, we chose to sit outside on a cold and wet day. However, the heaters, blankets and hot tea helped to keep us warm. The service was friendly and attentive, explaining the various sandwiches and cakes available. There’s a selection of five special teas (in addition to the standard options), all based around Alice in Wonderland characters. Cara opted for a hot chocolate.
The tea sets and tea pots are kind of Mad Hatter related. Besides the naming of the teas after the characters, there’s not a huge amount of association with Alice in Wonderland. So if you’re expecting people dressed up as the Queen of Hearts, you’ll be sorely disappointed. Nevertheless, the sandwiches were tasty, and the cakes weren’t too bad. Our scones were nice and warm which went well with our tea selections. The cost, although pricey, does include unlimited refills of the tea, sandwiches and cakes.
From Cara’s perspective, she ate a ham and cheese toastie and took bites from each of the cakes, none which took her fancy. She enjoyed playing around the garden and another suspended egg chair near the water feature. We ordered a second helping of the crab roll and tea, and picked at most of the rest to leave a largely empty plate.
Tips:
- If you decide to sit outside during Winter, be sure to wear extra layers! It must be lovely though during the warmer weather to sit outside
- Go hungry to ensure you maximise your afternoon tea potential
- Watch out for the pigeons – sitting outside may attract a couple of extra guests, but the staff do their best to keep them out.
More info: Mad Hatter’s Afternoon Tea at Sanderson Hotel
Ratings:
Burn Time: 3 out of 5 – not sure if there’s a time limit, but we were there for about 90 minutes.
Value: 2 out of 5 – it was a fun afternoon out, but definitely not something you would want to be doing every day or weekend.
Overall: 3.5 out of 5 – we were full up by the end, but I think Cara enjoyed the Teddy Bear’s Picnic Afternoon Tea at Podium, Hilton more.
Know of any other great afternoon tea spots for kids? Let us know in the comments below!
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