afternoon tea at the ritz

Was there in November - I wore a simple dress with a very pretty scarf. Men need jacket and ties. It was lovely - very friendly and relaxed and plenty to eat!

Men must wear a jacket and tie! GOM next door was refused entry!
Just wear a nice dress or skirt and top. ( not t shirt)

Galen, that must have made your day! (GOM being refused entry)

How about a dress in a jersey material. That shouldn't crease on the train. You could dress it up with a pretty scarf. Have a great time.

My mum wore a dress/jacket combo with a pretty scarf.

Make sure your shoes are comfortable for walking. We live in the countrry, and on rare visits to London I find the pavements hideously hard - I've got too used to wellies and mud. Smart trousers and top will be fine if you are not a skirt/dress kind of gal.

mrsjamjam that's interesting re the hard pavements. I had sore hips when I first arrived here from SA and so did other women of a certain age in the South African expat community and I am sure that the hard pavements and lots of walking had something to do with it (where I came from you walked on grass verges a lot). After a while it settled down. But my feet take a pounding here because I walk a lot. Love it most when I can get my toes out (in sandals). We're always barefeet inside the house.

What a lovely gift, willsandco. You've had plenty of good suggestions, enjoy

What a lovely gift, I hope that you enjoy your day out. Try not to worry too much about dress, I am sure that you will look smart.
Yes, the pavements are heard and you find that there is a hike between places.
Word of warning-taxis are hideously expensive.

I think that given the weather, a fox fur would not be out of place. I also agree about the shoes. I used to be able to wear "ordinary" shoes in London until I developed "shin splints" after one particularly long day pounding the pavements and have gone for cushion soles ever since. I do sometimes(!) try for smart, but mostly either sensible "lady from the Shires" flats or (if feeling very daring) coloured trainers - although not for the Ritz! If you are coming into Euston, Green Park underground is opposite the Ritz and an easy underground trip.Went to the Wolsey with DDs for my birthday a couple (well 5) years ago and thought what a nice Mother/Daughter thing it was to do. I hope you have a lovely day out!

Enjoy yourself, you can wear almost anything which could be described as smart casual. Re: shoes, if you can manage to take a spare pair it seems to relieve any pain to simply put on a different pair and then later swap back.

That sounds like a wonderful gift. I must start dropping hints...

I remember someone wanted to meet me for tea at the Ritz... I said no, on account of their stupid 'dress code'.

High tea at the Ritz, Claridges, or Savoy lovely stuff and a real treat or experience..So what if you have to wear a tie or a dress. Do it, its fun.

High tea at the Ritz, Claridges, or Savoy lovely stuff and a real treat or experience..So what if you have to wear a tie or a dress. Do it, its fun.

Now is it me being a Scot, but High Tea to me is a cooked meal (or at least a ham or beef salad) followed by scones, cakes and tea to drink. I have often heard afternoon tea at a posh place referred to as "High Tea" but that is not my understanding. Anybody else e.g. from oop North share my definition of the term?

Gracesmum- I am also from Scotland and I agree with every word that you said. I have lived in London long enough not be confused now but when I first moved here, things like that sounded odd. Sandwiches, scones and cakes with tea to me would be afternoon tea.

I had a lovely tea at the Savoy before it was re furbished. I believe most of the London hotels all do the same sort of thing, finger sandwiches, scones, cakes and a selection of teas. I also had a lovely tea with a friend at The British Museum and we added a glass of champagne because she was down from Scotland and we hadn't met for a while. I haven't been to The Ritz myself for tea but I hear from a couple of friends their teas are wonderful, and glimpsing at their rooms through their foyer it certainly looks a lovely setting. I think they charge more than any of the other hotels. A few years ago when my husband and I were in the West End and we thought we would try and have tea at the Ritz we didn't realize at the time you have to book this way in advance, so we were almost laughed off the premises by one of their receptionists. With hindsight, being close to Christmas they were bound to have been ultra busy. Felt very foolish!

They had no business making you feel less than welcome - not foolish at all!

Thanks gracesmum, I think the receptionist just found it amusing. I think we were probably being naive to think we could just wander in there on the off chance that they could accommodate us, after all The Ritz is possibly the most sought after place in London where people would want to have tea.

Oh Wow! Tea at the Ritz is something my mother & I always promised ourselves and never got round too. After seeing the documentaries they did about Claridges tea there looks lovely too. Still DH and I did manage tea and cakes at Florian when we were in Venice. I hope we dressed appropriately - they let us in anyway

Afternoon tea is so British, isn't it? Something that distinguishes us from all other nations. In the '60s, when we had our weekly afternoon off to do our shopping in Nairobi, my friends and I would meet at the Norfolk Hotel for a traditional afternoon tea: little sandwiches, scones and luscious cakes, tea in good china cups, taken on the terrace away from the city traffic. A real oasis of calm and civility.
I still hanker after the Ritz though!

thank you so much for all your advice. We are really looking forward to it -not long now to wait until June 14th and we are visiting an old friend who is a pensioner at the Royal Hospital at Chelsea for lunch on the same day. I will let you know how I get on............!

annodomini : There used to be a bar/café place in Nairobi, called Le Mazot, with pleasant entertainment from a couple, Belgians I think - I know I used to practise my French with them. That was in the late fifties... I remember the Norfolk as somewhere I played in a concert.

Thise were the days - lunch at the New Stanley - seven courses available (of which we selected all seven!) costing a tptal of just seven shillings...

Wear what you feel comfortable in. Smart casual works well. I have been fortunate enough to have had afternoon tea at The Ritz, The Savoy and The Waldorf. Next stop is The Mount Nelson in Cape Town.