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On our honeymoon, my husband and I went to Fortnum & Mason to have afternoon tea! What could be more fun than having traditional high tea in London?? :D I made reservations at the Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon in Piccadilly about a week or so before we left. We were seated in a gorgeous tea room with a live pianist. We ordered from the standard “Fortnum’s Afternoon Tea” menu, which comprised of a different pot of tea for each of us, finger sandwiches, scones with clotted cream and preserves, and afternoon tea cakes.

OMG YUM!!!! Everything was to die for delicious! I was swooning with every bite and sip. The finger sandwiches were cucumber with mint butter, coronation chicken, rare roast beef with gherkin and caper dressing, rare breed hen egg with mustard cress, and Fortnum’s smoked salmon with lemon dill butter. Wow! Soooo good! And I don’t even like half that stuff, LOL!

The scones were the epitome of perfection. The clotted cream (which I don’t think I’ve ever had before) was melt in your mouth delicious. We had lemon curd and raspberry preserve, which were equally tasty. The individual cakes and patisseries were super cute and super yummy. I swear they served us a rose eclair! Click here to see photos: http://instagram.com/p/f0K-Agl-lN/ and http://instagram.com/p/f0LmSKl-mA/

I highly recommend a stop at Fortnum & Mason if you’re ever in London. Even if you don’t want to have afternoon tea, their store is HUGE! I’m talking five levels of awesomeness. They sell all manor of things from jackets, scarves, gloves, and fancy lady hats, to Christmas ornaments and decorations, jewelry, perfume, wedding cakes, chocolates, and of course, all things tea! I wanted to get a souvenir teacup, but the cheapest one I could find was about $75. O_O Yeaaah…I didn’t get the teacup.

ON TO THE TEA!

This tea was very delicious! It is pretty much everything I’d want a Ceylon tea to be. It did tend to go bitter since all the leaves were left in the pot. After finishing the first pot, they brought me more hot water, and then I could steep one cup at a time. It was much more enjoyable this way.

I think the waiters thought I was funny because when I asked for more hot water, they said, “Would you like a new pot of tea?” I told them I was fine with re-steeping the same leaves, and really they had a lot of flavor left in them! I enjoyed many delicious infusions. Come to think of it, maybe they just wanted to charge me more money for a new pot? I don’t know.

The entire experience was absolutely perfect. I wouldn’t change a thing. We left completely full and absolutely happy. I don’t think I’ll ever eat such delicious scones or clotted cream ever again. Perfection, I tell you! This tea seems to be fairly priced as well. According to their website, you can buy 50g for £7.50, which is about $12.25. Of course, I just went on a crazy shopping spree on the 52teas website and purchased about $70 worth of tea. At a discount, mind you! I only paid $55. ;) So, this purchase will have to wait. But if you enjoy Ceylon teas, this one is great!!