Host an Amazing Afternoon Tea Party With These Recipes and Ideas (2024)

Host an Amazing Afternoon Tea Party With These Recipes and Ideas (1)

If there's one thing we can thank the British for, it's the delightful tradition of afternoon tea. Started by a peckish duch*ess one afternoon in 1840, this tradition of snacking on an elegant spread of tea and treats became a centuries-long English tradition that's still valued by people around the world today. After all, who wouldn't enjoy an assortment of tiny sandwiches, scones, and hot tea as a late-afternoon pick-me-up?

While our afternoon snacks today may not be as delicate, there's still a time and place for tea, especially when it's served at a festive tea party for a birthday, bridal shower, or Mother's Day celebration! There are so many cute and fun tea party ideas to choose from. Get creative and send your guests paper invites designed to look like tea bags to start the festivities on a high (tea) note. After the invites are sent, it's time to decide on a charming theme! You can channel the classics with an upscale high tea party with a fancy dress-theme or take notes from spring with a floral tea party, complete with floral serveware and gorgeous flower centerpieces.

Of course, no tea party would be complete without an impressive spread of sweet and savory bites to enjoy with a brimming cup of Earl Grey or chai. It's the perfect time to whip up delectable finger foods like curried chicken salad finger sandwiches, sausage rolls, and crostinis! And that's not to mention all the sweet treats, like mini bundt cakes topped with fragrant, fruity glazes. Regardless of what aesthetic, dress code, or menu you decide to go for, you can't go wrong with these unique tea party ideas!

Host a Floral Tea Party

If you’re looking for the perfect theme for your tea party, consider sticking to the classics and going with a floral theme! Set your table with floral teapots and teacups, and create a bright flower arrangement to serve as your centerpiece. All the dainty, floral details will make your table look as beautiful as a spring garden!

SHOP FLORAL TEAPOTS

Serve Mini Tea Sandwiches

Apart from tea, the most crucial components of a tea party are the mini cakes or cookies, scones, and tiny finger sandwiches that line your table. Traditional finger sandwich flavors include cucumber, smoked salmon, and curried chicken salad, which will delight your guests. Arrange them on pretty plates or tiered platters and they'll double as decor!

Get the Tea Sandwiches recipe.

Bake Lemon Bars

A spring or summer tea party calls for bright, delicious flavors, and lemon certainly fits the bill! Bake buttery, tart-sweet lemon bars, top them with a dusting of powdered sugar, and watch as they disappear from your dessert platter in seconds.

Get Ree's Lemon Bars recipe.

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Serve Up Sweet Scones

Scones are a must-have for any tea party, and a subtly sweet flavor like orange-vanilla is a safe pairing for most types of tea. These scones are topped with an orange glaze and orange zest for a dash of fresh citrus flavor.

Get Ree's Orange-Vanilla Scones recipe.

Decorate Your Table With Tea Cup Candles

Candles are a great way to add ambiance and excitement to any tablescape. These DIY teacup candles are so on-theme for a tea party and can be made using mismatched old tea cups and candle wax!

Get the tutorial at The Craft Patch.

SHOP TEA CUPS

Brew Homemade Chai

Everyone has their personal tea preferences, but when deciding on a tea that everyone will love, you can't go wrong with a warm pot of homemade chai. This spicy, sweet, milky tea calls for a few crucial ingredients, including fresh ginger, cinnamon sticks, cardamom, and whole cloves.

Get the Chai recipe.

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Serve Sausage Rolls

Puff pastry sausage rolls are a delicious and traditional British bite that make the perfect appetizer or afternoon tea treat. This recipe couldn't be easier to execute, as it calls for pre-made puff pastry, so all you have to do is whip up the sausage filling and bake!

Get the Sausage Roll recipe.

Decorate Your Table With a Flower Arrangement

Whether or not you've decided on a flower theme for your tea party, any tablescape can benefit from a stunning flower arrangement! When deciding what flowers to add to your arrangement, keep your color scheme and the season in mind. For example, a spring tea party would fare well with brightly colored tulips or pretty pink peonies.

Get the tutorial at Inspired by Charm.

Serve Refreshing Finger Foods

Aside from the finger sandwiches and treats on your main tiered trays, keep your guests fed by passing out light bites throughout the party. Ree's Everything Cucumber-Smoked Salmon Bites are the perfect finger food to munch on while mingling with guests and sipping tea!

Get Ree's Everything Cucumber–Smoked Salmon Bites recipe.

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Present Your Pastries Like a Royal

All those pastries you're going to bake deserve to be presented like the delicacies they are! Invest in a double or triple-tiered serving tray and delegate each level to a different type of finger food like you would at a traditional afternoon tea service. Place tea sandwiches on the bottom, scones and cream in the middle, and mini cakes and cookies on top!

SHOP SERVING TRAYS

Serve Fancy Appetizers

With all the frilly dresses, beautiful decor, and delicate finger foods, tea parties are the perfect time to go all out with fancy flourishes. Given that, the foods you serve should be just as fancy (yet still easy), like these strawberry and goat cheese crostinis that look just as good as they taste!

Get Ree's Strawberry and Goat Cheese Crostini recipe.

Send Your Guests DIY Tea Bag Invitations

Every good tea party starts with a pretty invitation, and these adorable DIY tea bag ones are perfect for the occasion. These invitations are printed on vellum paper, filled with actual tea leaves, and assembled similar to how you would any tea bag!

Get the tutorial at Oh So Beautiful Paper.

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Make Madeleines

Maybe it's cake, maybe it's a cookie. Regardless of what madeleines are, there's one thing we know for sure: they're delicious! These tiny cake-like cookies have notes of almond and vanilla, and they're the perfect accompaniment to tea.

Get the Madeleines recipe.

Make a Batch of Sun Tea

Steep a batch of sun tea for your guests to sip while sitting under the sun during a garden tea party. To make homemade sun tea, fill a large glass dispenser with water and add eight tea bags per gallon. Let the tea steep in the sun for two to three hours, and once it's as dark as you desire, sweeten it with honey or agave and add a splash of citrus!

Get the Sun Tea recipe.

Create a DIY Floral Centerpiece

Fresh flower arrangements are a great way to add color and life to a table, but you can still get a similar effect using tissue paper and a little creativity to make a DIY faux floral centerpiece! This one is made with a mixture of tissue paper, crepe paper, and cardstock for a stunning mix of textures. Opt for white tissue paper for a uniform look, or go crazy with colors depending on your tea party theme!

Get the tutorial at The House That Lars Built.

SHOP TISSUE PAPER

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Bake Mini Bundt Cakes

You can never have enough mini food at a tea party! If you're looking to make your guests something sweet to eat, bake some mini bundt cakes and top them with delicious glazes like blackberry, maple whiskey, and dark chocolate sea salt.

Get the Mini Bundt Cake recipe.

Nitya Rao

Nitya Rao is the editorial assistant at The Pioneer Woman, covering stories ranging from food, fashion, beauty, lifestyle, news, and more.

Host an Amazing Afternoon Tea Party With These Recipes and Ideas (2024)

FAQs

What are the 3 main foods served at an afternoon tea? ›

What is served at afternoon tea? Afternoon tea comes in three course, the sandwich course, the scones and finally the pastries. Traditional sandwiches would include: cucumber, smoked salmon, coronation chicken, ham and beef.

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What should be included in an afternoon tea party? ›

A traditional tea menu usually includes a selection of finger sandwiches, scones with jam and cream, and a variety of cakes and pastries. Start with classic sandwich fillings like cucumber, egg salad, and smoked salmon. They're light, tasty, and perfect for a tea party. Scones are a must-have.

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What is the menu for an afternoon tea party? ›

roughly four little sandwiches per person (2 or 3 kinds); 1 average or 2 small scones: always one with cream and jams/honey; sometimes also one savoury variation. 1 or 2 pieces of cake/pastry (if 2, one rich, one simple) a few salad and fruit garnishes: lettuce, cherry tomatoes, celery, cucumber, strawberries, etc…

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What is a typical afternoon tea menu? ›

There aren't any rules when it comes to the food, but a standard afternoon tea menu comprises a tier of sandwiches, a tier of cakes and one of scones or teacakes. But you could also throw in pastries, petit*-fours or biscuits. Don't wear yourself out by taking on too many ambitious bites.

How many sandwiches per person for afternoon tea? ›

How many sandwiches per person at afternoon tea? Prepare 3-4 sandwiches per person for your afternoon tea at home. The cake stand will be stacked from top to bottom with delicious food, so there will be lots for your guests to choose from, and you can be sure nobody will go hungry.

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How many pieces of finger food per person for afternoon tea? ›

On average, you should plan on 1-2 scones, 3-4 finger sandwiches, 2-3 canapés, and 2-3 desserts per person. Tea sandwiches, canapés, and desserts should be no more than two bite-sized.

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How do you set a table for an afternoon tea party? ›

Each guest should have a teacup resting on a saucer. Place each teacup to the right of the spoon(s) at that place setting. Set down a small waste bowl for each guest if you have them. Waste bowls are typically the smallest piece of tableware, placed on the left of each place setting, above the napkin or fork.

How do you make a tea party menu? ›

The traditional menu for a full afternoon tea usually consists of:

a cup of soup.
piece of quiche.
side salad.
tea sandwiches.
scones.
sweets/bite-size desserts.

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What is the order of food for afternoon tea? ›

The correct order to eat the traditional Afternoon Tea is to eat the sandwiches and savouries first, then move onto the scones, ending on the sweets. There are many traditions and superstitions about the way you should eat your scones.

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What is always at a tea party? ›

Variety of food including sandwiches, scones, cakes, pastries and biscuits were served alongside tea in a tiered arrangement. Food served at tea parties was according to a particular season.

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What is the best time for afternoon tea party? ›

While both afternoon tea and high tea are served in the afternoon, one key difference between them is the time of day. Afternoon tea is typically served around 4 pm, while high tea tends to be served later in the afternoon (around 5- 7 pm).

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What do you eat first at afternoon tea? ›

Afternoon tea etiquette is to eat the sandwiches first, then the scones, then the pastries. Some places will serve the food in courses, so you won't have to worry about remembering the order.

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How do you cut a sandwich for a tea party? ›

The most common way to cut tea sandwiches is into triangles or rectangles by removing the crusts and then cutting the filled bread into smaller pieces. You can also use cookie cutters to create fun shapes if you prefer a more whimsical presentation.

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What is the first thing to serve in a full afternoon tea service? ›

The correct order to eat the traditional Afternoon Tea is to eat the sandwiches and savouries first, then move onto the scones, ending on the sweets.

What are the 3 major meals? ›

In this review, we discuss the timing of the three main meals of the day, breakfast, lunch and dinner, and the impact that eating during the biological night can have on metabolism, glucose tolerance, and obesity-related factors.

Do you get unlimited sandwiches with afternoon tea? ›

Most establishments will bring unlimited refills of tea and usually about as much food as you can eat. If your server doesn't offer additional scones or sandwiches, just ask. At lower-priced restaurants, though, expect just one serving.

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