How to Host an English Style High Tea

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1 Planning the Tea

2 Preparing for the Tea

3 Having an English Style High Tea

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Co-authored by Diana Dorsey

Last Updated: November 15, 2022 References

High tea is an English tradition that people from all over the world can enjoy. English high tea is often associated with the northern parts of England and in Scotland where it is considered to be dinner time. This type of tea, however, has been adapted into an afternoon tea where the host enjoys tea, small sandwiches, and desserts with their guests. To have an English style high tea, you need to plan it, prepare for it, and finally, have the tea.

Steps

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Planning the Tea

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   Pick a time. Consider your guests when choosing a time. People often host tea during the afternoon. Work and/or school may be a problem during the afternoon on weekdays, however. A weekend afternoon tea could be ideal if you let your guests know about the date you choose in enough time. You should choose a date at least a month before the tea. A couple of weeks ahead of time could be okay for a less formal gathering.

   • If possible, ask your guests what times would be best for them.
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   Send out invitations. Choose and send out invitations about one month before the intended gathering. You can purchase invitations and send them out through the mail. It is also possible to find invitations online, print them out, and send them. If you don’t want to send out invitations through the physical mail, you can also send out emails or call your guests.

   • You can find invitations made specifically for teas on invitation websites.
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3. 
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   Buy tea. If you’re hosting a high tea, it is necessary to serve a variety of teas. Hot tea is the most traditional beverage to serve. You should purchase a variety of teas. Black, green, chamomile, fruit tea, and oolong tea are some of the types of teas you can serve. You should also provide some beverages outside of hot tea for guests that don’t like hot tea.

   • You can also serve cold tea, juices, and cocktails if mostly adults will be attending.
   • You will also need sugar and milk for the tea.
4. 
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   Plan the food. Food at a tea is usually light and easy to pick up and eat. Small sandwiches are usually served. Some types of sandwiches common at teas are carrot and raisin, crab, and salmon and avocado. Along with sandwiches, scones, teacakes, fruit platters and buns are also served. Some common desserts that are put out at teas are biscuits (cookies), cakes, and pastries.

   • Some options for scones are lemon drizzle, walnut, and cherry. They should be served with jam.
   • Shortbread, carrot cake, gingerbread, and coconut cookies are some options.
5. 
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   Buy party supplies. Even if you’re not decorating extravagantly, you will need some supplies for the tea. A tea set consisting of a teapot and tea cups. You will also need plates and cutlery. Along with the basics, you will need a tablecloth, napkins, and serving trays for the food.
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Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Preparing for the Tea

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   Decorate the area. If you will be decorating, put up the decorations the night before or the morning of the tea. Some options for decorations are lanterns, flowers, ribbons, candles, and streamers.

   • If you want to diverge from the classic English tea, you can choose to decorate based on a theme, like Alice in Wonderland.
2. 
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   Set the table. Set up the area you will be having the tea on the morning of the tea. Put the tablecloth on the table or tables. Set out the napkins, cutlery, and dishes, and cups. How much you set up depends on how you plan to serve the tea and food, but remember that what your guests see and feel at your tea party will set a tone of elegance. If you plan for your guests to serve themselves, you can set out the tea cups and plates at this time. If you plan to serve your guests, you will bring them out once your guests are seated.
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   Dress for the occasion. Once all of the preparations have been made, get dressed for the event. How you dress depends on how formal the tea is. Typically, an English style high tea calls for not quite formal, but nice attire. A dress or casual suit will work. If you’re following the English style, you may want to wear an elaborate hat that the British are so well known for.

   • If you’re having a themed party, dress in costume according to that theme.
4. 
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   Set out the tea. If you’re not serving the guests, set out the tea five to ten minutes before the tea is set to start. Put out the teapot with boiling water. You can either set out tea bags around the teapot, or put out several pots with the teabags already in the pot. Put out milk and sugar next to the tea.
5. 
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   Put out the food. There are a few different options for how to serve tea. An easy and common way is to set the food out on trays so that the guests can serve themselves as they please. You can also choose to set out some food and serve some food. Or, you can serve all of the food.
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Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Having an English Style High Tea

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   Put on music. Play some light music as your guests begin to arrive, and let it play softly in the background as the tea goes on. Classical music is a great choice for a tea. If that doesn’t work for you, soft jazz work well too.

   • You can also find an “Afternoon tea” playlist on websites like YouTube and on music streaming services like Pandora and Spotify.
2. 
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   Welcome your guests. As your guests arrive, welcome each guest in the way that is most comfortable to you. Show your guests to the area where the tea is being held. If you have places set for each person, show the guest to their place. Offer a drink to each guest as they arrive.
3. 
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   Serve tea and offer food. Once most or all of your guests have arrived, begin the tea. Serve or offer food in the way you’ve chosen. Anticipate the needs of your guests during the event. Bring out more boiling water when the teapot begins to empty. Have extra food available in the kitchen if food begins to run low.
4. 
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   Plan an activity. Having food, tea, and conversation is enough for the event. If that falls short, there are some activities you can plan. For example, you can have guests make their own teas by setting out tea bags, tea, strings, and staples to close the bags. You can also purchase plain, white teacups, paint, and paintbrushes and have guests decorate their own teacups to take home.

   • If you will be having children at the party, you can plan some activities specifically for them, like a treasure hunt or tea bag toss.
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Expert Q&A

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• Question

  How do I choose the right venue?

  

  Diana Dorsey
  Wedding & Event Planner

  Diana Dorsey is a Certified Event Planner and the Owner of Simply Elegant. With over 11 years of experience curating hundreds of events, she specializes in leveraging her attention to detail and people skills to help her clients enjoy planning an event that goes above and beyond. She prides herself on making the planning and day-of experience pleasant for both her clients and vendors. Diana earned a Bachelor's Degree from the University of Phoenix.

  

  Diana Dorsey

  Wedding & Event Planner

  Expert Answer

  You must first create your guest list so that you know how many guests to plan for. Once you have determined your guests list, you can then start looking for a venue that can accommodate your guests count. Keep in mind that the more guests you have, the more you have to budget for.

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Tips

• Serve a variety of teas and foods to fit multiple tastes.
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• An English Style High Tea can be held inside or outside. Consider the season when planning the event.
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Warnings

• If possible, ask your guests about any potential allergies before planning what food you will serve. If that is not possible, put signs next to foods that are associated with common allergies.
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• Be aware of the very hot water that will be put out or served for the tea. Warn your guests if they will be serving themselves.
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