Located in the heart of the city, DUKES London is a sophisticated, country house nestled in historic St James Mayfair, They serve a unique twist on a traditional Afternoon Tea, offering a four-course service, paired with two teas that have been specifically by the chef to compliment the flavours of each course.

From the moment of arrival, the DUKES experience exudes luxury and British elegance. We were immediately greeted with a warm welcome from the friendly staff. The reception has plush interiors with luxurious furnishings and rich wooden panelling.

Upon entry to the Drawing Room, the first thing you notice is the elegant interior which reflects the regal British charm of the hotel. The room is a tranquil space with comfortable, period-style furniture, an open marble fireplace and gentle lighting.

This area overlooks the peaceful courtyard garden. White panelled, wall-to-ceiling windows flood the room with natural light, illuminating the gold-framed artwork, tall standing greenery and vases of flowers.

We selected DUKES Afternoon Tea with Louis Roederer Collection, which started with a brief explanation of the menu and how the four-courses would be served. It was very interesting to hear DUKES’ unique take on a classic service – each course was served separately, starting with an amuse bouche, followed by the savouries, a flight of scones and then desserts, incorporating an interactive element into the final course.

DUKES London proudly serves JP’s Originals teas with the Afternoon Tea. Two high-quality whole leaf specialty teas have been carefully selected to pair with the four courses. They served their English Breakfast Tea with the amuse bouche and savouries and Nana’s Chai, a family company favourite, with the scones and desserts.

After the tea and a glass of Louis Roederer Collection had been kindly served, our waiter presented us with our first course, the amuse bouche. I was served Eggs Drumkilbo, the late Queen Mother’s favourite, which was a mixture of lobster and chopped egg, garnished with Sherry jelly and a soft-boiled quail egg. The Sherry jelly added a luxurious and very rich flavour to the dish – I can understand why it is a royal favourite!

For vegetarians, DUKES served a light and creamy Pea and Mint Hummus with crumbled vegan feta. Much of this menu is thoughtfully designed with vegetarians in mind, but for the amuse bouche and one of the savoury selections, the menu offers a vegetarian alternative.

Once we had finished our amuse bouche, the waiter cleared our plates, replaced them with new ones and refilled our teacups. We were then served the selection of savouries which each took a captivating form.

We really appreciated the unique take on a traditional Afternoon Tea with variety of savouries that this menu offered. DUKES London serves one classic Afternoon Tea sandwich, a Truffled Egg Sandwich, a light, fluffy muffin, a filled savoury cone and a buttery, golden-baked Smoked Salmon & Cottage Cheese Tart.

A personal favourite of the savouries that we tried was the Leek and Cheddar Cheese Muffin with fig relish. The sweet and rich notes of the fig relish centre was the perfect accompaniment to the sharp, yet rich and creamy flavour of the cheddar.

The flavours and the appearance of the savouries were amazing. The bright fuchsia pink of the whipped beetroot goat’s cheese contrasted beautifully with the charcoal-black cone and the blend of the earthy sweetness of the beetroot with the tangy, richness of the goat’s cheese harmonised perfectly.

Another compelling touch is the notable culinary knowledge and perfect pairings of flavour combinations, right down to the choice of garnish.

An Aubergine Pâté with vegan feta and pomegranate seeds is available for vegetarians instead of the Smoked Salmon & Cottage Cheese Tart. The sweet, juicy crunch of the pomegranate added a refreshing pop of flavour with every bite of the earthy, roasted aubergine.

After we had finished the savouries, our plates and teacups were cleared and replaced, and our glasses were refilled with Louis Roederer Collection Champagne and we were brought the second tea which was paired with the scones and desserts. The selected tea for the Flight of Scones was Nana’s Chai – a warming spiced chai infused with notes of ginger and cardamom.

Served warm, the flight of scones featured a delightful chamomile scone paired with salted vanilla butter, a fragrant lavender scone complimented by a honey crème pâtissière and a classic plain scone with strawberry clotted cream.

Each offering was unique and indulgent, adding a creative twist to the classic Afternoon Tea experience. The trio of toppings, crafted and paired to compliment each of the scones individually solved the delightful debate among Afternoon Tea traditionalists – is it jam or cream first?

Dessert was both a delicious and interactive experience. First, our waiter brought over an hourglass timer, and then an array of indulgent and beautifully crafted desserts. It was evident upon first look of the final course that DUKES London put a great amount of care and detail into their desserts, however they further showcased their commitment to excellent service in the chef’s recommendation of which order to eat the desserts in.

To start was the Poured Chocolate Tart. As a warm luxuriously rich chocolate ganache was poured into a circular encasing onto a chocolate tart base, the waiter detailed the purpose of the sand timer.

After the waiter had filled the circular casing, we were to flip the timer and wait five minutes for the chocolate to set and then remove the outer casing.

The chocolate was dusted with freeze dried raspberries to compliment the fresh, half-cut raspberries on the side of the tart base.

As the sand flowed down through the hourglass, the waiter recommended the Lemon, Coconut & Basil Tart to follow. This ordering was recommended because the citrus and bright acidity from the lemon is purposefully incorporated into this dessert to cleanse your palate after eating the rich chocolate tart and refresh you for the next dessert.

The Sticky Date Cake followed next, garnished with a toffee whipped cream and finished with gold flakes. The finely chopped dates add a natural sweetness to the moist sponge cake that is generously soaked in a buttery toffee sauce to give this dessert its rich, sweet flavour.

The final dessert is a Strawberry Pavlova, which again has an interactive element. We were given a bowl so we had the option to smash this into traditional Eton mess form. It was beautifully crafted; a sweet and light meringue formed the base, which supported a circular surface of rose-pink chocolate garnished with cream and strawberries. Almost too beautiful to destroy – almost!

Overall, the Afternoon Tea at DUKES London was a very unique and refreshingly different experience. All four courses were delightful and it’s evident that the chefs have put a lot of care and culinary expertise into the menu. The service and atmosphere were excellent from start to finish.

Afternoon Tea at DUKES London starts at £65 per person and is served in the Drawing Room. Afternoon Tea with Gusbourne Brut Reserve is priced at £82 per person or Afternoon Tea with Louis Roederer Collection is priced at £86 per per person. Click here for more information to book.