The iconic Theatre Royal Drury Lane, home to some of the most renowned musicals and shows, has a magnificent Afternoon Tea that deserves its moment in the limelight.

Centrally located in the heart of Covent Garden, London’s oldest theatre embraced us as we entered through its magnificently imposing doors. After checking in, we were given a tour of the historic site learning about the theatre’s restoration, the incredible Shakespeare inspired artwork commissioned by Andrew Lloyd Webber, as well as the history of the two royal boxes, and stories about the resident ghost!

The stage is set as we enter the Grand Saloon - a spacious room with opulent chandeliers set into its high ceilings, fine art, marble columns and tables dressed with elegant theatre themed tableware. The centrepiece of the room is the spectacular circular bar that bathes in the natural light from the open terrace doors. A welcoming gentle breeze ushers us to take our seats as the show begins.

A mild, sweet Rooibos welcome drink is brought over as our waitress introduces herself and the menu, which reads like a theatre program, offering highlights of the theatre’s history, the Afternoon Tea menu and drink options. The tea is split into 2 acts and a finale, with each item having a whimsical name like the ‘The Hero’ and ‘The Lovers’, lending itself into the theatre theme.

The first and opening act is the savoury, served on an original piece of the stage floor, featuring a creamy and tangy prawn cocktail with layers of smooth avocado and plump prawns, as well as a Spenwood cheese and thyme tart. ‘The Hero’ sausage roll, composed of flavourful pork sausage meat enrobed in a flaky and crisp pastry, was living up to its namesake and giving us main character energy. 

Act two was brought to the table shrouded in a stage curtain which was unveiled to reveal the sweet treats. The waitress enlightened us with some more of the theatre’s history. The curtain bearing royal insignias was symbolic of the two royal boxes built to appease the feuding King George III and his son. As the curtain lifted, we applauded the decadently rich layered chocolate brownie with its popcorn crown, a sharp and zesty lemon meringue tartlet, and my favourite - the raspberry and biscuit macaron, a crisp shell with the perfect macaron chew filled with a raspberry jam and shortbread ganache.

Whilst there were no sandwiches present at this Afternoon Tea, they couldn’t do without the traditional and trusty scone. Both plain and raisin scones were brought to the table warm with a helping of jam and clotted cream. Alongside the act two sweets, we were also served ‘The Fool’, a seasonal cake - strawberry jam sandwiched around a classic vanilla sponge with a generous layer of strawberry meringue. We ordered a pot of the Kao Shui Jasmine tea and this matched beautifully with the sweet cake.

This was an exquisite and memorable experience perfect for theatre and Afternoon Tea lovers alike, filled with history, drama and a show-stopping menu!