One of the must-try English experiences is the Afternoon Tea. What better place than Royal Albert Hall, where this tradition has been going on for over 100 years? The menu features finger sandwiches, scones and musically-inspired cakes as a nod to the performances that have taken place on stage. Music lovers can also combine the meal with a guided tour of the hall. Our guest writer Elena Kryvunda tells us more about her recent visit to Royal Albert Hall.

My husband is a big music lover, so we couldn’t miss an invitation to visit one of London’s landmarks: the Royal Albert Hall for a guided tour and Afternoon Tea. We were delighted to take a look behind the scenes of one of the most important concert halls and the venue of the world’s leading artists from Richard Wagner to the Beatles and the Queen.

We chose a Sunday for our visit, which started with a 1-hour tour of the hall. Our friendly guide, who has worked for Royal Albert Hall for many years, showed us the royal areas, the outstanding auditorium and a part of the artist soundcheck section. It was a breathtaking experience! We were also lucky to hear a marvellous choir of almost a 1,000 voices practice during our tour.

We were surprised to discover that for many years the Hall had a acoustic problems resulted from its dome and causing echoes. In 1969, nearly a century after its opening, the Royal Albert Hall engineers managed to solve the problems using large diffusing discs (known as “mushrooms”) installed below the ceiling.

The tour of the Royal Albert Hall certainly whetted our appetite for the Afternoon Tea experience.

At the Royal Albert Hall, the tradition of High Tea has been observed for over 100 years, even serving royalty. The tradition continues  today with a music flair added to a classic offering.

Guests can expect a traditional menu of sandwiches, scones and cakes served with tea and / or Champagne. The tea selection offers around 13 blends; we ordered a Darjeeling FTGFOP and Assam TGFOP blends with distinctive flavours that paired perfectly with food delights to come.

To treat ourselves, we decided to start the Afternoon Tea experience with a glass of delicious Laurent-Perrier Champagne. The high tea atmosphere at Royal Albert Hall, excellent champagne combined with impeccable service made us feel like royalty right at the beginning!

The food is served on a traditional three-tiered silver stand. The menu combines a selection of musically-inspired cakes as a nod to the legendary concerts that take place on the Hall’s stage. Vegan options are also available.

The savoury dish at the bottom features classic finger sandwiches and mini-rolls: cucumber, cream cheese and mint, smoked salmon blini, egg mayonnaise, british honey roasted ham, mustard and rocket and coronation chicken.

The sweet part at the top was made up of gorgeous cakes: afternoon tea cake, raspberry and white chocolate éclair, hazelnut dacquoise, coffee opera, strawberry Victoria sponge, almond and raspberry financier domes and classic lemon tart. Irresistible!

The main part is of course reserved to freshly home-baked scones, a must in every English tea!  Served with strawberry jam and clotted cream, the scones deserved our special admiration and were a culmination of our food experience.

Guests with a sweet tooth can pick more treats from the cake trolley, which features marble, banana, carrot and lemon drizzle cakes.