Tea has been an obsession of mine since vacationing in the UK in 2009. My husband and I had the opportunity to have High Tea with his elderly relatives while we were visiting them in England. Of course it was not as extravagant as the picture posted above but we had our share of biscuits and loose leaf tea (from a Tea Pot! No mug with a bag fresh out of the microwave) at a little Inn around the corner from their home. When we got back to the States I began a quest to find Tea houses in Charlotte and with much luck I found many! Here I am sharing a few of my favorites as well as one I have not had a chance to try yet!
The Ballantyne Hotel
Oh Ballantyne how I love thee. I have vowed to one day take up permanent residence at this place but my first “Tea” experience happened on a surprise overnight mom-cation arranged by my husband when my daughter was 7 months old. Alan is so sweet he secretly packed my bags and you can imagine the laugh I had when I opened it up and saw that he had even packed my breast pump!Anyways back to the good stuff, Ballantyne’s Afternoon Tea service is awesome with a capital A! Hosted in the hotel lobby with linen covered tables and plush seating you are treated to a Pot of Tea with your flavor of choice as well as a variety of mini sandwiches, cakes, cookies and chocolate dipped strawberries. Maybe a glass of Champagne for good measure. I have made this a yearly tradition since it is way too big of a splurge to have on a regular basis. My husband and I came for Valentine’s day last year with our daughter in tow and miss Natalie even had five start treatment with a provided highchair, heart shaped PB&J sandwich and her very own tea pot of apple juice! Definitely worth the splurge!
http://www.theballantynehotel.com/documents/2013AfternoonTea.pdf
Tealightful Teaparties
I attended a Mother’s day Tea with a group of ladies from church last year at Tealightful and I felt like I stepped back in time! This is a cutesy little Tea house in the Matthews Mint Hill area and if you want a traditional Victorian inspired Tea this is the place for you! They have an afternoon Tea spread that can be reserved by appointment or you can drop in for something to eat off their lunch menu.
http://tealightful-teaparties.com/
Chantilly’s Tea room
I’m not gonna lie, I eat here once a week! Located near downtown Gastonia Chantilly’s is more of a restaurant than a Tea house. Their hours are limited from 11:00 to 2:00 but they can sure pack a punch on their lunch menu! Great prices, good food and kid friendly! Natalie is my girls day out buddy whenever we come here and they are always so overjoyed to see little faces! I’m a regular:)
http://www.chantillystearoom.com/
Savannah’s room
I recently read about Savannah’s in a parenting magazine during the holidays but have yet to go and try it. Savannah’s is located in Ft. Mill so if anyone beats me to it let me know what you think!
Put Afternoon Tea on your to do list and if you know of any other places in the Charlotte area that offer a traditional Tea feel free to chime in! Rumor has it Omni hotel and Ritz Carlton in Uptown host Tea.
Enjoy!
Jacquie
Bar Cocoa at the Ritz Carlton also does afternoon tea!
Yay!! That will have to be on my next Tea outing! Thanks for the suggestion!
Ooh! Sounds fun!
Thank you for this. We eat at Chantilly’s but I have been looking with little luck for a Real Tea and had trouble finding one. I will check out your suggestions. Thanks!
Tea at the Ritz during Holidays was awesome. So many to pick from.