St. James Restaurant

We enjoyed a wonderful High Tea experience at the Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon (formerly the St. James Restaurant) back in April. The newly renovated restaurant was beautiful, open and airy, and very comfortable. Service was impeccable, and the afternoon flowed nicely.
Through OpenTable, we secured a reservation for 4PM on a Friday (two weeks in advance), and had no issues upon arrival — we were seated within minutes of checking in. High Tea includes a small, hot entrée at the beginning, followed by the scones and cakes. For entrees, we had the lobster omelette and cheese soufflé, both of which were rich and delicious.
There was a slight error when the desserts came, though. With High Tea, the finger sandwiches are omitted, and you just get the scones, cakes, jam, and clotted cream. Instead, they brought over the Afternoon Tea caddy (with sandwiches) and one of the jams was wrong. The waitress came by and saw the error, and asked if we wanted to swap out the sandwiches for macaroons, but we just said it was fine and not to worry about it. She brought them out anyway which was nice, plus that meant we got to sample everything!
My absolute favorite was the scones with apricot jam and clotted cream. I could’ve eaten a whole tower of just that. The cakes were super rich, but very good. The finger sandwiches were light and tasty, with my favorite being the salmon.
We each ordered a different premium black tea, and they were simply fabulous, very fragrant and smooth. And all the while, a pianist played popular music in the lobby: the perfect ambiance.
Highly recommended — an experience not to be missed!

Came in the winter of 2009 and enjoyed a wonderful afternoon tea here. It set the bar high for all other tea experiences, which have yet to surpass F&M’s. Service, quality of food + tea were spectacular. Hope it hasn’t changed in the last few years. If it is the same as when I was there — you will love it!

After looking up several places, we decided to go to F&M’s St. James Restaurant for traditional Afternoon Tea. We were able to make reservations through
and when we were delayed in coming back from Windsor Castle, a quick phone call was able to hold our reservation.
We did have to wait a bit when we did finally arrive, understandble since we were late. We were seated in about ten minutes in a comfortable set of loveseats in a beautiful seafoam-​green. Our server came by quickly and took our tea orders. We all decided on the traditional high tea, complete with their particular blends of tea. I had Earl Grey, as it is my absolute favorite.
When taking tea, one always thinks a bit of scones with cream and jam, cookies, and mini sandwiches do not make for a complete meal, but it does, rest assured! Our tea came with three tea sandwiches (a chicken curry, roast beef, and traditional cucumber and watercress), a blini with smoked salmon, two scones (one plain, one raisin), a fruit cake, a linzer tart, plus many mini little desserts served by the servers on a tray. I cannot remember all the types, but I picked the sticky toffee pudding, my mom had the mandarin cheesecake, a nd my cousin the peanut butter-​caramel chocolate thing. Along with these goodies, your server will ask if you’d like any more sandwiches, so we did partake in more blinis, since they were the perfect bite. Also, to start they served gourges filled with a creamy cheese filling.
The tea absolutely hit the spot and gave us a chance to sit and relax after a day of being tourists. Afterwards, we were able to shop a bit in the amazing food floors downstairs and bring home some of the tea we drank. Definitely a lovely experience, highly suggested to everyone visiting.

I went here with the family for some good old British afternoon tea. The service was quick, the sandwiches were tasty, and the list of teas is pretty long. Eat as much as you want as they will keep bringing sandwiches until you cant walk out the door. The desserts were good as well. Again keep eating and if you run out they will bring you more! Try a jug of Mint Refresher if you want something different.
The restaurant is nice and bright. It is a great tourist experience and I will be back again.
Make reservations if you don’t want to wait during busier times. Also leave sometime to explore the store on the ground level.

I have always wanted to have tea here and i achieved this yesterday, we has a reservation for 17:30 but we arrived early and after explaining to their Maitre d, he brought forward our reservation to accommodate us.
The service was attentive once served we were left to enjoy our high tea in the peaceful surroundings of the restaurant. the staff seem to keep an eye on the proceedings and are quick to enquire if we required more sandwiches, cakes and beverages. This may not be on par with the Ritz, but then it doesn’t cost as much. There sunday roasts also look very inviting so we may be back here soon.

This is the quintessential place to bring a visiting relative for the experience of English High Tea. This week it was done up for Christmas which made the experience all the nicer. The tea was perfect after the cold weather shopping in Mayfair/​Picadilly. They even have a children’s version of the tea with a hot chocolate option for children whom do not like tea. It is not cheap but is one of those ‘must do once’ experiences in London. Mom (from LA) loved it.

We went for lunch, for the Christmas season. In retrospect, tea would have been a better choice. The setting is beautiful and the service impeccable. The food was O.K.
We had the hare and the Christmas Turkey. The trimming were very tasty though they forgot to bring us cranberry, and the turkey was extremely cooked. Thank goodness for the gravy which was good. We had the salmon starter, extremely salty. We finished with the Christmas pudding rich but nice.
I would go back but for tea, the service looked wonderful. Reservations can be made at Open Table and right now it’s 1000 points for this location.

I love the St. James’ for their scones and cream. I cannot resist asking for seconds, having duly missed my flight recently.

We went to Fortnum and Mason because we heard it was absolutely the best. This is FAR from the best. Service is sub-​par. The food was not that tasty. I have experienced better at the Dorchester and The Brown. My favortie continues to be The Brown. Do not waste your time at the St. James.

After having a bad afternoon tea experience at Le Meridian the day before, my wife and I were so looking for a wonderful, and highly recommended, afternoon tea experience at St. James Restaurant on the 4^th floor of the wonderful Fortnum and Mason department store. Unfortunately we were disappointed that it still feel that tea at either the Brown (our favorite) or the Dorchester is far superior. The primary hostess was very welcoming and always had a smile on her face. The host that sat us was new and hadn’t mastered the seating chart forcing us to wait to sit until he asked a waiter. We were delight to see three options classic afternoon tea, premium afternoon tea (special tasting of single estate tea), and high tea (warm entrees instead of finger sandwiches). We choose the tea option with the special tasting since the descriptions provided were intriguing.
The first major problem was they didn’t have the three teas (and especially the Radella) and that was «chef’s choice» which we found out only after we asked what samples they brought. Two of the three were not to our taste and the third was just okay. We instead asked them to bring out a nice jasmine tea which was much better than all of them combined. I do not like bait and switch and would have much preferred if they told us up front (with descriptions) and I don’t like the fact that there were a number of teas no longer available but were still on the menu. This is poor planning and customer service.
The finger sandwiches — cucumber, salmon and egg salad — where okay with the curry shrimp sandwich being outstanding. The scones were decent but severely disappointed that the jams came in commercial jars like they pulled them from downstairs. They had a nice desert selection to choose from with the chocolate cake and peach tart being my favorite. The service was very disconnected feeling largely absent (e.g. never checking on our drinks, hot water, etc.) and had to be requested to do anything. Again not what I would expected for the price being paid for the food and the experience.
Bottom line, try the Dorchester or Brown with the later being an easy walking distance (but make reservations) but it is still better than the Le Meridian so if you are Fortnum and Mason and want to give it a try then why not.

A relatively decent place for an experience of afternoon tea in London. Prices for the Classic Afternoon Tea were moderate to a bit pricey, and the physical atmosphere and service were nice. Food and tea were ok as well. Perfect (or dangerous) location as the beautiful Fortnum and Mason shops are conveniently below.
Only big downside was that a big family seated nearby had let their two babies wander around the restaurant, with their strollers, books, toys, and bottles strewn on the floor. The two made noise and kept crawling right under our table (followed by crying when they inevitably hurt themselves). This brought down the experience of «afternoon tea,» but I might give the place another try.

A visit to London wouldn’t be complete without taking in some afternoon tea. Since we were shopping for gifts to take home at Fortnum & Mason, we’ve decided to check out St. James’s Restaurant. I had the high tea while the hubby had fortnum’s classic. The canapé selection was great, i especially loved the cucumber sandwich, confit of salmon and the divine crab tart with saffron and mushroom tart, which, to this day, I still can’t forget. I’ve had no luck recreating that mushroom tart back home. I guess i have to go back here just for that.
The teas were great, of course. but as a dessert lover, i didn’t really like most of the tea cakes. They were kind of dry, like it has been sitting in the kitchen for a day or two.

A bit touristy for afternoon tea, but usually pretty good until my latest visit where I found what is usually a reliable and relaxing afternoon tea to be quite mediocre. Service was a bit sloppy and the once savory sandwiches a bit thrown together. One of my scones was so flat I thought it was a biscuit and was hard. The other scone a bit heavy and too brown at the bottom. I will go back and see if this was just an ‘off’ day, but it was very disappointing.

St. James’s restaurant is on the fourth floor of Fortnum and Mason and is probably the most famous of the five restaurants. They serve traditional British fare, but the restaurant is most popular and well-​known for its afternoon tea.
I’ve gone for afternoon tea a few times and it’s always been such a treat. The restaurant just has this air of sophistication and elegance; it’s the perfect way to spend a calm afternoon. Try to get a table or seats (there are couches as well) by the windows in order to overlook Piccadilly Circus. A pianist plays during afternoon tea, which is really nice and adds to the overall ambiance. There are an interesting mix of people too: lots of under dressed tourists (sneakers to Fortnum and Mason?!) and some London socialites. The female to male ratio is also fairly skewed, not sure if afternoon tea is something that guys typically do (although a guy did recommend Fortnum and Mason to me).
It’s almost £50 per person for tea, which is expensive, but it’s worth the experience. The selections of tea are amazing (Yunnan Gold Needles is my favourite), as are the small sandwiches, scones, and pastries. Everything is canapé sized, so don’t expect to leave feeling full. The portions are more substantial at the Ritz, but then again, it is also a lot more difficult to book a table there.

Meh is right.
In the event that you don’t know any old ladies who will invite you over to their sitting room for tea, the St. James will do nicely. Imagine walking into a large room set up with dozens of your granny’s sofas and arm chairs, complete with lacquered coffee tables and throw pillows. And not in a «kitsch is cool» kind of way.
A business acquaintance in town from LA suggested we meet there for tea. I recommended the Woseley instead (only a few doors down and my favorite tea spot so far), but he needed to pick up some gifts from Fortnum and Mason, so the St. James was more convenient. After about five minutes he looked a little uncomfortable and out of place, as though he was waiting for the etiquette police to rap his knuckles for stirring tea in the wrong direction or something.
The sandwiches were so-​so, the cookies looked like the may have come out of a box, and they didn’t offer to refill our pots with hot water (maybe this is a no-​no, but they do it at the Woseley).
In a city renowned for its afternoon tea, you can do better.

This was my first real British tea experience so far, and it definitely set the bar high for future afternoon teas. Take note, I have not tried any other tea rooms in England before, so I don’t have anything authentic to compare against.
I got the afternoon tea menu without champagne, and being in England, I asked myself, WWHMTQ (what would Her Majesty The Queen) get. Well, the Royal Tea of course. I doubt HM would fuck around with an English tradition, so settled on the safe route of a traditional tea. Then along came the three-​tiered platter with the finger sandwiches, scones, and selection of desserts.
The sandwiches were good, though nothing exception, but still tasty. What knocked me out with a left-​right-​uppercut combo though were the scones. By god Her Majesty would be proud! These were the best scones I have ever had in my pathetic life (in comparison to HMTQ). These were so good, that when the hostess came around to ask if I would like seconds (since i had already obliterated everything on my plate like a greedy American bastard would do), i had to weigh that fact that i was ready to pop buttons, and had an indian dinner in 2 hours. Then I thought again, WWHMTQ do? Well, I’m sure she’d sit up straight, brush off the crumbs on her neatly pressed blouse, and say, «BRING IT ON YOU BRIT!». And so that’s what I said… but in not so many words.
And boy was I happy! Amazing! I left that place like a little school boy who just had his first experience of seeing a girls boob.
Yes, I was happy.
Oh yeah, service was exceptional too, but who really cares about that stuff.

My favorite place to get tea & scrumplies. Don’t miss it.

Expensive pretentious lunch and after-​noon tea restaurant, service is top notch and very comfortable. Spacious, beautifully paintings on the wall and floral arrangements. Even the pillows are all custom hand-​embroidered!
Unfortunately the afternoon tea sandwiches, cakes, and scones are very ordinary and really not worth the price. Tea was bland, not impressive.

This elegant dining room on the fourth floor of Fortnum & Mason is the department store’s most formal restaurant and is renowned for its champagne afternoon tea served from 2.00 to 7.00pm. The menu includes potato and cheese tarts, smoked salmon, an assortment of sandwiches, plain and fruit scones with clotted cream and preserves, pastries, and a selection of either classic or rare teas. Prices range from £30 for the classic teas without champagne to £42 for the rare teas with champagne. At this price this is something you obviously plan only for very special occasions. The glamorous surroundings and impeccable service will make it an event to remember.
From Monday through Saturday the restaurant also offers a two-​course lunch for £28 and a three-​course lunch for £36, and the three-​course Sunday lunch is £28.