London: The Muffin Man tea room in Kensington

We were keen to have high tea in London but some are terribly expensive.  So it was a happy coincidence that when looking at our hotel in Kensington, we found that high tea was offered at the nearby Muffin Man.  We found it is always busy and for a good reason.  Excellent British food served between large hotels and the fashionable Kensington High Streets are bound to attract the crowds.

It was quite a small space.  So small in fact that, as there were no bookings, those seeking a table often had to queue outside, sunshine or rain.  On the afternoon we went there we had been at Camden Market and we had to queue.  When the waitress came to the door to tell us it was a 10-15 minute wait, I went back to the hotel to drop off my backpack of purchases.  By the time I returned, Sylvia had just been seated at a table.

The tea room had small round tables, framed black and white photos, and views of Kensington's red brick Victorian flats.  I assume the photos recorded the history of Kensington, one of the more upmarket areas of London. 

We ordered the 3 Tier Afternoon Tea for 2, costing 33.50 pounds.  It comprised a glass of prosecco, a coffee or pot of tea, 3 finger sandwiches, scones with jam and cream, and 4 assorted mini cakes.  As we did not want prosecco they offered us a cold drink, and we had a large glass of orange juice each.  The tea menu we could choose from was extensive.  Sylvia chose the jasmine tea and I chose the rosehip.  I was pleased to see they were all loose leaf.

On the bottom tier we had finger sandwiches.  We were able to choose which ones we wanted and of course we ordered the vegetarian options: Cucumber, Tomato and Ploughmans.  

Sylvia had not had a Ploughman's sandwich before, comprising Branston pickle, cheese and cucumber, and she was not so keen on the pickle.  I love them and was happy to swap some tomato sandwiches for them.  We both enjoyed the cucumber.  

The bread was fresh and not soggy, which is essential for me if I am to enjoy any sandwiches.  They were served with rocket which was a nice addition to the tomato and cucumber sandwiches.

The middle tier was Scones with Strawberry Jam and Devon Cream.  I was surprised that the scones were toasted - perhaps the easiest way to heat them.  But not the usual way to eat scones.  The jam tasted of fruit, which means not processed so much that all you could taste was sugar.  The cream was so thick it clung to the spoon and could just about be cut with a knife, like a good clotted cream.

When in answer to my question I was told that we were randomly given cakes, I asked the waitress for some chocolate cakes.  Sylvia was unhappy that we got three chocolate cakes and one lemon.  So I confessed to the waitress I had just been thinking of myself and that Sylvia would prefer another cake that was not chocolate.  

The cakes were very light with lots of cream fillings and toppings.  We ended up with the lemon cake, a chocolate layer cake, a creamy fudgy chocolate cake, and a berry roulade.  Sylvia loved them but I was less keen.  I liked the slices of strawberries on them.  They were very British.  Note the London Tube icon on top of the tier of plates.

Of course I did wonder about how I had a daughter who loved cakes with lots of cream and not chocolate!  Then I discovered that she also preferred to eat her scones with the jam on top of the cream.  Who was this child!  That is not how things have ever been done in our family so I can't imagine what possessed her.  Unless it was that she realised it makes a good photo!  And to be fair my siblings all liked cream more tha me.

When we finished, Sylvia decided that she would like a serve of the tomato soup to take back to the hotel room to have for dinner later.  She loved the food so much that she wanted to try more.  We stood by the display cabinet of cakes with the tiered plates on top and watched the room while they got it together for her.  She ended up having an early dinner so it was warm and loved the soup.

By the time we finished our high tea, it was getting dark.  From the outside the tea room looked so cosy and welcoming (once they let you in when there was a free table).  Sylvia went there again with my sister Chris for cafe lattes.  If we had had time, I would have loved breakfast or lunch there but we had paid for hotel breakfasts and did not need somewhere near by for daytime meals.  But it was lovely to walk by each day and remember our delicious high tea that we had early in our week in London.  Each time I tried not to sing "have you seen the muffin man?" to Sylvia but occasionally I just could not help myself!

The Muffin Man
12 Wrights Lane, London, W8 6TA
Open: Mon-Thur 9am-5pm and Fri-Sun 9am-6pm
www.themuffinmanteashop.co.uk