Afternoon tea at Castle Howard

20th December 2025

I have one word to describe this afternoon tea….magical. Let us begin by describing the setting. It was a cold dark late December weekend but that didn’t stop us marvelling at the beauty and grandeur of the impressive Castle Howard estate. The Castle has been around since early 1800’s and has been used in many TV shows and films, most famous of which is probably the Duke of Hastings home in the Netflix series Bridgerton. Whilst any visit on any day would make it a stunning location spot for afternoon tea it was made even more magical due to the “Christmas at Castle Howard with the wonderful Wizard of Oz” event. Each room on the house tour was stunningly decorated to re-tell the beloved story of the Wizard of Oz. There were props such as the original silver slippers as well audio dramas, lights, projections and a yellow brick road of course. It made the day feel even more special and would highly recommend combining the two events for a perfect day out – whether you are with family or friends.

After the wonderful Wizard of Oz house tour we headed to the Grecian hall for our afternoon tea experience. So far this has been my absolute favourite room to have afternoon tea in. The stone floor, grecian inspired columns and wall arches containing marble statues gave it an old world feel that felt classical and elegant. But the best part of the room, the roaring fire surrounded by fairy lights and garlands. It was the perfect addition to a winter afternoon tea. Only thing missing would have been some classical music playing in the background to really add to the atmosphere.

One thing that really impressed me was the tea selection. It pains me to admit that I struggle to enjoy an english breakfast tea, but I need not have feared for there was a wide range of teas to choose from. I went for the red berry and flower fruit tea which was warming and very delicious – the perfect drink for the afternoon tea. But I can’t just stop there, to really feel special one must also have a glass of sparkling wine, those are the rules. The Nyetimber English sparkling wine was one of the best sparkling wines I’ve tasted, it was sweet but had enough dryness to feel like a good quality drink. It did England proud. My only criticism would be there was no hot chocolate options on the menu, which I’ll admit I’m quite partial to, but there were plenty of soft drinks for the children or caffeine free amongst you.

And now to the food….it was in a word, exquisite. I have to say the presentation of the afternoon tea was simple, your basic 3 tier stand and no further decoration that matched the splendour of the room, but the food more than made up for it. The gammon and spiced mango chutney sandwich was the best sandwich I’ve yet had at an afternoon tea, and the coronation chicken was also a stand out sandwich. Then we moved on to the scones. Firstly I was delighted at the inclusion of a mini savoury scone, I always feel afternoon teas are missing a trick by not including one sweet and one savoury scone as savoury scones can be creative and absolutely delicious. Secondly I think the buttermilk vanilla scone is by far the best scone I have yet had, baked to perfection and that hit of vanilla combined with the jam and cream was mouth-watering. Not to mention this is one of the few places that actually provided enough jam and cream to really go to town spreading it on the scone, just the way I like it. And finally we get to the top tier, the sweets. In a first ever I have given full marks for this because I actually cannot find anyway to improve upon it. Each sweet had the delicateness of fine patisserie, but was inventive and used the flavours of the season. It was fresh, it was creative, it was well presented, the right size and most importantly absolutely delicious!

I can’t add any more except to say this was one of the most enjoyable afternoon teas I’ve had. The location alone is worth visiting, the room for afternoon tea is the right atmosphere, the food and drink is exceptional and the Wizard of Oz tour is a must for any fans. Can’t recommend this enough to all you afternoon tea lovers.

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