Last month I was given the opportunity to meet with a wonderful group of bloggers over afternoon tea and champers – how could I say no?

After meeting the ever-so-lovely Selena from Oh, the places we will go! during our MSC Splendida European cruise late last year, I discovered she puts together regular afternoon tea events in London for bloggers to meet up and network. Never shying away from a chance to eat cake (and meet new people of course!) I jumped on the train to attend the latest afternoon tea gathering, which took place at the Milestone Hotel, directly opposite Kensington Park.

With its unassuming front I actually missed the hotel’s entrance and instead found myself wandering around a beautiful square nearby, which I discovered was home to several random embassies including Belarus, Mongolia and Azerbaijan. After my little stroll I found my way back to the hotel, wandered into the reception, which oozed old school sophistication with all its wood panelling, and was directed to the private room we were given for our gathering.

I actually find it quite daunting to walk into a room of strangers, however, the lovely blogging ladies were all so welcoming that I felt at home in no time and later that day I left feeling like I’d made some new friends. I’m sure the glass of champagne helped too! Our private room is usually used as a conference area, but for our special event they’d arranged the room with four big circular tables, and I have to say, replete with chandeliers and more wooden panelling, I thought it was quite lovely.

Afternoon tea at the Milestone Hotel, London

The company and conversation was great, but sadly the food and drink was at times slightly lacking. It wasn’t that there was anything specifically wrong with the tea, but rather that it didn’t really stand out.

For example, rather than being given a menu of teas to choose from, we had the option of either English breakfast tea or Earl Grey. It tasted fine, and we were regularly topped up by our lovely waiter and waitress (the service was great), but a few more options wouldn’t have gone amiss.

On the plus side they had no issue at all with special requests so as a picky eater I was really happy with the fact that they brought me out a selection of sandwiches without the sauces I didn’t like. The salmon was delicious, however the ham looked to be packet, processed meat, and I would expect higher quality to come out for afternoon tea!

The food was displayed beautifully, though, and we loved the story behind the chicken mayo sandwiches. These were circular and had been rolled in almonds. These were made just so on the request of the owner’s children, and guests liked them so much that they became a mainstay of the hotel’s afternoon tea offering.

Scones and sweets

My highlight of the tea were the scones. There was a selection of both plain and fruit scones on offer and they were warm and sweet, so they went down a treat! Although I didn’t really delve into the sweets (I snuck in an extra scone instead) there was a good variety on the top tier and some original ideas including mini red velvet cakes and a meringue sandwich filled with chocolate sauce and topped with toffee popcorn.

A good choice for afternoon tea in London?

Overall the afternoon tea was fine and the service was grand. I wouldn’t tell someone not to go to the Milestone, however, with such a great selection of afternoon tea venues available in the capital it may have to up its game in order to beat some of its competition.

The day itself was wonderful though and it was a real pleasure to meet with a new group of fellow bloggers including Jade from Earth to Jade, Jenna from 25 before I’m 25, Fiona from London Unattached and Danielle from Chicadeedee. A big thanks goes to Selena for all her work in arranging these events and I look forward to seeing my new friends and making more at the next #LDNBloggersTea.

The regular price for Afternoon Tea with Champagne at The Milestone Hotel is £46. We were offered a discounted rate of £30 per person for our tea.