Taking place on the 31st floor of the Shard, this exquisite afternoon tea will whisk you away to P.L. Travers’ imaginary world.
Head to Aqua Shard for incredible, panoramic views of London, and a supercalifragilisticexpialidocious afternoon tea experience. The tea is served on a custom-made tea stand – with an umbrella on top and silver boots to hold it steady – and the plates and teacups are decorated with Mary Shepard’s original illustrations for Mary Poppins.
The savoury selection will include traditional finger sandwiches (e.g. Cackleberry egg and black truffle, Dingley Dell honey roast ham and mustard, and dressed Devon crab and cucumber brioche), and mini crumpets – which are Mary Poppins’ favourite – served with Scottish smoked salmon and cream cheese. [See our full guide to restaurants at the Shard.]
Afterwards, you’ll be invited to dive into Mary’s carpet bag for some sweet treats, including: Mrs Brill’s homemade scones with jam and clotted cream; a beautiful ‘Strike Me Pink’ Sponge; a cherry and chocolate Poppins hat; and some “Fairground” Candy Floss.
“Something is brewing, about to begin.”
But in this case, rather than a storm, it’s a nice cuppa tea. Two bespoke teas have been created especially for the occasion: Mary’s Tea, which is a magnificient blend of Darjeeling, Ceylon, Keeman and rose petals; and Bert’s Tea, which is a combination of Souchong, Keemun, Ceylon, vanilla and cornflower. You can also opt to upgrade your experience with a cheeky bit of fizz. Champagne flutes will be garnished with a little kite, and you can choose to add a drop of “medicine” to your glass, a.k.a. lime cordial, strawberry or rum punch liqueur (and don’t worry, you’ll get your fair share of sugar to help the medicine go down).
Location: Aqua Shard, 31st Floor, The Shard, 31 St Thomas Street, SE1 9RY. See it on Google maps.
Opening hours: every day from 1–5pm. Available until April 2019.
Entry: £49 per person (£66 with a glass of Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label Champagne or £72 with a glass of Veuve Clicquot Rosé.)
Find out more and book: on the Aqua Shard website.