It's over, lads. Call off the search. I've found the best afternoon tea in London, and I don't think anything will ever beat it.
Cutter & Squidge, a cake shop in Soho which I absolutely love, has just launched a Potions Room afternoon tea. It's a wizard-themed affair, but don't go mentioning a certain famous wizard and his chums - Cutter & Squidge are adamant, no doubt for copyright reasons, that it's completely unrelated to Harry Potter.
That said, it's hard not to draw parallels. The room - which, until very recently, was home to the Genie's Cave - has more than a touch of Hogwarts to it. Think Great Hall meets Professor McGonagall's classroom, all (faux) brick walls and wooden desks. As you descend down the stairs, pick up your gown and then head into your potions class. Beakers and test tubes await you on your desk, and the lesson begins.
I'll admit, I was slightly dreading this part of it, as I'm not a big fan of audience participation but the actress playing the potions teacher does a fabulous job of putting everyone at ease, with no forced participation or putting anyone on the spot. I'm not allowed to tell you exactly what we got up to, but there was plenty of waving of wands and muttering of spells before the bulk of our food and drink materialised.
I recently had a bad experience of an afternoon tea where all the thought had gone into the presentation, and no effort had been put into the taste. No fear of that here though - Cutter & Squidge delivers perfectly on the food front. My inner afternoon tea fiend is pleased to see things presented on the traditional tiered stand, with sandwiches and scones to start things off. The roast dinner sandwich is an absolute corker, and I have it on good authority that the veggie equivalent is pretty good too. The highlight is the butterscotch biskie - a cookie sandwich of Cutter & Squidge's own creation.
Without giving too much away, the whole experience is perfectly executed, with the ideal amount of theatricality without teetering into the cheesy. The food is first class, and the decor is extremely well thought through.
Love all things Potter? Head to House of MinaLima. It's a five minute walk away from Cutter & Squidge, and has a fantastic free exhibition of artwork from the Harry Potter films.
The Potion Room at Cutter & Squidge, 20 Brewer Street, Soho. £49.50 for adults/£39.50 for children.
Check out the afternoon tea section of this blog for more sarnie and scone reviews and follow me on Twitter and Instagram for up to date pictures.
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