The Langham Sydney

It’s all about the service here in this plush room of muted blues, where Friday afternoons are regularly booked out for tea, scones and cakes. A fixture of the hotel group since 1865, afternoon tea involves soft little finger sandwiches of salmon, ham and cucumber and tiny little chicken and leek pies. Vegetarian? They’re happy to do a little juggling and supply extra scones as well as sandwiches filled with cheese and tomato, and another of eggplant. Sweets-wise, there are the aforementioned scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream, squares of chocolate fudge, tiny banofee pies and miniature layer cakes. The tea selection is modest, but nicely curated – many of the blends made specifically for the Langham. There are also the Tiffin Prince and Princess teas, where kids play royalty for a day with a menu of marshmallows, jelly cups and cookies, and the mystic afternoon teas – have your tea leaves read and your fortune told. We predict cake sweats.