Afternoon tea is such a delight. In fact, tea at any time of day is lovely. My grandparents had one of those Teasmade gadgets that made them freshly brewed tea at 7.30 a.m. every morning. My grandfather added at least three cubes of sugar to his cup. It was so sweet and delicious. His was the first tea I tried. My Dad’s mum was a big tea drinker, too. She took hers in the afternoon with a pack of Karelia lights. When we were children, afternoon tea was a whole other meal at my Dad’s house. There were egg sandwiches with shortbread and coconut squares. Even in height-of-summer Greece we’d stop for afternoon tea, only afternoon was more like 6.30 p.m. There we’d have our tea with homemade sponge cake and Papadopoulou Supermarket’s finest packed biscuits. These days, a cup of tea is usually on the run. It’s rarely in fancy porcelain, and there are never petit fours. It’s s a shame, for many reasons, not least because my cupboards are crammed with beautiful cups. At my wedding shower, a splendid afternoon tea hosted by my mother-in-law at the King Eddie, every person invited brought me a teacup. So, there’s no excuse, really. It’s high time I brought back afternoon tea!
