Only available on weekends, this is a cozy option perfect for whiling away an afternoon people-watching on the King’s Road. Go for the cakes: hazelnut and coffee, a rich chocolate sponge, blackcurrant choux, and apple and cinnamon tartlets. Stay for an espresso martini at the buzzy bar.

An eccentric Georgian drawing room–cum-drinking den sets the scene for tea at Marylebone’s Zetter Townhouse. The finger sandwiches here are filled with sloe gin–glazed ham, and there’s a Lincolnshire pork pie served with old-school piccalilli. It’s worth exploring the tea-infused cocktail menu, which uses ingredients like chamomile syrup and apricot and elderflower tinctures.

Famous for its mint-striped bone china, Claridge’s takes afternoon tea seriously. Proceedings might start with champagne, but the main event is the tea itself. There’s a white silver tip from the Fujian mountains in China, plus a prized Malawian antler. Cultivated a little closer to home is an Earl Grey from Tregothnan, a walled tea garden in Cornwall. As tradition dictates, cucumber sandwiches are served on a soft white bread, while ham is spruced up with smoked tomato chutney on rye. After, take a stroll along New Bond Street for some of London’s smartest shops.

Proceedings here start with a palate-cleansing lemon posset and a glass of Laurent-Perrier Brut and end with wild strawberry and pistachio cream macarons. In between, there’s truffle duck egg sandwiches, smoked salmon and asparagus on a rye cracker, and plenty of scones. For something a little different, try the peppered beef pastrami and Red Leicester coleslaw on caraway and cocoa bread. Served in the sparkling Palm Court, this is a full-on tea, so arrive hungry.

The Ritz serves what is arguably London’s ultimate afternoon tea in the show-stopping Palm Court. And although you won’t find anything terribly unexpected on the menu, you can’t fault it. Tea at the Ritz is a smart affair: Jackets and ties are a requirement for gentlemen, while sneakers and jeans will be turned away at the door. Try the chai, crafted in-house by the hotel’s master of tea. Book well in advance.

The Piccadilly department store is synonymous with tea; it has been sourcing some of the world’s best for over 300 years. The queen herself opened the Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon in 2012, and the tea selection is vast. Make the most of the F&M tea sommeliers, who will help you decide on the perfect pot for your palate. There’s a savory menu (as well as the classic sweet) dished up on crisp white linens and duck-egg-blue china, with lemon and dill scones and eggs Drumkilbo, reportedly a favorite of the late Queen Mother, which pairs hard-boiled eggs with lobster and prawns.

The splashy Ham Yard is the creation of interior designer Kit Kemp, and the tea itself is served in the contemporary ceramic crockery range she designed for Wedgwood. The menu changes weekly, but it’s always a creative take on the traditional: think chorizo sausage rolls, duck liver pate crostini, and sweet favorites like mini red velvet cupcakes and salted caramel teacakes. They also do a mean hot chocolate if the specialty teas aren’t for you. Afterwards, explore the rooftop garden, full-size cinema, and original ’50s bowling alley imported from Texas.

Part of the Soho House group, this is the London member with the least pretense. Afternoon tea comes with authentic pastel-pretty Battenberg and lemon drizzle cakes as well as the requisite scones and finger sandwiches. If you’re after something a little more substantial, high tea is also on the menu: Its classic fare includes fish fingers; Welsh rarebit; Scotch duck egg; and ham, egg, and chips.

Barman Ryan Chetiyawardana’s cocktails are legendary, and each course of the Dandelyan tea is paired with a different one. Savories include a leek and goat cheese rarebit and elderflower pressed cucumber sandwiches with burnt herb cream. Try the Fluff & Fold Royale, a cocktail with lime, fresh basil, orange bitters, and cacao liqueur to go with the sweets. This is probably the only afternoon tea in London with no scones on the menu, but luckily there are views of the Thames plus lemon verbena and blackberry–flavored Battenberg cake to take your mind off that.

Earl Grey is served in Art Deco–style pots to match the slick wood panelling and olive-green leather booths at the Ace, East London’s coolest design hotel. Waiters in Breton stripes present lemon tarts and chocolate fancies on a cool cake stand rather than the normal tiers. And if you want a top-up of anything, the staff will happily oblige.