Original Maids of Honour Tea Room and Kew Gardens, Surrey

I was delightfully surprised to find the Original Maids of Honour near Kew Gardens was included in this book, The Great Tea Rooms of Britain! It is pictured on the cover and is one of six or so London tea rooms selected.

Last summer, while in London, we made a point of going out to Kew Gardens and decided, of course, to have tea that day. We located a nearby tea room for our afternoon tea. It was perfect!

That day was particularly rainy, so it was lovely to sit inside and drink hot tea. The scones were the best I’d had in London and the Maids of Honour cakes were a pleasant surprice. The establishment’s name and claim to fame are derived from its history of producing these local cakes, so we had to try them with our tea. And we were not disappointed. Here is a recipe for the local cake (round pastry pictured on the book cover above). If you are ever in London for any length of time, do go out to Kew Gardens. You won’t regret it. And sit for a spell at the Original Maids of Honour and enjoy tea and treats!