Afternoon Tea in Edinburgh: Choosing the Room, Not Just the Menu

About Afternoon Tea in Edinburgh

Afternoon tea in Edinburgh has a particular setting: the city’s two grand railway hotels were built at the start of the twentieth century, and they sit at either end of Princes Street within sight of Edinburgh Castle. The tea itself follows the classic pattern, with sandwiches, scones with cream and jam, and cakes. What changes from room to room is the architecture around it, and in Edinburgh that is the reason to go.

What Afternoon Tea Is, Properly

Afternoon tea is a light meal taken between about four and five o’clock. It is traditionally served on a tiered stand: sandwiches below, scones with clotted cream and jam in the middle, and sweet cakes above. The custom is credited to Anna, Duchess of Bedford, in the 1830s and 1840s.

Edinburgh high tea is a different thing. High tea began as a heartier early-evening meal, with savoury dishes in place of a tier of cakes. Many visitors who search for Edinburgh high tea are in fact looking for the afternoon tea described above, and the two names are used loosely in the city. The practical test is to ask what is on the stand, and at what hour it is served.

Two Railway Hotels on Princes Street

The best afternoon tea Edinburgh offers is, in our view, defined by two rooms.

The Balmoral. Opened in 1902 as a railway hotel beside Waverley Station, the Balmoral stands at the east end of Princes Street within sight of the castle. Its clock tower is famously set three minutes fast so that passengers would not miss their trains. Afternoon tea is served in the hotel’s Palm Court, under a glass dome.

The Caledonian. At the west end of Princes Street, the Caledonian railway hotel, opened in 1903, now trades as Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh — The Caledonian. Afternoon tea is served in Peacock Alley.

The two hotels are about the width of the city centre apart, which makes the choice partly a matter of the day’s plan: the Balmoral suits a morning in the Old Town or on the Royal Mile, and the Caledonian suits an afternoon in the West End.

Choosing a Sitting

A sitting is chosen by the occasion.

A celebration wants a table in the main room, a time agreed in advance, and a note to the kitchen about the occasion. A quiet meeting wants the less crowded hour, usually the later one. A group wants a table of the right size, and those are the first to run out.

Dietary requirements are the second constraint. Gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan afternoon teas are usually possible in luxury hotels, but they need to be requested when the booking is made rather than on the day.

Timing and Season

Edinburgh is busiest in August, when the festivals fill the city, and again around Hogmanay. Tables for the best afternoon tea in Edinburgh are booked well in advance at those times, and a booking made on arrival is unlikely to work.

The rest of the year is easier, but the popular weekend sittings still fill, and the better table by a window goes first. Our guide to the best afternoon tea in London follows the same logic for a larger city.

Where to Start

• Choose the room. The Balmoral and the Caledonian offer two different Edinburghs. Decide which one you want to sit in
• Pick the hour. Mid-afternoon is the classic time. Later sittings are quieter
• Decide on the occasion. A birthday, a meeting, and a quiet pause each want a different table
• Request what you need at booking. Dietary needs, a note for the kitchen, and the size of the party are all easier before the day

Around the Tea

Afternoon tea is rarely the whole day. Our fine dining and nightlife service arranges the dinner afterwards, and our business concierge team handles itineraries for clients visiting the city.

How We Help

Perfect.Live chooses the room for the day, holds the table in the right part of the room, passes on dietary requirements and any occasion to the kitchen, and arranges the car to and from. We also arrange the dinner afterwards, so that the sitting is a pause in a longer plan.