Mad Hatter's Tea at the Sanderson Hotel, London

When I was younger, used to love Alice in Wonderland. I’m not really sure why now, but I was especially obsessed with the 2010 film, which I watched over and over. In fact, loved it so much that my fourth grade birthday party was Alice in Wonderland-themed, complete with an Alice in Wonderland cake. So when I watched a buzzfeed worth it UK video that featured a Mad Hatter-themed afternoon tea at the Sanderson Hotel, I just knew I had to achieve my childhood dreams when I visited London.

The hotel itself is very sleek and clean, and we were seated in the courtyard area was light and airy, filled with lots of natural light and plants, to emulate sitting in a garden indoors. It was very serene and a very relaxing place to have afternoon tea. You could barely tell that you’re in the middle of London. 

Next, you’re presented with a menu, which is concealed inside a book, which is a cool touch. There aren’t many choices to make here, so the menu contained the items that you get with your tea, as well as options to upgrade to a champagne or rose tea, or if you wanted to order a cocktail.

Even their bespoke teas are Alice in Wonderland themed, with flavors such as Mad Hatter, Queen of Hearts, Alice, and Cheshire Cat, and are presented in tiny potion-esque bottles for you to smell before selecting.

Look how cute even the box of sugar is. You can tell they really put a lot of effort into the decor and atmosphere.

And then our cake stands arrived, loaded with goodies that kept with the Alice in Wonderland theme. Fitting with the whole Alice in wonderland theme, there was a refreshing fruity “potion,” which was unique The savories included smoked salmon scotch quails egg with caviar and cream cheese, a mini stacked ham and parmesan croque-monsieur which is basically a fancier version of grilled ham and cheese, crab brioche roll with spiced avocado, which is like a mini lobster roll, but with crab, and a cucumber and cream cheese sandwich on pesto bread. 

I really liked all of the savories, as they were a departure from the standard tea sandwiches. Even the least exciting-sounding sandwich, the cucumber and cream cheese, had a slight twist on it with the pesto bread. My favorite was probably the scotch egg, with the perfectly cooked egg, the crispy coating, the slight dab of cream cheese, and salty, briny caviar is pretty much everything I love in savory food. Honestly, I’m not sure why scotch eggs haven’t caught on in America yet. 

The sweets included a rose and strawberry jammy dodger, chocolate truffles, mushroom marshmallow, and a carrot-shaped meringue, a mocha chessboard gateau, a vanilla and berry jam cake, and some sort of tart with a chocolate crust. Out of all the sweets, my absolute favorite was the jammy dodger, as the biscuit itself was deliciously buttery and soft and quickly melted in your mouth, and the jam was sweet and slightly floral. 

There were also some warm scones with jam and clotted cream served on the side that I somehow forgot to take pictures of, that were pretty good. I mean, it’s very, VERY difficult for me to dislike scones. 

Afterwards, as a final parting course, you get a little flowerpot of ice cream. Due to my nut allergy, instead of normal hazelnut ice cream with cookie crumble, I got raspberry sorbet, with shards of crunchy sweet honeycomb and an edible flower. It was very refreshing, and especially enjoyable after all the rich and decadent treats I had just consumed. 

I really enjoyed my afternoon tea at the Sanderson hotel. The serene, relaxing atmosphere, as well as the delicious and inventive treats are sure to whisk you away to Wonderland, if only for an afternoon.