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Afternoon Tea Belfast: 9 Places Dishing Up Tasty Tea In 2024

Afternoon Tea Belfast: 9 Places Dishing Up Tasty Tea In 2024

If you’re looking for the best afternoon tea Belfast has to offer in 2024, you’ve landed in the right place!

As a city with a rich culinary heritage, Belfast is a wonderful place to throw caution to the wind and indulge.

Whether it’s a hearty bowl of Irish stew, a full breakfast or something sweet, Belfast city is a paradise for both local and visiting gourmets.

There’s also plenty of excellent places for afternoon tea in Belfast City Centre and beyond, for those that fancy a mid-day treat. You’ll find the best of the bunch below.

Our favourite places for afternoon tea in Belfast

The first section of our guide is what we think is the best afternoon tea Belfast has to offer. These are places that one or more of The Irish Road Trip Team have been to.

Below, you’ll find everywhere from the swanky Merchant Hotel and Ten Square to the Europa Hotel and more.

1. The Merchant Hotel (from £40.50 p/p)

merchant hotel afternoon tea

Photos via Booking.com

It’s in the award-winning five-star Merchant Hotel that you’ll find what is arguably the most unique afternoon tea Belfast has to offer.

Dished up in the plush Great Room restaurant, the Merchant Hotel afternoon tea is both elegant and delicious – exactly what you’d expect for one of the top 5 star hotels in Belfast.

The affair here is made up of a three-tiered silver stand adorned with finger sandwiches, scones with clotted cream and jam and a decadent range of cakes, pastries and other goodies.

Afternoon tea is served from Sunday to Friday, 12:00 to 16:30 and on Saturday, from 12:30 to 14:30 and 15:00 to 17:00. The traditional menu starts at £40.50 and there’s also a vegan and nut alternative option available.

Related read: Check out of guide to 25 of the best restaurants in Belfast in 2024 (from fine dining to cheap and tasty eats)

2. Ten Square Hotel (from £19.50 p/p)

Ten Square Hotel afternoon tea

Photo via Ten Square Hotel

Taking place in the swanky Loft Bar at the Ten Square Hotel, afternoon tea is an indulgent event at this city-centre mainstay.

Served on three-tiered silver tea-stands, a variety of sweet and savoury nibbles, all homemade, are served alongside a selection of teas or freshly brewed coffee.

The fact that this place offers vegetarian and gluten-free options for afternoon tea only boosts the impeccable reputation of Ten Square.

Ten Square afternoon tea is served every Thursday to Sunday inclusive, from 2pm to 4pm, and costs from £19.50 p/p. If you’re after a boozy afternoon tea in Belfast, there’s also the option of their cocktail afternoon tea (£28.50) and the champagne option (£80).

3. The Fitzwilliam Hotel (from £30.00 p/p)

The Fitzwilliam Hotel afternoon tea

Photo via the Fitzwilliam

The Fitzwilliam is a lovely old place on Great Victoria Street, situated right in front of the Grand Opera House. The afternoon tea at this five-star hotel is, as you might expect, exceptional.

Guests can enjoy seasonally prepared items such as halloumi fries and spiced pork and herb sausage roll.

Then there are the sandwiches, with varieties such as the smoked salmon and cream cheese letting you know that this place does old-school luxury in the best of ways.

Finish up with homemade treats such as macarons, chocolate choux buns and raspberry Bakewells. House prepared scones with jam and cream top the lot off to a tee.

The Fitzwilliam Hotel afternoon tea is served on Saturdays and Sundays from 13:00 to 16:00 costs from £30.00 per person

Related read: Check out of guide to the best brunch in Belfast (or, if you fancy a tipple, the best bottomless brunch in Belfast)

4. Titanic Hotel Belfast (from £29 p/p)

The boutique Titanic Hotel is up there with Belfast’s best and you can feel the quality of this place as you walk in the door. Everything from the furniture down to the uniforms of the staff is first-rate.

The same can be said for the afternoon tea at this city centre hotel, which is taken in the opulent surroundings of Drawing Office Two or the upper Presentation Room.

Begin with pillowy soft sandwiches with a filling of your choice followed by freshly baked scones and crumbly pastries with cream. The lot is served on fine china and your tea is served in a pot.

The Titanic Hotel afternoon tea is served daily, from 12:30 to 16:30 and costs from £29 p/p (note: you need to book 24 hours in advance).

5. The Europa Hotel (from £30 p/p)

Europa hotel afternoon tea

Photos via the Europa

This grand hotel in the heart of the city is pure class and they serve up some of the fanciest afternoon tea Belfast has to offer.

Served in the hotel’s Piano Room, afternoon tea at the Europa is a luxurious affair composed of delicate pastries, scones and sandwiches along with a choice of top-notch blended teas. 

For those who arrive feeling particularly wild, you can even enjoy yours with a glass or two of champagne. The Europe Hotel afternoon tea is served daily, from 14:00 to 17:00 and it starts at £30 p/p.

Popular places for afternoon tea in Belfast City

Now that we have our favourite places for high tea in Belfast out of the way, it’s time to see what else is on offer.

Below, you’ll find some of the other Belfast afternoon tea spots, each of which has racked up rave reviews online.

1. Lamon Hotel (from £25 p/p)

Southeast of Belfast city, Newtownards is a town of almost 30,000 people with a pleasant semi-rural ambience.

The town is home to La Mon Hotel & Country Club, a plush 4-star affair set amid 10 acres of grounds.

As you might expect from such a classy spot, the afternoon tea here is superb. Including all the classics such as scones, sandwiches and homemade patisserie items, the whole thing can be enjoyed in a savoury-only version.

If you’re looking for afternoon tea in Belfast for kids, there’s a children’s option that should suit (there’s also a boozy option accompanied by prosecco). 

Afternoon tea is served Monday to Saturday, from 13:00 to 16:00 and it starts at £25 p/p (note: you need to book in advance).

Related read: Check out of guide to the best breakfast in Belfast (from pancakes and french toast to the traditional Ulster Fry)

2. Maryville House

Maryville House afternoon tea

Photo via Maryville House

Two miles from the city centre just off the A1, Maryville House is an upscale B&B in the classic Victorian mould.

Far from outdated, the decor here is a blend of traditional and modern and it’s widely regarded as one of the best places for afternoon tea in Belfast.

With a selection of hot and cold savoury canapes and sandwiches, guests here can also indulge in Maryville House’s famous homemade scones with jam, clotted cream and hand-whipped butter.

Throw in their homemade petit-fours and you have a treat fit for even the most critical gourmand. Tea is served from 12:00 and is £25 p/p. If you’re looking for some of the more unique afternoon tea Belfast has to offer, give this one a try!

3. AMPM Bohemian Restaurant (from £19.50 p/p)

A real institution on the Belfast dining scene, AMPM serves innovative grub in what can only be described as a magical environment.

The modern-baroque interior at this restaurant might be considered gaudy if it wasn’t executed with such great taste, whilst the afternoon tea is a unique affair too.

Taking place in the AMPM champagne lounge, the afternoon tea here is all about the amazing homemade cakes that come courtesy of the restaurant’s dedicated patisserie team.

Afternoon tea here starts at £19.50 and runs right the way up to £129, depending on what you have, and it is served daily from 14:00 to 16:00.

4. Culloden Hotel (from £35 p/p)

Culloden hotel afternoon tea

Photo via booking.com

If you’re looking for the best afternoon tea in Belfast to mark a special occasion, what’s on offer at the swanky Culloden Hotel may tickle your fancy.

The Bridgerton themed afternoon tea at the Culloden kicks off with a demi-tasse of soup, followed by a beautiful selection of bite-sized sandwiches. This is followed up with plates of warn scones, indulgent jam and lots of cakes and pastries.

There’s a Bridgerton inspired afternoon tea here that costs £35 p/p and that’s served from Wednesday to Sunday from 13:30 to 15:30.

Afternoon tea Belfast: Where have we missed?

I’ve no doubt that we’ve unintentionally left out some brilliant places for high tea in Belfast City Centre and beyond.

If you have a place that you’d like to recommend, let me know in the comments below and I’ll check it out!

FAQs about the best Afternoon tea in Belfast

We’ve had a lot of questions over the years asking about everything from where to get a boozy afternoon tea in Belfast to which place does the funkiest spread.

In the section below, we’ve popped in the most FAQs that we’ve received. If you have a question that we haven’t tackled, ask away in the comments section below.

What is the best afternoon tea Belfast has to offer?

The Fitzwilliam Hotel, Ten Square Hotel and The Merchant Hotel are three of the best afternoon tea Belfast spots in 2024.

What is the most unique place in Belfast for afternoon tea?

In our opinion, the most unique afternoon tea Belfast has to offer is the one from the Culloden, The Merchant or The Fitzwilliam, as the properties are so lavish.

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Carmel

Saturday 21st of January 2023

Have you tried A Peculiar Tea for afternoon tea and their tasting menu x

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