CUPPAS WITH CULTURE
Post by Judith Schrut - Email Judith
Modern life in Britain is full of tea moments, from a groggy morning’s pick up brew to afternoon tea shared with friends at home or in a fancy hotel tea room. After a brisk autumn walk there’s nothing like curling up on the couch with a hot steaming mug of tea and a biscuit, and in times of crisis a cup of tea will make everything all right. “Nice cuppa tea?” is as common a social greeting as “How are you?” Every day Brits get through 65 million ‘cuppas’-- 98% with milk, 30% with sugar and 96% made from tea bags, with PG Tips the nation’s favourite brand.
Fancy your cuppa with a dash of culture? If so, I recommend afternoon tea in London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, beloved national treasure and home to the world’s first museum restaurant. With free Museum entry, why not whet your appetite first with a stroll round the V&A’s extraordinary Ceramics Galleries, displaying its fabulous collection of teapots, creamers, sugar bowls, cups and saucers, followed by oversized scones, tea, clotted cream and jam in the historic William Morris or Gamble refreshment rooms, considered showpieces of modern design. There’s even a pianist on Monday and a harpist on Wednesday.
You can sip tea surrounded by striking 1930s Art Deco design at the RIBA café, the award-winning headquarters of the Royal Institute of British Architects near Oxford Circus. After tea, take a detour to view the elegant basement rest rooms, marble staircases, etched glass screens, garden terraces and superb bookshop.
If you’re visiting a cultural gem outside of London, you’re sure to find a homely cuppa at hundreds of museum, castle and stately home tea shops of every conceivable size and style. Inspired by the Victorian vision of that memorable 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony? If so, you’ll love Ironbridge Gorge, birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. Set amid stunning scenery in rural Shopshire, Ironbridge is home to 10 museums and historic sites and offers plenty of tea time options such as Blists Hill Hot Metal Café and Darby’s 1779 Tea Room.
The Victoria and Albert Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 www.vam.ac.uk
RIBA, 66 Portland London W1 www.architecture.com/RIBAVenues
Ironbridge Gorge Museums and Historical Sites, Shropshire www.ironbridge.org.uk
Image - V&A Cafe, supplied by V&A Images