Befitting its location in what might be San Francisco’s highest-end hotel, the Fairmont’s Laurel Court does a pricey but fully loaded afternoon tea on Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., with tons of tea sandwiches, scones, tarts, chocolates, macarons, and petits fours. Reservations are recommended.
Now that we’re getting close to the holidays, the weather is cooling down and it’s time to warm up with tea.
Laurel Court Restaurant & Bar at the Fairmont
The Rotunda at Neiman Marcus
Join those who lunch for a post-shopping afternoon tea at this swank department-store restaurant with stunning views of Union Square below. The tea service (daily beginning at 2:30 p.m.) comes with mini sandwiches, pastries, petits fours, and the famed popovers with strawberry butter. You can also add a glass of Champagne to the mix, of course.
The St. Regis San Francisco
Tea service is back at the St. Regis, now available through the Tea Salon at Astra, the hotel’s new-ish restaurant. Offered Thursday through Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m., the service at the St. Regis is for fans of the high life, without question. The raspberry macarons are perfect, the various beverages smartly curated, and those tiny sandwiches are king. Guests must make reservations at least 24 hours in advance, and the dress code (yes, dress code) is smart casual.
Son & Garden
The restaurant from the Farmhouse Thai group became a viral sensation during the pandemic, thanks to this over-the-top afternoon tea party in a box. Now, the tea experience is available in person at the San Francisco and Palo Alto locations. It’s a fabulous floral experience, packed with salmon, egg, and cucumber sandwiches, plus scones, cake, and sweets. The tea service has two seatings at noon and 1:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except for holidays, with a 48-hour advance reservation required.
Japanese Tea Garden
A historic fixture of Golden Gate Park, this exquisite garden also offers a small tea cafe. The green tea or matcha is accompanied by traditional Japanese snacks like dorayaki (red bean pancake), edamame, and arare (savory rice crackers), as well as afternoon tea staples like lemon bars and cookies. Every order comes with a fortune cookie, which was introduced to the U.S. right here (way back in the 1890s).
Sip Tea Room
Sip Tea Room replaced Secret Garden Tea House with a more modern setting. The tea service itself leans traditional though, arriving on a three-tier stand with sandwiches, scones, clotted cream, strawberry preserves, lemon curd, and sweets. The full afternoon tea experience has two seatings, and runs Thursday through Sunday; reservations are required.
Lovejoy's Tea Room
This tea room feels like the best version of a grandmother's attic, with mismatched china, hodgepodge furniture, and even hats you can borrow for the full effect. Bottomless tea can be accompanied by two simple scones, jam, and clotted cream, all the way up to an all-out Queen's Tea with sandwiches, crumpets, salad, fruit, and petit fours. If there are some hungry folks in your party, there’s also “pub fare” such as shepherd’s pie (although it should be mentioned these items do not come with tea).
