AFTERNOON TEA IN CINDERELLA'S CARRIAGE

It's not everyday that you get to live every girl's life dream and enjoy afternoon tea in Cinderella's carriage, but that's exactly what we did a few weeks ago.

Growing up, I was a bit too old for the Disney Princesses trend, but it was a big thing when my sister was younger. Being 3.5 years younger than me, she had all of the merchandise for every Disney princess ever and always paraded around in her golden yellow Belle dress.

For one of her Christmas presents, I decided to do something a little different by booking an afternoon tea for 2 at The Tea Terrace; located inside House of Fraser of Oxford Street (a 3 minute walk from Bond St underground station).

I kept seeing adverts for afternoon tea inside Cinderella's carriage across social media, so after a quick search engine search, I soon found the official website to make a reservation. You have to put down a non-refundable deposit to be able to reserve the carriage, which is priced at £25. Once this is booked, I received a confirmation email. All that is left to pay is for the food and drinks on the day - which has a T&C of spending a minimum of £21 per adult and £10.95 for children under 12. Pretty reasonable if you ask me.

The reservations run throughout the day; with 2 hour slots per reservation. You are also given an extra 15 minutes to allow you to finish up your food and drinks without rushing. I booked 3 weeks in advance and there was only 10AM and 7PM slots available, so it was proving popular already.

I decided to book for the 10AM slot, so we could make a full day of it. With a maximum booking time until 11.15, it meant this was more than enough time to eat, chat and take photographs of the experience.

Upon arrival, I was surprised to see a Saturday afternoon in House of Fraser so quiet. I was imagining early morning shoppers hitting the streets of Central London for some shopping. A few tables were occupied, which was nice to see as it meant we could really get to grips with the experience without there being a lot of people around.

The Tea Terrace has the most magical of interiors that I've ever seen in a food orientated place. Everywhere is pink, blue and white; with high throne type chairs with silver legs and piping detailing to sit in whilst dining. Cute quotes about tea are dotted around the room on the walls; whilst traditional china plates hang on the walls and of course; two afternoon tea carriages sit in the room available for special reservations.

The staff showed us to our carriage which was beautifully decorated. Artificial white roses and ivy hang from each section of the carriages. The benches are finished with white, quilted cushions for comfort. There are also a few crowns hanging on the sides of the carriages which you are free to use in selfies and for fun. Above us, hang chandeliers made from metal teaspoons. It was honestly so cute and pretty much made for Instagram.

Out of the blue (pardon the pun), Cinderella started walking towards us, dressed in her famous blue gown dress and perfectly blonde hair. Available for hire at special request by email, she walked over to the second carriage and spent the afternoon with a family celebrating their daughter's birthday. I think this is such a lovely touch; although I am unsure if this is at an added cost or not.

Upon being seated in the carriage, the menus were brought over to use and you can opt for a traditional afternoon tea with hot drinks, finger sandwiches and posh cakes. However, I was also pleased to see a varied breakfast style menu, which we definitely ended up ordering from. Choose from a wide variety of cooked breakfasts; such as poached eggs, salmon, avocado and toast and full English breakfasts. We were definitely feeling like two little piggies at a fine banquet, so we both ordered the full english breakfasts (£10.95-£11.95).

In a nut shell? The best damn English breakfast that I've ever had. 

My sister is a tea-o-holic, whereas I don't drink tea. I know, I know, I'm weird apparently! She ordered herself a pot of hot English tea and I went for a simple fresh orange juice and water. All of the tea and food is served using traditional tea style cups and plates; with vintage floral prints and patterns. The little touches honestly make it so special.

After breakfast, we ordered some sweeter treats. My sister went for the freshly baked carrot cakes, with a delicious sugar cream top. I ordered some fruit baked scones, which arrived hot and fluffy. Together with some clotted cream and jam, these were definitely a highlight. How do you eat yours? Jam and then cream or cream and jam on top?

Before we knew it, 11.15 was upon us and it was time to give up the carriage for the next reservation. The staff kindly moved us to a table nearby so we could finish our drinks. It was a little busier at this point but it didn't start filling up rapidly until we actually left. So, top tip is to get there as early as possible!

To finish up the Cinderella themed afternoon tea experience, we was both gifted a photo frame. This was unexpected and not noted down on the booking confirmation, so was a really nice touch to end a lovely day at The Tea Terrace.

To sum it up... I hadn't heard too much about this experience before seeing the advertisements on social media. However, I thoroughly recommend it if you have the opportunity to visit. Not only is the experience wonderful (I mean, who wouldn't want to be a princess for an hour?), but the food and service is fantastic too! Get down there and get your princess on!

You can make a table or carriage reservation here.

Disclaimer: Not sponsored. Tickets were purchased out of my own money. My opinions are unbiased and not paid for. Photography is my own and must not be distributed and copies are prohibited.