Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tea at the Hay Adams is pretty great. Beautiful, refined dining room and a view of the White House too.

It has tea again?

NP here and sadly, 18:53 you are correct -- tea at the Hay Adams is a thing of the past.

I'll throw out another option - the Afternoon Social at Founding Farmers. I've been to the one at Park Potomac. Definitely not the same surroundings as a typical afternoon tea at one of the fancier hotels. What I mean is that it can be louder and you feel only as if you are in a restaurant. The food however is DIVINE! I would highly recommend it. But it's not 4 star hotel with cushy arm chairs. It's a more modern style tea.

My favorite for surroundings is the Mayflower in the Promenade with the harpist. However, the harpist isn't always there and the food is pre-ordered, so not as fresh. The Ritz in Tysons has been disappointing recently as they have opened the space up to the bar, so it can be loud as early happy hour starts. The best spots there are the love seats in front of the fire place. Haven't been to The Willard for tea but I know the hallway. In my opinion, if you are going to go downtown, might as well go someplace where the surroundings are nice. Would love to try to the Hay Adams and Jefferson though... The Mandarin Oriental may serve it too...

Anonymous wrote:Tea at the Hay Adams is pretty great. Beautiful, refined dining room and a view of the White House too.

It has tea again?

Anonymous wrote:Jefferson or ritz pentagon city. Mayflower is awful...

I had tea at the Mayflower in January and was very disappointed. Glad to hear I'm not alone. I like the Ritz and would love to try the Willard.

Thanks all!! I will look into the others mentioned. My mom has never had the experience. I just want to make sure it is enjoyable for her. Thanks again!

Tea at the Hay Adams is pretty great. Beautiful, refined dining room and a view of the White House too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I much prefer tea at the Ritz.

Which Ritz?

Tysons

Anonymous wrote:Why don't you try tea at the mansion at strathmore? It's also a nice experience

The Strathmore tea can be nice but it doesn't have that "special" vibe. The Willard is fine if you want a one-time tea experience but not great. The hallway setting didn't bother me that much, but the food was so-so. I had a wonderful tea at the Four Seasons, but sadly I don't think they offer it anymore.

I did tea at the Willard with some girlfriends a few years ago and loved it. The hallway thing seemed like it might be awkward but we didn't even notice it because we were chatting away. I would think it might lend itself to some good people watching too.

Anonymous wrote:I much prefer tea at the Ritz.

Ditto