“Tea is to the body as music is to the soul.” -Earlene Grey

So, this past weekend, I went to another local tea room in San Diego, specifically in La Mesa, California, called Aubrey Rose Tea room. If you’ve never been to a tea room before and you are a TEA OBSESSED drinker and crumpets, small sandwiches, pastries eater, then you absolutely need to set aside a time to try out an afternoon tea experience!

The great thing I love about getting together with either family, friends or a girls weekend afternoon out is bonding over food or just an overall experience you all mutually love to do in general. This is the third tea room I’ve been to in San Diego so far and by far I was very impressed with the following features about it.

Top 5 Reasons to have Afternoon Tea at Aubrey Rose Tea Room

So, in no particular order are the below reasons as to what I loved about this cute hidden gem located in downtown La Mesa, California. (P.S., this article will also be added to my list of future summary of all Tea Rooms in San Diego.)

1. Amount of Space for Large Parties

   

   Upon entering into Aubrey Rose Tea Room, I was not sure what to expect as I have been to other tea rooms that were a bit smaller and intimate in terms of space. However, entering into this tea room was more than just entering into just a room, but a space almost the size of a full sized restaurant and kitchen that appears to fit about 30-40 guests at a time.

   

   
   Front of entrance into Aubrey Rose Tea Room

Just pass the entrance inside, you enter right into the dining area where there is the host/cashier stand to the left, tables paired with cute vintage tea sets and dining placements, vintage wooden chairs, and a beautiful wooden fireplace to the right.

Behind the front of the tea room are some larger tables and a semi-private space off to the left for two people divided by some racks displayed with custom tea sets and tea packages for sale. Absolutely love the space in this tea room and the availability for potential bridal showers, birthday or anniversary parties, etc.

2. Custom Printed Signage

Walking into the tea on a table to the left with a beautiful antique, floral lantern on it, there was a cute welcome sign to the Aubrey Rose Tea Room which I felt made an initial warming impression.

However, the one sign that truly caught our eyes was the custom printed personalized welcome sign at our table in the classic Aubrey Rose cursive. I’ve only ever been to one other restaurant that had personally printed out a fancy personalized welcome sign before and it definitely was not a tea room. This was just a little indicator to me that stated Aubrey Rose Tea Room was here to make you feel like royalty and nothing less. They also had a little note featuring their upcoming special event occurring on May 18th (mentioned at the end of this article).

3. Customer Service & Food Royalty Treatment

So, amongst all the tea rooms I have dined at, they all have similarities in the sense that they offer different afternoon tea options with amazing food alongside to pair with each tea. However, not just was the table and atmosphere beautifully dressed, but the service here was so impeccably on top of it as well.

Our lovely waitress, Raeanne, dressed in a traditional English maid’s outfit, was kind enough to describe each item on the tower of confectioneries and refreshments included with the Queen Victoria high tea option we received. See below for description of each item. The Queen Victoria is their top afternoon tea option pricing in at $29.95 that includes almost everything with soup and tea to start off and then the 3 tiered tray to follow along with more tea of choice.

 

Prior to receiving this tower, we received a potato leek soup with a crouton shaped like a lucky charm in light of Saint Patrick’s Day being the following day paired with an irish cheese fondue on a crostini.

With how accommodating and quickly the food came out, I am usually pretty particular when it comes to tasting the quality of the bite sized treats, but this array of food items pleasantly satisfied me with the perfect portions. This Queen Victoria Afternoon tea is great for substituting as a nice brunch that doesn’t leave you too full or sleepy afterwards at a great cost. Plus, with this location being just 10-15 minutes away from downtown San Diego, this cute hidden gem absolutely hit the taste buds on the head with flavor here.

I felt as if the spring time is definitely a perfect time to have an afternoon tea with fellow family or friends as we had just happened to catch their menu during a holiday special. However, their menu may possibly be subject to change within season and availability of ingredients. So, feel free to visit the AUBREY ROSE WEBSITE for all their options available!

4. Vintage Atmosphere/Hat & Pearls Wall

Walking throughout the entire Tea room into the back, there is a lovely array of antique china in a cabinet that is perfectly organized by type, vintage artwork hanging on the walls and then a lovely hat wall courtesy of Aubrey Rose. This hat wall is provided for guests to indulge in the full afternoon royal english tea experience by selecting one to wear during their tea time. 

I loved seeing this as it reminded me fondly of my grandmother informing me that a lady always needs a red or black hat to top off her outfit to provide that sense of charm and grace. Welp, (sorry grandma) neither of us chose a red or black hats, but we definitely had a ton of fun dressing up for a little while pretending we like hats and then somehow having it grow on us throughout the experience and setting regardless if we kept taking it on and off again. We eventually managed and loved it!

5. Packaged Housemade Tea Blends & Tea Sets

The last feature of the tea room that I absolutely loved were the mini packaged loose leaf custom in-house tea blends towards the front of the room. Each bag has different colors and are sold in 2oz bags. They are generally enough to make 7 large pots of 25-30 cups of tea and priced between $7.95-9.95 depending on the flavor and availability.

They also sell cute tea sets in baskets or just as individual pieces available for purchase as well. All of their china is usually sold per piece or can purchase entire set. The cost can range for a cup and saucer from $7.95 to $29.95 depending on piece, quality, type (such as simple solid-color ceramic or English fine bone china) and availability of pieces or sets.

In addition to china, Aubrey Rose also sells tea pots, tea warmers, demi spoons, sugar tongs and children’s tea sets as well. Be sure to visit their location or call in for more information on pricing.

*BONUS: SPECIAL TEA ROOM EVENTS!

Something special that Aubrey Rose Tea Room also offers are their special events that they feature every so often depending on the month and season as well. Currently, they will be having a special celebration for the English Royal Wedding of Price Harry and Meghan Markle on May 18, 2018. Reservation per person is $54.95. In order to reserve you or your group for this or any event, please feel free to call in with your last name and credit card to reserve your spot! No deposit for reservation necessary.

Also, they will be having a mother’s day special coming up too in May! So, stay tuned or go on their website for more event information for that.

Overall, Aubrey Rose was definitely a lovely afternoon tea experience and one that I am definitely planning on coming back to. Although I am located in North County San Diego, I would say this tea room is worth a drive down if you are planning on spending the rest of the day in the San Diego area to visit any other tourist spots or even do some vintage shopping in the downtown La Mesa city district.

To read about the other shops, entertainment, and restaurants within the City of La Mesa, check out their list HERE.

If you’d like to see more articles like this one, please let me know in the comments below and if you happen to have any ideas for future or upcoming articles on topics to cover for travel or San Diego reviews, let me know.

As always, REMEMBER GUYS….keep it SAVVY!

Cheers,

~Savanah(:

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