High tea and afternoon tea

With my birthday looming I decided next Sunday would be a good time to get together with the girls for a high tea. It started off with a booking at Cafe at the Hyatt with a couple of my work friends but after much thought I decided to pull out my china and cook myself. Today being a cold lazy Sunday I spent it looking through copious amounts of cookbooks to put together the perfect tea party. I decided to call it my Vintage High Tea since it will be a combination of using my Old Country Roses china at the high table full of afternoon tea yummies. 

A modified example of my invite

Just in case you were confused as I was, high tea and afternoon tea is not the same thing.  Here are some interesting titbits about tea time, the high and the low:

Teatime originated with the Duchess of Bedford (1788-1861) who needed a little pick-me-up around 4 in the afternoon to fill that long stretch between the morning and evening meals.  At first, she snuck her tea snacks, but then she wised up and invited her friends, and made it the fashion.  My guess is somebody caught her sneaking cookies and she had to quick! pretend that it was the elegant thing to do all along. 

I also read somewhere that fashionable ladies didn't eat much at regular meals, due to their clothing, corsets and whatnot, and ladylike behaviour restrictions that kept them to a nibble.  So even if they could wait for dinner, they wouldn't ever have a fully satisfied appetite, and a little something in the afternoon would be just the thing.

High tea was eaten at a regular high table, hence the term "high" tea.  Afternoon tea was generally laid on small, lower tables, but obviously the term "low" tea didn't catch on.  Too many class connotations, probably.  Interesting that "high" tea was actually the dinner meal for the common people.  Taken later in the evening (around 6-ish), you would usually get more substantial food at high tea than the dainty little crust-removed sandwiches and sweet cakes most people usually associate with the afternoon tea ritual.

Most places that serve "high tea" are actually serving a variation on the traditional English afternoon "low" tea, and you'll usually get small finger foods and sweets with your tea.  

I have only got china for 8, 7 guests plus myself, so the first round of invites are out. Menu is in the planning. Wednesday I will drop into Harbour town to see if they have any matching serviettes, plus down to FAL to buy up chocolate in bulk. Let the fun begin.