Maids of Honour from £24.50, The Gate £29.95, Bingham £42, Petersham £49: seven Richmond afternoon teas with sittings, children's prices and booking rules.

For afternoon tea in Richmond, most people land on the Petersham, whose restaurant looks down on the bend in the Thames; Bingham Riverhouse on Petersham Road; the Original Maids of Honour tea room in Kew, the cheapest here at £24.50; and Petersham Nurseries, the dearest at £65. Every entry was checked against the venue’s own website on 27 October 2026.

We have not been to these places for this guide, and nothing here is a review. Each entry sets out what the venue says it serves, what it charges, when it serves it and how to book, and adds the Food Standards Agency hygiene rating. Prices are per person unless we say otherwise, and some places add a service charge on top.

Richmond Hill and the riverside

The Petersham

The Petersham is the hotel on Nightingale Lane, halfway up Richmond Hill. Its afternoon tea page promises “river views from every table”, looking over “the famous bend in the River Thames and Petersham Meadows”, the view painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds and JMW Turner. The classic afternoon tea is £49, and the children’s tea is £25 with 24 hours’ notice. It also lists vegan and gluten-friendly menus.

Served 2pm to 5.45pm Wednesday to Saturday and 4pm to 5.45pm on Sunday, according to its opening times page. The festive tea is £54 from 27 November to 24 December. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 16 October 2024). Nightingale Lane, TW10 6UZ. Phone 020 8940 7471.

Bingham Riverhouse

Bingham Riverhouse calls itself a “boutique hotel and riverside dining”, in a Georgian house on Petersham Road. Its afternoon tea page says tea is served in the Library, “with scenic views of the river Thames”, or the Drawing Room with floor-to-ceiling windows. The classic tea is £42, or £58 with a glass of sparkling wine. It also offers the “bhutea” afternoon tea at £42, which it says is entirely plant-based, free of refined sugar and made with mostly gluten-free ingredients.

Served every day, with sittings at 3pm and 3.30pm. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 4 June 2025). 61-63 Petersham Road, TW10 6UT. Phone 020 8940 0902. Our listing.

The Gate, Richmond Harbour Hotel

The Gate is the restaurant at Richmond Harbour Hotel, which describes itself as an “18th-century Georgian hotel” on Richmond Hill and says it was named one of the Top 100 Best British Hotels by The Sunday Times. The Gate’s page says afternoon tea is served in its “Moroccan-inspired lounge”. The current autumn menu prices the full afternoon tea at £29.95, plus £10 for a glass of Prosecco or £16.50 for Moët & Chandon. It marks a vegan option on the cheddar sandwich and the scones.

The hotel does not publish serving times for afternoon tea, so book ahead through its site. Hygiene rating 4 (FSA, 28 January 2025). 152-158 Richmond Hill, TW10 6RP.

144 On The Hill, Richmond Hill Hotel

144 On The Hill is the restaurant at the Richmond Hill Hotel, almost next door to the Harbour Hotel. Its afternoon tea page lists the Enchanted Treehouse afternoon tea, which it says is “inspired by the green surroundings of Richmond”, with vegetarian, savoury and children’s versions. A Haunted Treehouse tea runs from 24 October to 1 November and a Frosted Forest tea for winter. It also offers “a glass of bubbles on us” with every full afternoon tea from Monday to Friday.

The only price on the site is in a menu dated October 2025, which listed afternoon tea at £42 a head or £80 for two; ask when you book. Bookings on booking@144onthehill.co.uk or 020 8940 2247. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 13 May 2026, listed under the Richmond Hill Hotel). 149-150 Richmond Hill, TW10 6RW.

Petersham, Kew and Barnes

Petersham Nurseries

Petersham Nurseries is the garden centre and restaurant down Church Lane, off Petersham Road. Its afternoon tea page sells it as “the perfect English country garden setting”. The Garden Afternoon Tea menu is £65 with loose-leaf tea or £70 with a glass of Prosecco, and the children’s tea is £25 for under-12s. A discretionary 13.5% service charge is added. It says vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and nut-free menus are available with advance notice.

Served Thursday to Sunday and bank holidays, 12pm to 5pm with the last seating at 3pm, and you must book. On Sunday mornings the car park gives priority to the congregation of St Peter’s Church. The Teahouse next door serves cakes and tea without a booking. Hygiene rating 4 (FSA, 1 May 2026). Church Lane, TW10 7AB. Our listing.

The Original Maids of Honour

The Original Maids of Honour is the tea room and bakery on Kew Road, near the gardens. The menu on its booking page tells the story of the Maids of Honour tart and says the shop on Kew Road opened in 1850. It lists high tea at £24.50, with sandwiches, two scones and a pastry or a Maids of Honour tart, and a savoury high tea at £26.50. Prosecco set tea is £35 and Champagne set tea £45. A discretionary 12.5% service charge is added.

Set tea can be booked throughout the day from 10am, and the Prosecco and Champagne teas from 11am. Between 12pm and 3pm there is a minimum spend of £20 a head. Open 9am to 6pm. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 23 September 2025). 288 Kew Road, TW9 3DU. Our listing.

Orange Pekoe

Orange Pekoe is the tea room on White Hart Lane in Barnes. Its afternoon tea page says it has been “hailed as one of London’s leading tearooms since 2006” and that “a trained tea sommelier” is always on hand to help choose from the tea list. Afternoon tea is £27.95 and the children’s afternoon tea £15. It also sells an afternoon tea box to take away at £22.

Afternoon tea is served Tuesday to Sunday at 2pm or 2.30pm. A cream tea is served any time of day and needs no booking. The tea room opens 7.30am to 5pm on weekdays and 8.30am to 5pm at weekends. Hygiene rating 5 (FSA, 19 November 2024). 3 White Hart Lane, SW13 0PX.

How we chose

We picked the places that publish an afternoon tea people can book, and that have a record we can check: the venue’s own menu and prices, a long history or a public listing, and a food hygiene rating of 3 or better. All seven are rated 4 or 5. We read each venue’s own website and menus on 27 October 2026, and took hygiene ratings from the Food Standards Agency. We left out Pembroke Lodge in Richmond Park: its tea rooms serve scones and cakes, but it does not publish a set afternoon tea. Prices and sittings change with the seasons, so check before you book.

Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@richmondonline.co.uk.

More in Richmond

Frequently asked questions

Where can I have afternoon tea with a view of the Thames in Richmond?

The Petersham on Nightingale Lane says every table in its restaurant has a view of the river, at £49 a head. Bingham Riverhouse on Petersham Road serves afternoon tea in its Library, which it says looks over the Thames, at £42. Both are a short walk from Richmond Bridge.

What is the cheapest afternoon tea in Richmond?

On the venues’ own menus: the Original Maids of Honour in Kew lists high tea at £24.50, Orange Pekoe in Barnes £27.95 and the Gate at Richmond Harbour Hotel £29.95. Maids of Honour and Petersham Nurseries add a discretionary service charge of 12.5% and 13.5%.

Where can children have afternoon tea in Richmond?

Orange Pekoe charges £15 for a children’s afternoon tea. The Petersham and Petersham Nurseries both charge £25; the Petersham needs 24 hours’ notice, and the Nurseries’ children’s tea is for under-12s. 144 On The Hill at the Richmond Hill Hotel also lists a children’s afternoon tea.