If you’re looking to have an incredibly wholesome day out in London, hop on the Tube to Kew and head to Kew Gardens.
Now that the weather is starting to brighten up, the flowers will be starting to bloom, and you’ll be able to enjoy a real visual feast.
And when it comes time for something to eat, you’ll be perfectly placed to head on over to a true hidden gem serving up an actual feast.
Just across the road from Kew Gardens, at 288 Kew Road, you’ll find The Original Maids of Honour (also known as Newens), a tea room that’s been running on the same site since 1860, although the business is even older.
Online reviewers have hailed it as the ‘most authentic’ spot that looks as if it’s been ‘frozen in time’, and it really is a charming little place to grab a cup of tea, a sweet treat, or a slice of pie.
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What’s the vibe?
From the vintage 1930s van parked out front, to the salmon pink walls, vintage knick-knacks and the garish carpet, everything about this place is straight out of another era.
I’d say this is an ideal spot for tea lovers, those who are in the mood for hearty comfort food, tourists (Americans will adore this place), and basically anyone who enjoys things that are a little whimsical.
What’s on the menu?
The Original Maids of Honour serves breakfast, lunch, and high tea plus a selection of individual sweet and savoury pastries, all handmade on-site.
Afternoon tea in London can easily break the bank, but here it starts from £24.50 per person.
For this price, you can enjoy unlimited tea or filter coffee, sandwiches including English cheddar, oak-smoked salmon, cucumber, egg mayonnaise, and ham, plus plain or fruit scones with clotted cream and jam, as well as your choice from the day’s patisserie selection.
Other items on the menu include a Full English breakfast, omelettes, crumpets, salads, roast dinners, and a Ploughman’s.
It’s worth noting that if you decide to visit during peak hours, there is a minimum charge of £22 per person for the lunch menu between 12 pm and 3 pm.
A must-try is the tea room’s namesake, the Maids of Honour Tarts. Thought to have been a favourite of Anne Boleyn, their history in Richmond spans 500 years.
The story goes that King Henry VIII came across Anne and her maids of honour, eating them and tried one. He was so delighted by the ‘melt-in-the-mouth’ sensation that he confiscated the recipe and locked it away in an iron box at Richmond Palace (which sadly no longer exists).
By the early 18th century, the secret recipe had been disclosed to a bakery in Richmond, which was the original Mainds of Honour shop, and in 1850, the recipe was passed down to the owner’s son, who opened the shop in Kew Road.
The Maids of Honour tarts have been served in the same spot ever since, and ‘little has changed since then’.
@heyreiko_ The most authentic English tearoom in Kew???????????????? Fun fact???? Legend has it that ‘Maids of Honour’ were brought to notoriety by Henry VIII who so loved their ‘melt-in-the-mouth’ sensation, he took the recipe and kept it under lock and key at Richmond Palace! ???? Save this for later and go with your girlies to enjoy this classy English vibes! ????The Original Maids of Honour 288 Kew Rd, Richmond TW9 3DU ???? Kew Garden station, then 10 minutes walk ????️ Open daily, Mon – Fri 10-6pm; Sat – Sun 9-6pm ???? They have minimum charge for different time. For us, lunch time min charge was £22 per person ???? @lifechangediy
What did Metro’s specialist food writer think?
From the outside, the tea room might not look all that special, but one look through the window and the retro pastries enticed me in – think glazed fruit tarts topped with different coloured fruits, black forest slices, eclairs, carrot cake, and blackcurrant cheesecake.
A second counter, filled with giant quiches, sausage rolls, pasties and pies, quickly had me experiencing decision paralysis – the sheer volume of choice is overwhelming. I assume this is why most people opt for High Tea, so they can try a little bit of everything.
I ended up sharing a few different things with my husband. On this occasion, we split a slice of chicken pie, a slice of apple pie and a Maids of Honour Tart on the way home.
It was just the right amount of food, and while I hadn’t been sure what to expect, I can confirm that it was delicious and well and truly hit the spot.
The chicken pie had a perfectly crisp, thin pastry, a creamy white sauce, and generous chunks of meat inside. Served warm, it was proper, comforting grub.
The apple pie was very old school, packed full of fruit and topped with a lattice pie crust as well as a layer of shiny apple jelly. The only thing missing was some ice cream.
We paired both of these with tea, which is served in adorable vintage tea cups, and then tucked into the Maids of Honour Tart a little later.
The tea room keeps the recipe for these tarts quite close to their chest, vaguely describing them as ‘sweet yet slightly savoury’ in terms of flavour, and this is exactly how they taste.
The tarts feature a puff pastry shell, and from what I can gather, the filling is made with cheese curds. It reminds me a little of a pastel de nata, only much softer, and with much less filling.
Honestly, there’s not a lot to the tarts, and while they’re tasty, they weren’t the best thing we ate on the day… the chicken pie takes that crown.
Have you ever been to The Original Maids of Honour?
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What do other customers have to say?
On Tripadvisor, dozens of Londoners revealed that the tea room was a place they had been visiting for decades and always enjoyed coming back to.
One post, by worsleyr says: ‘We have been visiting the tea rooms for almost 38 years and have never been disappointed.’
Similarly, a reviewer known only as Kate wrote: ‘Lovely, cosy, unique traditional, British restaurant. I’ve been going here and visiting the shop since I was a child. Friendly team and delicious food!’
And Chrissy hailed it as ‘one of [her] favourite places to go’, sharing that it’s ‘super oldie woldie’.
She continued: ‘It’s like you’ve stepped back in time to old England, and then there’s the amazing food. The pies and sausage rolls are my favourite. Beautiful pastry, plus the cakes and the famous Maids of Honour tarts.
‘English breakfast is great too, quality ingredients. And to top it all off, the staff are always lovely and welcoming! A must visit, or else you’re really missing out.’
However, not everyone is a fan, with a few visitors branding it ‘tacky’ and suggesting it requires ‘full modernisation’ (they might be missing the point).
Others complained about the state of the loos and the lunchtime minimum spend. While a few people shared poor experiences with ‘boring’ and ‘stale’ food, and dreaded ‘soggy’ pastry.
Clearly, The Original Maids of Honour is doing something very right, though, to be still going more than 160 years later…
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