Best holiday teas in and around Boston

It’s a trio of tea experiences at the Inn at Hastings. On Saturday, December 9th & Sunday, December 10th, the Inn will host its annual Santa Teas. Bring the family to enjoy tea, cocktails, and bites as well as gingerbread cookie decorating, crafts, letters to the North Pole, and a visit by a jolly Santa Claus. Seatings are available at 10 am, noon, and 2 pm at Town Meeting Bistro (Inn's onsite restaurant) and INNgloo Wonderland. The Inn will host a Boston Tea Party 250th Anniversary Celebration on December 16 featuring colonial-themed sweet and savory bites, tea offerings, and cocktails matching those thrown over the Harbor and an authentic Fife and Drum performance. You can always enjoy artfully prepared tea sandwiches, freshly baked pastries, and seasonal treats paired with J'enway Tea at Saturday High Tea between 11 am and 3 pm. 

Calling all Anglophiles in search of a bit of British tea. Boston’s newest tearoom, Silver Dove Afternoon Tea, features 30 loose-leaf teas that celebrate the full spectrum of flavors. This holiday season pop by the charming tearoom on Tremont Street to enjoy its delicous winter blend which features the usual winter warmer spices and 'cederberg cinnamon'. “We will be serving our currant scones, cucumber sandwiches, and coronation chicken. For sweets we will have chestnut macarons and chocolate orange mousse,” says co-owner Patrick Brewster.

At press time the team was finalizing the menu but it will still be the usual fixed price of $48/per person and feature nine items (one scone, four savory, four sweets).

Barbie meets a London tearoom at the uber-feminine Lady Fingers Tea Lounge located at the Garrison Inn in Newburyport. The holiday season is the perfect time to waltz into the pink tea room that looks like it was painted by a watercolor master peering through a window of a posh London hotel. The year-round menu includes a plump macaron and delicate Ladyfinger cookie, tea breads, and finger sandwiches. During the holiday season, caterer Three Sweet Peas adds holiday sweets to the menu. Select Saturday seatings available.

The Courtyard Tea Room, tucked inside the historic McKim building at the Boston Public Library in Copley Square, is a lovely place for afternoon tea in Boston. Enjoy finely crafted tea sandwiches, petit fours, and delicious scones in a historical and architectural marvel. The fall and winter menu features seasonal sweets and a tea experience steeped in the magic of the season. The Courtyard Tea Room is part of The Catered Affair Collection.

The festive Afternoon tea at The Vintage Tea and Cake Company’s Belmont and Lexington tearooms will be served from Dec 6th to January 5th. The Holiday Tea Menu offers classic sandwiches with a holiday twist, including whipped lobster spread bites, cheddar spiced chutney, and turkey and cranberry mayo finger sandwiches. Holiday Patisseries include peppermint French macarons, cranberry orange cheesecakes, and mini pumpkin tarts. Enjoy traditional freshly baked scones with winter marmalade, strawberry jam, and clotted cream to accompany festive spiced teas. Delight in Cranberry-Mint Holiday Prosecco at the Lexington location.

"Experience the epitome of holiday luxury with our afternoon tea, a dazzling journey through a world of flavors, textures, and scents that will leave you enchanted and satisfied,” says Stephen Johnston, Managing Director and general Manager of Boston Harbor Hotel. The afternoon tea service is available at Rowes Wharf Sea Grille with a seasonal menu offering savory delicacies and a selection of delicious treats. To accompany your signature favorites, choose from a selection of Palais Des Thés Teas. Add delicious enhancements such as a Lobster Scallion Flatbread or celebrate with a glass of Champagne. Seatings are available Thursdays through Sundays from 2:30 pm - 4:30 pm.

Trifecta’s Afternoon Tea at the Four Seasons Hotel One Dalton is a bountiful spread of eclectic tea sandwiches, freshly baked scones, and unique sweets. December 1-29 Trifecta will be featuring a Friday seating for holiday tea at 1 pm along with its seatings on Saturdays and Sundays at 11 am, 12:45 pm, and 2:30 pm. The new menu features tasty teas like blackberry sage, and smoked honey cardamon; savory treats such as cucumber curry chicken and a Petite Trifecta Lobster Roll and sweet treats like Pomegranate Profiterole, Orange Ginger Petit Four, Pistachio French Macaron, and White Chocolate Mocha Opéra. The experience includes a glass of bubbly and liquor pairing.