Sydney's best high teas

Victoria Room

Westfield Sydney, Level 4

Book a cosy corner in this opulent dining room with some of your more refined friends and sink deep into the armchairs. It's worth indulging and taking it with a glass or two of French.

Observatory Hotel

89–113 Kent Street Sydney 

With rich mahogany furniture, antiques and drapes embellishing the Globe Bar, this is one of the finer high tea experiences. The resident tea master has designed more than 20 blends unique to the hotel, and you can reserve the Tea Leaf Reader to tell your fortune at a Mystic Tea.

Sir Stamford, Circular Quay

93 Macquarie St, Sydney 

This is one of Sydney's finest hotels, full of warmth and old-world charm. They serve high tea daily, filling the tiers with fresh freshly baked scones, petit fours and a platter of miniature desserts. 

The Tea Room: June Dally-Watkins' favourite

 QVB, 455 George St

This is Miss Dally's favourite, and with good reason. Gold-rimmed crockery, exquisite cakes and light-as-clouds scones are signs that you have found the real deal. The high ceilings and soft carpet make a visit something worth remembering.

The Victoria Room Tea Salon, Westfield, Sydney

Cnr Pitt Street Mall and Market St, Sydney

The Victoria Room's new premises in the flash inner city Westfield is enclosed by a picket fence – because High Tea isn't whimsical enough – and serves up ten different scone varieties. Wash them down with a Hendricks' high tea tipple for an adults only afternoon.

The Tea Parlour

569 Elizabeth St, Redfern

Bringing high tea to the young – and somewhat cash-strapped – Amelia Hepburn has opened her own parlour, Redfern-style. She plays Biggie tunes, keeps the lights low and serves scones on fine china. If you're hungover on a Sunday afternoon, you can BYO a bottle of champers from the pub next door and enjoy hair of the dog with your ham and cucumber sandwiches. 

Swissotel

68 Market St, Sydney

They have a Swiss chocolate fountain. It's best on the weekdays, when they present it on the tiered stand.

The Westin

1 Martin Place, Sydney

The lobby under the glass atrium of the GPO hosts an Australian high tea. Desserts include Pavlova, ANZAC biscuits, citrus lamingtons and mango trifle. 

Park Hyatt

7 Hickson Rd, The Rocks

Floor-to-ceiling windows frame harbour views beautifully from Harbour Kitchen and Bar. Savour bite-sized sandwiches and fresh scones with harbour views, but away from the bustle of Circular Quay. 

Lilianfels

Lilianfels Ave, Echo Point, Katoomba

This Blue Mountains getaway is a breathtaking escape from the city, and they do a most pleasant high tea served in the Lounge or on the verandah overlooking their garden. If you're staying the weekend, you can get a personal tea-leaf reading.

Bayside Lounge

Darling Dr, Darling Harbour

This is delicious and good value. The crab sandwiches and duck confit pies are a good start, but the macerated berries with marsala sabayon and selection of desserts by Lindt finish the meal beautifully.

Sheraton on the Park

161 Elizabeth St, Sydney

The Sheraton on the Park does a high tea stand each day from 11.30am in the Gallery Tea Lounge, or if you are feeling like more is more on weekends they have a tea buffet in the afternoons.