Afternoon tea in Toronto is a seated service of tea, sandwiches, scones, and pastries, offered by several downtown hotels. Fairmont Royal York serves it on weekends in its CLOCKWORK restaurant, and the Windsor Arms Hotel and the Omni King Edward Hotel each list their own tea services on official pages. Reservations are the norm, and details change by season, so each hotel’s own page is the reference.
What a tea service involves
A traditional afternoon tea arrives as a tiered stand or a series of plates: small sandwiches, scones with jam and cream, and sweets, served with a pot of loose-leaf tea. Wikipedia’s article on the tea meal, which draws on Julie Skinner’s 2019 history of the custom, describes afternoon tea as a light meal originally eaten between four and five o’clock, with thin bread and butter, sandwiches, cakes, and scones. Toronto hotels follow that pattern with their own menus, and the menus change. The Fairmont Royal York page calls its offering a “classic Afternoon Tea” and mentions an optional glass of champagne, without printing the menu or a price on the page that was read.
Afternoon tea and high tea are not the same meal
In Britain the two terms once meant different things. Afternoon tea, sometimes called low tea, was the light mid-afternoon meal of the upper and middle classes. High tea was a heartier meal, typically eaten between five and seven in the evening, with a hot savory dish or cold meat followed by bread, cake, and tea. The name is said to come from the high dining table. Outside Britain the words are often used as synonyms, and some businesses call a formal afternoon tea “high tea.” The Windsor Arms Hotel, for instance, describes its offering on its own site as “High Tea and Afternoon Tea.”
Sources also disagree about the origin. Anna, Duchess of Bedford, is commonly credited with starting the custom in the 1830s or 1840s because dinner had moved late in the evening. Historians cited by the same Wikipedia article hold that the meal existed before her and that she gave an informal habit its ritual. The Historic UK site dates her tray of tea and cake to 1840.
Hotels that list a tea service
| Hotel | What its own page says | Where to check |
|---|---|---|
| Fairmont Royal York, 100 Front Street West | Classic afternoon tea in CLOCKWORK on Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 3 p.m. on the page read; reservations required | Fairmont afternoon tea page |
| Windsor Arms Hotel | “Iconic High Tea and Afternoon Tea” in the Tea Room, served every day of the year; seating times listed by day of week | Hotel website |
| Omni King Edward Hotel | Menu states afternoon tea has been a hotel tradition since the early 1900s; tea in the lobby or in Victoria’s | Omni menu PDF dated September 2023 |
The table lists only hotels whose own pages were opened or whose official menu appeared in a search result. Other cafes, tea rooms, and hotel lounges in the city also serve tea, and no ranking of them is given here. The Omni menu is a PDF whose text could not be read directly, so its wording comes from the search excerpt of that official file.
Reservation practice
Fairmont states that reservations are required for its weekend afternoon tea and offers booking through an online reservation service, by telephone, and by email. The Windsor Arms Hotel lists fixed seating times: a last seating of 3:30 p.m. Monday to Thursday, and several seatings on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with booking by telephone or email. Seasonal menus also appear. Fairmont’s pages have carried a festive afternoon tea with fixed seatings in past years. Because times, menus, and prices are revised, a booking should rest on the hotel’s current page.
Frequently asked questions
Is afternoon tea served every day in Toronto?
It depends on the venue. Fairmont Royal York lists weekends only on the page read, while the Windsor Arms Hotel states that its service runs every day of the year. Both can change, so the hotel page should be checked.
Do hotels in Toronto require a reservation for tea?
Fairmont says reservations are required. The Windsor Arms Hotel publishes seating times and a contact for booking, which points to the same practice.
What is the difference between afternoon tea and high tea?
Historically, afternoon tea is a light meal taken in the afternoon, and high tea is a heartier early-evening meal. Many places now use the terms interchangeably, so the menu description matters more than the name.
How much does afternoon tea cost in Toronto?
The pages read for this article did not print prices, so none are given. Each hotel’s current menu shows the price and any added fees.
Last verified: October 2026
Sources
- Fairmont Royal York, afternoon tea page
- Windsor Arms Hotel, official website
- Omni King Edward Hotel, afternoon winter tea menu (PDF, 2023)
- Wikipedia, Tea (meal), citing J. Skinner, Afternoon Tea: A History (2019)
- Historic UK, Afternoon Tea
Related reading
- Union Station, across Front Street from the Royal York
- Yorkville and its hotels
- Casa Loma castle history
- Distillery District history
- Visiting Toronto: landmarks, districts and where to start
Cite this page
APA: History of Toronto. (2026, October 27). Afternoon Tea in Toronto: Hotels, Service and Booking. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/find-the-best-toronto-high-tea-experience-for-your-palate-and-mood
MLA: “Afternoon Tea in Toronto: Hotels, Service and Booking.” History of Toronto, 27 Oct. 2026, https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/find-the-best-toronto-high-tea-experience-for-your-palate-and-mood. Accessed .
Chicago: History of Toronto. “Afternoon Tea in Toronto: Hotels, Service and Booking.” Last modified October 27, 2026. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/find-the-best-toronto-high-tea-experience-for-your-palate-and-mood.
The pages have no named author, so the site is given as the author. Add the date you read the page if your style asks for it.