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mary123 Wrote:

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> I must add that as much as it was lovely to have

> afternoon tea in central London, the time it takes

> to travel there/back is very long and slow for the

> distance, it took is 1.5_2hrs each way by bus,,

> next time am happy to do a local afternoon tes




Would definitely agree with that, but if you are meeting up for afternoon tea with people living outside London, or the other side of London, Central London may be more convenient for them (assuming they are not coming from the South, of course!)


Also you can do London-y things before/after the tea (or lunch).


My sisters and I sometimes meet up in the V&A, which has lovely rooms to eat in, but I don't think they do afternoon teas as such.

Being a savoury rather than sweet person, I don't really do Afternoon Tea, but when in Brighton recently (a restaurant on the the seafront) I saw a group with tea and a huge selection of fancy cakes on a multi tiered tray (it looked very well presented and quite nice (even though I never eat cakes)).


I guess that's what afternoon tea is ?

paulu1973 Wrote:

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> What is wrong with paying ?47 for an afternoon

> tea? If it's within your means then do it and

> don't feel bad for doing so


Its obscene. Some Families don't have ?47.00 a Week to pay for food for themselves and their children.



Fox

DulwichFox Wrote:

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> paulu1973 Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > What is wrong with paying ?47 for an afternoon

> > tea? If it's within your means then do it and

> > don't feel bad for doing so

>

> Its obscene. Some Families don't have ?47.00 a

> Week to pay for food for themselves and their

> children.

>

>

> Fox


I genuinely want to understand your logic here. As I understand it, you're saying that it is 'obscene' to spend a certain amount of money on indulging oneself, when others in our society live in poverty.


Two questions - firstly, how do we define the point at which people are behaving in an 'obscene' manner? You say ?47 for afternoon tea is too much. What about, say, a season ticket to a major Premiership football team? Or a holiday in the Maldives? Or a expensive bespoke suit from Saville Row? All these could be seen as indulgences, unnecessary for survival and solely used for personal satisfaction. Should they also be considered morally reprehensible?


Secondly, who are you to deride others for how they choose to spend their personal money? I mean, it's a pretty effective straw man argument to bring up child poverty in a supposedly first-world country and use it to deride the desires of people who do have disposable income. Are you saying that you - or anyone - should somehow be an arbiter of what people are allowed to do? That while some don't have enough everyone should be held back until we are all on a reasonable basic level? Bluntly Soviet Russia tried that and it didn't work out too well for them.


Two of your curry house meals equates to one trip to afternoon tea at that price. I submit that your logic is fallible, and what we have here is you simply feeling that what you choose to spend your income on is acceptable whereas others is not. That isn't fact, it's opinion. I would direct you to the book "A Greedy Man In A Hungry World" by Jay Rayner for a far more effective demolition of your argument than I can muster.

DulwichFox Wrote:

----------------------------------------------

>

> Its obscene. Some Families don't have ?47.00 a

> Week to pay for food for themselves and their

> children.

>



The ?47 was for afternoon tea with champagne. I don't imagine many people go for that, but if they do, so what if it's a special occasion and they can afford it?


Many families don't have as much to spend on food as you pay for an Indian meal out or a couple of pints at the EDT.


Or a holiday in Turkey.


Is your expenditure on those things obscene as well?

Sue Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> DulwichFox Wrote:

> ----------------------------------------------

> >

> > Its obscene. Some Families don't have ?47.00 a

> > Week to pay for food for themselves and their

> > children.

> >

>

>

> The ?47 was for afternoon tea with champagne. I

> don't imagine many people go for that, but if they

> do, so what if it's a special occasion and they

> can afford it?

>

> Many families don't have as much to spend on food

> as you pay for an Indian meal out or a couple of

> pints at the EDT.

>

> Or a holiday in Turkey.

>

> Is your expenditure on those things obscene as

> well?


It's obscene reading your pathetic arguments

FightingFit Wrote:

---------------------------------------------

>

> It's obscene reading your pathetic arguments



Hmmm.


Your posting history since registering on the forum at the end of January doesn't exactly indicate great intellectual capacity, so if I were you I would be wary of calling other people's posts pathetic :)

This all reminds me of somebody who posted on this forum to criticise in no uncertain terms somebody who had spent their own money on their own wedding dress, on the grounds that she had spent too much.


I really don't see why anybody should justify what they spend their own money on to anybody else. We are hardly talking about a "Let them eat cake" situation.


Oh, hang on though ..... :))

Exactly, i've worked hard to be in a position where I can justify spending that amount occasionally to bless my wife and kids. I wasn't born with a silver spoon either. TO see the look on my families faces when we go out is awesome as it is a novelty. Yes I know I'm fortunate but I'm not going to feel guilty for splurging. in fact one of the best parts about going out to places like this is when you tip the waiting staff, the look of joy is also fantastic.
It's all entirely subjective - I feel spending ?200 on a pair of trousers is sinful, but then I regard ?5,000 on a carbon fibre bicycle as an entirely justifiable expense. As long as you pay your taxes, stand your round and hopefully slip a few bob to charity when you're flush, it really isn't anyone else's business where your money goes. I daresay someone who spends ?40 on afternoon tea gets as much pleasure out of doing that as someone who spends ?40 to go to a football match...
It is relative rendel, but I would assume the carbon fibre cycle would get plenty of use, and maybe even the trousers too. Dining out is never just about the food. As you say, it is the experience of being out with family or friends, a social gathering. And there are lots of overheads for restaurants and cafes above the cost of the food. It is a long time since I went to F and M for example, but if I remember correctly, there was a pianist in that tea room and we were celebrating a friend from Oz becoming a British citizen. The whole experience was worth the ?35 we paid at the time (per head). We are still talking about relatively small amounts of money though.

Blah Blah Wrote:

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> LOL I am with you there. Afternoon Tea instead

> perhaps Robert?


Completely. A really nice afternoon tea once a year would be lovely. Nothing too fancy, though: just a pot of Darjeeling or Earl Grey, drunk from a bone china cup, with proper scones that stick heavily to the roof of your mouth, jam and cream. No sandwiches or miniature gateaux.


Actually, even better is proper high tea. I was thinking about that in the shower only this morning. Cold roast meat and carved ham, baked potatoes, bit of salad, homemade crusty bread, chutney and mustard followed by light fruit cake, victoria sponge, perhaps jam tarts, and all washed down with lashings of tea.

High tea probably only happens up north these days. It would make a great addition for a local cafe though; family friendly and fills the gap between 5 and 7pm nicely.


Now imagining that menu translated into vegan / gluten-free / hipster. Feeling sad.

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