Best Restaurants for Afternoon Tea in East Malling

A hidden gem. Ambience, decor, food and service were impeccable and the attention to detail in every aspect is very impressive, Highly recommended.

Awesome location. Very tranquil. Took my mum there and we both loved it. The shop, well I could spend all day and a lot of money. The food, amazing, egss benedict was off the chart. the service, really good. Very helpful staff. Knew their product. Will definitely be returning.

I highly recommend this afternoon tea. I went with my partner and daughter for my birthday but feel this would be an ideal experience to meet up with a group as we didn’t feel rushed in any way and neither did it seem any of the other guests. There was a wonderful choice of savouries with two perfectly sized scones ( one plain, one fruit) and a delightful selection of sweet offerings. There was also a lovely surprise I’d not been aware of when I made the booking, but I won’t mention it here so as not to spoil it for others. Unable to finish all the sweet items, we asked for a box to take the remaining items which we were given. My only criticism being that after being served our afternoon tea no one checked in on us to see if we wanted any drinks top ups ( included). My daughter managed to gain the attention of a busy staff member setting up for the evening service to request a top up of our tea. The tea seemed rather weak as if boiling water had been added to the original tea bag in the pot, which had been in there since initially served, and we weren’t asked if we required any additional milk. Based on prices paid for other afternoon tea experiences and the little included ‘surprise’, the location of this afternoon tea along with the ambience, I would say it is good value but you do need to take into consideration that a 12.5% service charge is added to the price of the afternoon tea, so it’s a little more than stated ( although, of course this is a voluntary charge)

We went for Sunday lunch and had a lovely time. Cocktails are amazing, food was delicious, decor was great. The only downside was that the service was very slow and waiting staff not very attentive as in we sat with empty glasses for a long time and no-one came over to the table really except to take our order or serve the food. Also not enough gravy on the roast but that is a personal preference. Overall though loved The Hengist and would definitely go back!

Service was adequate, waitress did not know what the fish was with the fish and chips, and no offer to find out when asked! The curry was nice, but should have come with rice, poppadom and naan bread. The naans turned out to be tortilla wraps! Service was very slow, especially for drinks Restaurant area is tired and needs refreshing