The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea London REVIEW: A Monstrously Good Treat or Not Worth The £50?

If you have a Gruffalo fan at home, you have probably already seen the new Gruffalo Afternoon Tea popping up across social media. It has recently launched at Raffles London at The OWO in Whitehall, bringing the Deep Dark Wood to one of London’s most luxurious hotels.

We recently went along to try it for ourselves and, while there were definitely things we enjoyed, I came away feeling quite conflicted about it.

The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea is beautifully presented, the setting is lovely and there are some very cute details. However, at from £50 per child, I personally don’t think the experience quite justifies the price.

Here is exactly what you get, what we thought of the food and whether I think the Gruffalo Afternoon Tea in London is worth booking.

Where is The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea in London?

The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea is served inside The Drawing Room at Raffles London at The OWO.

The hotel is located at 57 Whitehall, London, SW1A 2BX.

The closest stations include:

Charing Cross Station, around a five minute walk

Westminster Station, around a six minute walk

Embankment Station, around a six minute walk

The Drawing Room itself is beautiful. It feels very luxurious and traditional, with views across Whitehall, so you definitely get the feeling that you are having afternoon tea somewhere special. 

How much is The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea?

The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea costs from £50 per child and is specifically designed for children aged 1 to 12.

It launched on 21 September 2026 and is currently scheduled to run until early January 2027. Afternoon tea is served daily. 

Adults have a completely different afternoon tea. Instead of The Gruffalo theme, adults are offered the Operation Mincemeat Afternoon Tea, which is inspired by the Second World War deception operation and the history of the Old War Office. Adult afternoon tea is currently listed from £85 to £87 depending on the booking source. 

This was actually one of my biggest disappointments with the experience.

I really wish adults had the option of ordering The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea too.

We were obviously visiting because of The Gruffalo, so personally I wasn’t particularly interested in having an Operation Mincemeat themed afternoon tea while my child had all of the Gruffalo food.

I think it would have made the whole experience feel much more special if families could enjoy the same theme together.

What is included in The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea?

The children’s menu is inspired by The Gruffalo and the new Gruffalo Granny story.

The sandwiches have been given names inspired by the characters and the Deep Dark Wood.

Roasted Fox is a roasted ham sandwich on white bread.

Little Brown Mouse combines cheddar cheese and heritage tomato on brown bread.

Deep Dark Wood is cucumber, mint and cream cheese on brown bread.

Scrambled Snake contains egg, mustard and watercress on white bread.

The sandwiches themselves were nice, but this is probably where I started questioning the £50 price tag.

They are essentially traditional finger sandwiches with Gruffalo inspired names rather than actually being themed or presented to look like the characters.

After the sandwiches, you get traditional buttermilk and sultana scones served with Cornish clotted cream, strawberry jam and lemon curd.

Then comes the part children are probably going to get most excited about, the Gruffalo themed pastries.

The Gruffalo cakes were definitely the highlight

This was the strongest part of the afternoon tea for me.

The sweet treats included The Gruffalo, The Mouse and Owl’s Pot of Soup, and visually these were much more in keeping with what I expected from a £50 character afternoon tea. 

The little mouse desserts were particularly cute, and the Gruffalo treats instantly make the table feel more fun for children.

There is also a Gruffalo Granny book style dessert, which is a really clever touch considering the afternoon tea has been launched alongside the arrival of the new Gruffalo Granny story.

This is the kind of creativity I would have loved to see carried throughout the whole afternoon tea.

I think they could have done so much more with the theme

For me, this is where the experience falls short.

The Gruffalo has so many recognisable characters and references that there was a huge opportunity to make every part of this afternoon tea feel like you had stepped into the Deep Dark Wood.

Imagine a fox shaped chocolate biscuit instead of simply calling a ham sandwich Roasted Fox.

They could have had an owl macaron, a coiled snake éclair, Gruffalo paw print chocolates, woodland mushroom cakes or even little edible trees and leaves surrounding the desserts.

Even the sandwiches could have been cut into woodland shapes or stamped with character silhouettes.

It doesn’t necessarily need more food. I just think the food that is already included could have been much more creative.

When you are paying from £50 for a child’s afternoon tea, you are not really paying £50 for sandwiches, scones and cakes. You are paying for the theming and the experience.

That is why I expected the Gruffalo element to be much stronger.

@kiddoadventures

Oh help! Oh no! We tried the new Gruffalo Afternoon Tea in London… and I’m not convinced it’s worth from £50 per child. 👀🐭 The new Gruffalo Afternoon Tea has arrived at Raffles London at The OWO and, while some of the desserts are genuinely SO cute, I expected a lot more from the overall experience for the price. The children’s tea is from £50 and includes Gruffalo themed sandwiches, scones and desserts, with little Mouse and Gruffalo treats being the highlight for us. But I really think they could have taken the theme so much further. Imagine Fox biscuits, Owl macarons, a coiled Snake éclair, Gruffalo paw print chocolates or more food actually shaped like the characters. There are so many possibilities from the story. Another thing I didn’t love is that adults don’t get the Gruffalo Afternoon Tea. Adults are offered the Operation Mincemeat Afternoon Tea instead, and personally, that wasn’t what I was there for. I would have much preferred the option for us both to have the same Gruffalo experience. 📍 Raffles London at The OWO, Whitehall 🚇 Nearest station: Charing Cross 🐭 Children’s Gruffalo Afternoon Tea: from £50 per child 👧 Designed for children aged 1 to 12 It’s beautifully presented and definitely cute for a huge Gruffalo fan, but for from £50 per child, I wanted to feel like we had properly stepped into the Deep Dark Wood. Would you pay from £50 for this? 👀 #Gruffalo #GruffaloAfternoonTea #LondonWithKids #ThingsToDoInLondon #LondonAfternoonTea

♬ Birds Sound – Calming Bird Sounds

Is there a Gruffalo character meet and greet?

This is worth knowing before you book because you may have seen photos and videos of The Gruffalo himself at Raffles London.

The Gruffalo character appearance was a special one day visit for the launch. There are currently no further character appearances confirmed. 

So I definitely wouldn’t book this expecting your child to meet The Gruffalo.

Personally, I think a character appearance would have completely changed my opinion on the value. If children were able to meet The Gruffalo, take photographs and have some interaction alongside the afternoon tea, from £50 would feel much easier to justify.

Dietary requirements are quite limited

Another important thing to know before booking is that Raffles currently states that the specialised Gruffalo menu cannot accommodate vegan, gluten free or other dietary modifications. 

If your child has allergies or dietary requirements, I would definitely contact the hotel before making a reservation rather than assuming an alternative menu will be available.

Is The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea in London worth £50?

For me, no.

That doesn’t mean it is a bad afternoon tea.

The hotel is beautiful, the service and surroundings make it feel like a special occasion and some of the Gruffalo desserts are genuinely adorable. If you have a child who absolutely loves The Gruffalo and you want a luxury treat in central London, they will probably be very excited by it.

But at from £50 per child, I expected considerably more theming.

I wanted to look at the table and immediately see The Gruffalo world everywhere. Instead, quite a lot of the theme comes from the menu names and printed artwork, with only some of the desserts really bringing the characters to life.

I also think not having a Gruffalo option for adults makes the experience feel slightly disconnected. If a family is booking specifically because they love The Gruffalo, it would be much more fun for everyone to experience the same themed afternoon tea together rather than parents being directed towards an entirely different concept.

Would we have enjoyed it more at a lower price? Absolutely.

Would I tell a huge Gruffalo fan not to go? No. There are some lovely touches and it could still make a memorable birthday or special occasion.

But if you are asking me whether I personally think The Gruffalo Afternoon Tea at Raffles London is worth from £50 per child, I think it needs more of the Deep Dark Wood and a little less reliance on the name alone.

For a character afternoon tea at this price point, I don’t just want the menu to tell me that I am eating with The Gruffalo. I want the whole table to make me feel like I’ve stepped inside the story.