Can I see the menu beforehand?

Yes, online and as a PDF, which the hotel labels a sample menu.4

Hotel Bel-Air afternoon tea: the 3pm seating in The Living Room

Q: How long does tea last?

Up to 3 hours: service runs until 6pm.6

Hotel Bel-Air afternoon tea is served in The Living Room, the hotel’s reimagined lobby, styled on a conservatory with hummingbirds and citrus blossom on the wallcovering and a fireplace at its centre. The menu is the hotel’s own take on tea, drawn from its gardens.

Updated 24 October 20264 min readHow we write the guide

A green velvet sofa in The Living Room: the side table with a 3-tier stand, a flowered teapot and 2 glasses of Champagne, against a pink wall painted with branches.

The choice, in short

Why choose Hotel Bel-Air

Caviar comes in the base price: Imperial Kaluga on new potato with crème fraîche is one of the savouries.

The teas

When to look elsewhere

A large group should look elsewhere: parties of 6 or more pay a 20% service charge, and the bill splits 3 ways at most.

The glass

From scones to sweets

It opens with house-made buttermilk and currant scones, with Devonshire cream and mixed berry jam.³

The savouries: applewood-smoked Faroe Island Scottish salmon with herb cream cheese, chives and ikura; Jidori chicken salad with golden raisins and celery on toasted walnut bread; Japanese cucumber with capers, dill and Meyer lemon; and a Chino Valley egg sandwich with sweet paprika and house pickles.³

There are 5 sweets: a key lime tartlet, a swan cream puff, a chocolate hazelnut mille-feuille, a princess cake and a strawberry pavlova.³

If the afternoon runs on

From 2pm

The Bar & Lounge

The Bar & Lounge opens daily at 2pm, with its bar menu and live music every night.⁶

Until 10pm

Dinner

The Restaurant at Hotel Bel-Air is open every day until 10pm.⁶

Hotel Bel-Air

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14 teas

On the list

Green: ceremonial matcha, hand-rolled Jasmine Downy Pearls and Swan Song, the house blend of guayusa, jasmine, hibiscus and green rooibos
Black: Darjeeling, Earl Grey with Sicilian bergamot, Assam and Tali’s masala chai
Herbal: fresh Scarborough Farms mint, the Rejuvenation Blend, Egyptian chamomile and fresh-cut ginger
Blossoming teas, Seven Sons Congratulating and Halo, and one oolong, Sacred Orchid

Where it is

Address	701 Stone Canyon Road, Los Angeles, CA 90077.²

Rooms at the Bel-Air

A Deluxe Room at Hotel Bel-Air, with a white bed and garden light.

Rooms and staying here

3 prices, 3 Champagnes

Champagne in the glass	What it is	Against the base
Moët & Chandon Impérial	Brut, France	The base price
Ruinart	Brut rosé, France	$20 more
Krug Grande Cuvée	Brut, France	$55 more

Before booking

How long does tea last?

Up to 3 hours: service runs until 6pm.⁶

Is there a dress code?

Yes, smart casual.²

How much is tea for someone who does not drink?

The base price: French Bloom Le Blanc, an alcohol-free sparkling wine, can take the place of the Moët.³

Is there a festive tea?

Yes: from 4 to 27 December the menu takes a seasonal turn, and tea is served by the open fire.⁷

The tea’s page

The ultimate afternoon tea

We wrote this on our own: Hotel Bel-Air reads it as you do. We sell no rooms: the links go where we read it.

Where we read it