Rocke Cottage Tearooms in Shropshire receives The Tea Guild's Top UK Tea Place 2011 Award

8th April 2011

One of the best places in the UK to enjoy afternoon tea has been named as Rocke Cottage Tearooms. This charming tea room, nestled in the Shropshire countryside, has achieved the highest 'accolade' of the tea world by winning The Tea Guild's prestigious Top Tea Place 2011 Award.

The Tea Guild event, now in its 26th year, is considered the 'Oscar' of the tea world, with the best tea rooms in the UK competing for the hugely coveted honour. The UK Tea Council has also awarded 44 special Awards of Excellence in recognition of their outstanding quality and consistently high standards in tea service.

As well as researching and judging The Top Tea Place award, the UK Tea Council's team of Tea Guild inspectors have been searching the UK to seek out the annual winners of The Top London Afternoon Tea and The Top City and Country Hotel Tea awards.

The Tea Guild team of tea experts have taken tea in hotels and tearooms in London and across Britain to find the finest tea experiences and all visits have been anonymous to ensure the results are completely fair and accurate. The anonymous judges awarded points for the variety, flavour, knowledge and service of the teas offered, together with the quality and service of food, décor, ambience, and presentation. With 125 points to be lost or gained on the judge's scorecard, only those tea establishments achieving the very highest standards across a number of categories can make it to the top.

Rocke Cottage Tearooms was voted into the top spot after it gained a near perfect score from the The Tea Guild's inspectors. The judges praised it for its pleasant surroundings, a warm and friendly welcome from the owner, Karin Clarke, and the "quietly efficient" service that guests enjoyed. The judges were impressed by the variety and amount of sandwiches, crumpets, scones and delicious cakes and were won over by the excellent selection of teas and the staff's exceptional knowledge.

Set in the picturesque Clun Valley in Shropshire, Rocke Cottage Tearooms, near Clungunford, traces its history back to the mid 17th century, and is thought to have been a hostelry from the very start. Today the exposed timbers inside and original wattle and daub walls underlie the Rock Cottage's rich past and it has been themed in the style of the 1920s and 1930s with period adverts, prints and music.

Commenting on Rocke Cottage Tearooms winning The Tea Guild's the coveted Top Tea Place 2011 award, Irene Gorman, Head of The Tea Guild, said: "Rocke Cottage Tearooms offers a truly special tea experience and this award is very well deserved. The attention to detail, quality of food, lovingly prepared by Karin and her team, who strive to ensure, where possible, that all foods are sourced locally, and whose excellent knowledge and service of teas served, is second to none. The very friendly welcome and relaxing and pleasant ambiance helps make afternoon tea at Rocke Cottage Tearooms a real pleasure.

"The standard of entrants this year was incredibly high, with many excellent entries from across the UK. The tradition of afternoon tea has never been stronger, with Tea Guild members busier than ever. More and more people are taking time out to enjoy afternoon tea.

"Afternoon tea is the perfect way to catch up with friends, family or even business colleagues, celebrate a special occasion or enjoy a romantic date. Tea Guild member establishments all have a wide variety of teas to choose from, including favourites such as white and green tea as well as special blends that are often unique. Modern life can be very hectic and demanding and taking afternoon tea is the perfect way to slow down and relax, bringing huge emotional and wellbeing benefits."

Rocke Cottage spokesperson Owner Karin Clarke said: "We're very proud to be members of The Tea Guild and to be given The Tea Guild's Top Tea Place 2011 Award is a huge honour - we're absolutely delighted. We aim to give our customers the very best afternoon tea experience possible and all our staff work tirelessly into making Rocke Cottage a great place to relax and enjoy the highest quality food and tea. We know just how important it is to get all aspects of afternoon tea exactly right."

- Ends -

The Tea Guild has also announced that London's Top Afternoon Tea Award 2011 has been won by Claridge's and The Tea Guild Top City and Country Tea Award has been awarded to The Angel Hotel in Monmouthshire, Wales. 56 establishments around the UK and 16 London venues have also receive a coveted Award of Excellence. Please contact us for a full list of details of winners in your area.

Notes to editors:

• The Tea Guild is part of The UK Tea Council Ltd which is a non-profit making, independent organisation dedicated to raising the profile of tea in the UK.
• For more information or to request images please contact:
  Nicky Smith on 0207 0528850 / 07867 513361
  Bonnie Williams on 07971 583444 / 0207 052885
  Emma Sanderson on 0207 0528853