Crowning story - what does it take to win London's top tea award?

8th December 2012

As judging begins for the 2013 awards, Ronny Wilbald, Food and Beverage Manager at The Athenaeum in Mayfair - winner of The Tea Guild's Top London Afternoon Tea Award 2012 - sheds light on what it means to win this highly coveted award.

For the next month or two, The Tea Guild’s team of anonymous judges will be taking afternoon tea at each of The Tea Guild’s London member venues to decide who will win next year’s prized Top London Afternoon Tea Award 2013.

There are good reasons why the awards are dubbed ‘the Oscars of the Tea World’.  Winners can rest assured that they have reached the gold standard in what is one of Britain’s most marketable and revered traditions.

As one would expect, every aspect and detail of the service, the food and the way in which the tea is brewed and served is scrutinised in the judging process.

Décor, the appropriateness of the crockery, staff attitude and tea knowledge are all considered, as are efficiency of service, overall ambience and - perhaps most importantly - how the tea itself is served. The judges - who all dine anonymously and pay like regular clientele - follow strict guidelines and criteria that cover every single aspect of the afternoon tea experience, before reporting back to The Tea Guild, which announces its final decision in April 2013.

Needless to say, competition between London’s Tea Guild members is lively, to say the least. The anonymous inspection process - an annual event for members - spurs venues to improve their standards year on year: with good reason. Winners see a sharp increase in revenue and the prestige associated with the title is highly prized.

One man who knows more than most what exacting attention to detail is required to win is Ronny Wilbald, Food and Beverage Manager at The Athenaeum in Mayfair, which won The Tea Guild’s Top London Afternoon Tea Award 2012.

“We have been in receipt of an Award of Excellence from The Tea Guild for a few years now,” he explains, “but one of my predecessors here at The Athenaeum had gone onto another rival hotel where it had gone on to win the top award, so basically we were a bit jealous and drew up an action plan.”

“We did go to visit some of the other hotels,” he says, “but really, I concentrated on improving the service of the tea itself, and making sure that it is served in exactly the right way, that it is refreshed regularly and that brewing times are spot on.”

“We also made sure that the staff are very well trained and we added some rare teas to the menu and some infusions and wellness teas, too.”

The Athenaeum’s bestseller is its Evergreen Afternoon Tea in which a pretty floral theme runs throughout. It was introduced a couple of years ago to coincide with the completion of Patrick Blanc’s amazing vertical garden - a living wall of plants - that overlooks The Garden Room in which the afternoon tea is served.

“It’s our unique selling point,” explains Ronny. “It’s very, very popular with young people - there has been a real shift in the audience for afternoon tea in recent years. It’s incredible how popular it is with a younger audience. They just love coming for afternoon tea and choosing different teas to enjoy.”

But of course, once the award has been won, the work does not stop.

“Oh, it’s very important not to let go once you’ve won the award,” says Ronny. “Word of mouth plays such a big role and we do encourage our customers to leave feedback.”

“Once you have won the award, people are critical and do look at what you do very closely - quite rightly too. Our Garden Room is very comfortable and cosy so I’ve been careful not to overcrowd the room - given the increase in demand.

“The effect has been phenomenal,” he says of the win.

“We’ve had a massive increase in covers, up to three times the amount that we used to have. We are booked up at weekends now right the way through to February 2013.”

“It’s our big money maker now,” he adds.

“The press coverage following the announcement became manic. I was on Brazilian, Russian and Chinese TV as well as BBC Radio. I felt as though I’d become something of a mini celebrity!”

For German-born Ronny, who has been at the helm since 2011, it has been something of revelation entering into the world of such a strong British tradition.

“In Germany, we have coffee and cake in the afternoon, but nothing like the tradition surrounding afternoon tea that there is here in Britain. It fills me with pride to be part of team that has won the award for the best afternoon tea in London.”

“It was just like finding a treasure. Really.”