The Royal Tea Room & Restaurant

Went last month and the place was going downhill. I see per the reviews that there may be new owners since my visit. I think it's changed over 5 times in the past few years. Maybe, maybe I will give them another chance.

Had lunch the other day at the royal tea room. there is a new owner. She is wonderful. The food was out of this world!!!! I had the kate salad. It was to die for. This is by far the best tea room I have ever been to. five stars all the way!!!!

I LOVE the NEW OWNERS of the Royal Tearoom in LaPlata, MD! I used to go to the tearoom but the owner was kind of rude and the staff not so happy! Food was good but now it is the perfect tearoom! The staff is very kind and smiles are everywhere! As soon as I walked into the tearoom, I could tell that someone else has taken over. It is very clean and looks beautiful! The food is AMAZING! You REALLY need to visit this Teahouse/room! 5 Stars to the new owner and the staff! Try it....I KNOW YOU WILL LOVE IT!

Had another fabulous lunch ate the Tea Room yesterday. As always, the food was fantastic. The selection of 30+ teas satisfied all of us. The Christmas decorations were beautiful and the servers were very attentive. Miss Betty stopped by our table to chat and make sure everything was perfect, which it was! Can't wait to come again.

Another delicious lunch at the Tea Room. The food was outstanding, the decor was beautiful, and the service was wonderful. Couldn't ask for anything better! Thank you, Miss Betty, for your hospitality.

Yummy food. Poor customer service. Needs a dress code and perhaps a no babies rule. Had a reservation. As we were seated we were told we had to hurry and finish for the next reservation which was 2 hours later. :/ Had to ask about the teas and were told they only have 3 varieties. Considering this is a tea house you would think they'd have a larger selection and an actual presentation. Does not respond to emails.

My daughter and I went for High Tea at The Royal Tea Room today.....It was absolutely perfect! Warm and cozy setting. Delicious food with a beautiful presentation. Great tea - lots to choose from- even speciality teas- we are tea totallers. The best service - outstanding - very personable and attentive. Reasonable prices.... and last but not least - Awesome Company! xo
I have to say The Tea Room was even better than the teas we have been to at Casey Jones Crossings.....Really! Try it I promise you will not be disappointed - can't wait to go back.

Not always when traveling or just hearing about a particular new eatery it turns out to be exactly what you've imagined. Last night my husband and I went to the Royal Tea Room in our quaint townn of La Plata, MD. This charming old house was made up like a Hollywood set, decorated with fog, candlelabras, eerie music and dressed up characters that made this 'Spooktacular Royal Tea' an experience to remember. Chef Betty and her staff is an added delight and welcomed pleasure to our town. The food surpasses any my husband and I have tasted and we've traveled a lot in our years in the Navy. In these trying times this brings a slice of pure pleasure to the palate with a side dish of charm and royality. Under the new management of Chef Betty and her professinoal staff, The Royal Tea Room of La Plata should be a must stop whether passing through or just needing a place to come for an experience you'll always remember.

My Royal Tea experience was SUPERB! The interior was decorated for Harvest Season. Each table was nicely adorned with crisp linens, NO paper napkins! Classical music played softly, no competition with patrons conversations.

Chef Betty's delectable tea treats were plentiful, delicious and filling. There were three soup choices. Crab, Spinach and Tomato Bisque. I had the tomato bisque which was creamy and seasoned just right. Scone Time! I chose the cranberry scone, later in the evening (at home), I had the lemon poppy scone which was moist and crumbly. One enormous plus: A generous serving of lemon curds, homemade clotted cream and Constant Comment tea infused homemade jelly.

My tea tier had a variety of tea sandwiches, cucumber, egg salad, chicken salad, two miniature ... (more)quiche, fruit and a crab ball. There were enough desserts that two could share, none were store bought. Chef Betty made tea time personal and special, she conversed with the guests and asked their opinion in regards to tea time. I left the Royal Tea Room a satisfied customer. I highly recommend this tea room.

Just had lunch here this past weekend and it was fantastic! The cream of crab soup is 'ridiculously good' . Also, the prices on everything, from the food to the merchandise, was extremely reasonable. Chef Betty and crew, you are doing a great job!!

I do not think this Tea Room deserves to be the #3 in the state of Maryland. Yes, granted, the food is ok, the shops are nice, and the atmosphere can be very cozy... but everything else is a big sloppy mess. I have scheduled a coupld private partes there (including a baby shower and princess party) as well as dining in for lunch, finding myself leaving the Tea Room disappointed instead of satisfied. Many a times the owner, Dee, was very hard to talk to- she seems to be overwhelmed, distracted, and completely unorganized. At one of the events I planned, she ruined the whole experience with her loud and obnoxious behavior, which she also passed a long to our server, which was her daughter. The only time we were properly addressed was when it came time to pay the bill.
The food IS averag... (more)e because anyone can go to Sams Club and whip together the appetizer and dessert trays we were presented.
The service we had was ok, but made us feel uncomfortable at times, especially when the server spent most her time talking about her financial struggles being a young mom.
To be quit honest and straight to the point, this place is a joke; and an embarrassment to the town of La Plata.
All the other reviews I've read (the poorly rated ones) are very true.
If the food was homemade, I'd say this Tea Room, as well as management, would fit more appropriately in St Marys County.

The BEST tea room in the State of Maryland! Try it and see for yourselves.

Went for the third time with 3 other ladies last Thursday. They had never been here before but I believe they'll also become repeat customers. The bread pudding was heavenly.

The atmosphere is one of simple elegance. The staff was friendly and knowledgeable from start to finish. And, oh, the cream of crab soup! It was brimming with chunks of crab and the flavor was oh so good! Others had caesar salad and the Ruben sandwich. Not a crumb was left on the plates. The dessert selection although small was diverse and we had a hard time choosing from Cheesecake, Chocolate cake, Hot Peach Cobbler or Scones. Decided on the cheesecake and chocolate cake. Extremely generous portions and lick the plate yummy. Can't wait to go back.

What an enjoyable afternoon I had with my friends. The Royal Tea Room has wonderful,delectable food. The new owner has put a new look to the house, but it still so quant and charming. Service was spectular and all this on opening day...Good luck Chef Betty and crew.

My sister, who lives in White Plains, has visited the tea room on several occasions. On july 5th, she invited my husband and me to accompany her for tea.
The staff was warm and welcoming, the food delicious and the items on display were a treat to see and examine.
The items I purchased are now beaftifully shown on my dining room table.
We are Washingtonians but are already looking forward to our second visit
Thanks for a great afternoon and we hope to see you soon.
Yvonne W. Collins

My mother and I enjoy going for tea when time allows and this was a terrific choice. We were welcomed by the beautiful landscape and pleasant hostess. We were presented with a tea menu that offered quite a variety. My husband and daughter who are not really into the finery of tea even found a vanilla blend that they were able to enjoy. While we waited for our tea and desserts we were able to select our own tea cup from a beautiful selection of cups. The desserts we chose were all delicious. I look forward to stopping back in for a full lunch.

One of the best chicken salads I have had. I would come back just for this. The scones however were severely lacking. I really expected better after the great lunch. Also the clotted cream was made with cream cheese rather than marscapone which gave it an odd flavor. Our server could have been a little more pleasant but over all we will be back the lunch was something to write home about we had chicken salad and quiche and side salad which we all split so we could try a variety it was a very good idea as everything in the lunch menu was excellent.

We love this Tea Room and visit frequently. The food, atmosphere, and friendliness of the owner and staff make it our go-to place for lunch. We recently had a large family gathering and asked the owner (Dee) if she could support us. Dee went above and beyond to prepare food for us and give us the directions on how to prepare the food. Even though the Tea Room was closed the day we served the food, Dee called us to make sure we didn't have any questions or needed additional items. My picky family members couldn't stop raving about the delicious cream of crab soup and pasta salad. Before the Tea Room opened, I took my mother and mother-in-law to the Ritz Carlton in No. Va. occasionally for high tea. The Tea Room is heads above them for variety of food, High Tea Service, and comfort.

I attended a tea with my tea club recently. We were not offered a choice of tea at our table (perhaps the club selected it earlier?) but the Peach Tea that was served had a lovely, delicate taste and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The setting, in a former rectory, resembled the dining room of an elegant home. We were a large group, but I did not feel crowded. The food was offered in four courses, each presented in a lovely way: hot scones, soup and salad, selection of hot hors d'ouevres, and a final three-tiered sandwich and dessert selection. The selections were remarkably extensive, and everyone enjoyed the variety of tastes. I must agree with some of the other comments that the servers were overwhelmed at times, though unfailingly pleasant, and refills to our teapot were slow in coming. All together, this is a lovely place to share tea in a small or large group, and there is a bonus 'shopping' area in the three bedrooms upstairs. You will enjoy!

We had our youngest daughter's 8th birthday party at the Royal Tea Room. It was a GREAT success due to Dee and her staff. The little girls all 17 of them had a wonderful time -- they are still talking about this party. Would highly recommend the Tea Room for any event or for just an afternoon of relaxation -- which is what I am going to do the next time we are there.

49 years old and just went to my first tea yesterday, 5/10/11, with my 7 yr. old nieces Girl Scout Troop. I took my 7 year old granddaughter along. We had a splendid time. It was so cute to see them act so dainty with their pinkies up when drinking their tea (fruitpunch) - - I did let them get some vanilla tea because they wanted sugar cubes so bad. I took them upstairs and of course they found something for me to buy, the cute ribbon headbands, of which all the little girls went crazy over when we went back downstairs. I can't wait to do an event there with my sisters, mother and friends. Just for something different to do. The food was good also.

My sister & I took our mother to the Tea Room on Saturday for Mother's Day. We had a wonderful time. The food was awesome (my mother even bought some scones to take to our father)! The tea was off the hook! Everyone was kind & very uplifting. My sister & I decided we are going to take our niece & my daughter the next time we go which will be very soon. As we were driving home, our mother told us that this was the best Mother's Day she has ever had.

Used to love this tea room. Have visited several times over the years. But last visit the person failed to write down our reservation therefore when we arrived no one knew why. Instead of being nice about it we got blamed for not getting the name of the employee who didn't write it down. Today, whoever answered the phone hung up on my friend when she inquired about Mother's Day reservations. My friends and I won't be returning.

I was very disapointed, I met 11 other family members for an easter/mothersday celerbration,most of us ordered the 'royal tea'. It was a big disapointment, we were there for over 3.5 hours. First I have to say the scone was Excellent, but sadly the only thing homemade. I reconized most items on the appetizers tray from costco or sams club. the soup was not homemade nor the salad dressings.the tuna, chicken and egg salad were dry and the desserts, one was a cake i buy from sams for are church dinners.the petit fours i could not even eat, no
taste at all. I was disapointed to say the least, expecting most things to be homemade, atleast the dessert, soup and salad dressing. I don't think thats much to ask for
paying $21.00 plus 20% tip on an afternoon lunch! On top of that the owner... (more)/mgr was to busy talking and not listening that she charged my cousin an additional $15.00 for soup/salad that she wanted to share with her elderly 80 somehting mother. Two bites and she's fool!(they were sharing the royal-tea, but the owner/mgr wanted to make sure she got her extra 15.00 which could have been taken care of differntly if she had only allowed us to explain what she wanted to do. Yes, the tea
room is pretty, but it is sadly lacking in the kitchen...... also
I want to include are waitress was very good and did her job very well.
If I decide to meet my family members again there ( this was are second visit in 3 months) I will be sure to only order from the menu and never again would I waste $$ on the royal tea. I would order
the rubens, and other sandwhichs.

Once again, we had another wonderful experience at The Royal Tea Room. Our service, meal and the overall atmosphere couldn't have been better. Our server was new to waiting tables but in our books he was a seasoned pro. He never missed a beat and attended to us very professionally. The owner, Dee, came over to our table and chatted with us for a bit which added to our enjoyment. My friends and I spent about two and a half hours there yesterday and just had a pleasant Sunday afternoon. If you haven’t experienced The Royal Tea Room & Gifts, you should definitely give it a try. If you don’t want to order the Royal Tea or Afternoon Tea, no problem…they have a marvelous lunch menu…Plus lovely collectibles and antiques for purchase. Trust me, you will not be disappointed in this historically quaint, picturesque restaurant.

I had my daughter's baby shower here on Saturday. The service was excellent and the staff was more than accommodating. The teapots were filled constantly with different varieties. The scone served with devonshire cream and jellies were delicious. The sandwiches and desserts, served on a 3-tier tray, were excellent. The staff loaded the car with the gifts and wrapped up cupcakes for our guests to take home. It was a wonderful afternoon spent in this cozy old house. It is also fun to look at the antiques and gifts they have to offer.

Dell
My girlfriend and I had Royal Tea on
Saturday. It was everything we wanted it to be. The scone,salad and soup was great. The crab soup was so good,we carried some home.The
pot of tea was excellent.The tea sandwiches,savories and deserts were delicious.We are going back. Thanks!

A friend and I went there for afternoon tea today and I have to say we were more than pleased with our experience. The tea to choose from on the menu is a good, broad selection, but most of it seemed to be bag tea as oppposed to loose leaf tea, although the tea was high quality. The food included in the afternoon tea was all delicious and beautifully displayed. The atmosphere was very cozy and whimsical. For the afternoon tea, we got to pick our own tea cups and saucer from a beautiful display which I thought was a delightful touch. It would probably be best to call ahead to make a reservation for the afternoon tea since the last time my husband and I just walked in, I don't recall seeing it on the regular menu and I think you may have to make a reservation for it. Better safe than sorry. However, the Royal Tea Room is a great choice for a casual lunch as well if an afternoon tea isn't your thing. The Royal Tea Room has a lifelong customer in me.

A group of friends took one lady to the Royal Tea Room for lunch and farewell as she is moving out of the area.
Dee was very gracious from my phone call for reservations to greeting us on our arrival.
The tea was piping hot and stayed hot due to the cute tea cozies on each pot. The service was excellent and the food especially yummy! I enjoyed the Italian Wedding Soup, and a chicken salad sandwich on a nicely toasted croisant.I have to say the chicken salad was fresh tasting and with just the right amount of mayonnaise and fruit. It rivaled the chicken salad that i've purchased from Gerards French Bakery in Oxon Hill, MD. Two of us shared the Brownie ala mode dessert which was served hot and was dense and chocolaty.
A wonderful time was had by everyone in our group, and we enjoyed browsing in the gift shop, and chatting with Dee the owner.
It was a lovely way to spend the afternoon, and I'm looking forward to returning really soon.

Recently stopped in because I had heard good things from others who had eaten at the tea room. I had lunch and not the tea service, so that may be the reason I felt like the experience was very average. The quality of the salad I had was mediocre, however, very pricey. Maybe I should have gotten the tea service. Disappointed.

Me and three of my friends went to the tea room. We are all 12 years old and they treated us with the respect of an adult. They have great antiques and an excellent variety of teas and sandy witches. i love dis place, yo!

My friend and I just came from from one of the most enjoyable lunch and teas while celebrating her birthday. We had such a wonderful afternoon visiting in such a friendly and cute atmosphere. Kudos to you Dee Jameson!

I have been to the tea room quite a few times, and while the place is very quaint and has a nice atmosphere, the service was nothing great. There seems to be only one server, who is extremely overwhelmed. We had the Royal Tea and the service was slow, which we could understand because of the lack of help the server had on such a busy day. The crab soup was exceptional, but was very cold and we had mostly soup and no crab. The mini sandwiches were good and well prepared. Toward the end of our meal, the owner came out and spoke to the waitress. She was very loud and we could hear everything she said from our table in the back. She was also very rude to the waitress and I was surprised and shocked. Her voice was loud and carried beyond the back room. She destroyed the atmosphere of the cute quiet tea room with her obnoxious behavior,

My mother took me to lunch at the tea room for my birthday...a rare chance for the two of us to spend time together alone. As always, the restaurant was beautifully decorated. We were seated quickly but were not asked for even a drink order for 20 minutes. That was OK - we had planned on taking our time. Lunch was delicious. However, about half way through our meal the owner came out from the kitchen. Normally, this would be a nice touch. However, she was so loud that my mother and I couldn't hear each other. She spent about 10 minutes at one table, where it appeared she knew someone.Then she moved to the next asking questions about other tea houses they have visited. This discussion also lasted 10 minutes or more and while I glanced back several times, she did not appear to notice. She finally left the room once dessert was served. I'm suprised that she obviously goes to a lot of effort to create a particular atmosphere and then is completely unaware that she ruined it. Very dissapointing.

What a wonderful time!

I've been a few times with my Mom and sisters for tea and we love the experience. It is so special to have the time to spend with Mom and to do it in such a warm atmosphere with delicious food/teas has created some very special memories.

I also just hosted my daughter's birthday tea at Royal Tea and it was amazing. The girls were absolutely treated like little princesses and they raved about the food.
Thank You Royal Tea for always providing a first class experience.
Chris

My mother and sister hosted a baby shower for me at the Tea Room at the end of January. I called early in the month to ask if they could accommodate a party of our size and was told that they could. I called the week of the party and confirmed the # of guests and asked if we could bring in cheese cake or cupcakes for the party and was told we could. The owner called my sister later in the week and told her we could NOT bring them in, but eventually conceded that we could if we brought our own 'clear plastic plates and cutlery' to serve them on. She also told my sister the service would start promptly at 2 and all guests needed to be present by then. When we got there for the shower there was another shower going on in the room we needed. That party did not clear out until about 2:30 ... (more)and they did not start seating us until about 2:45. They had a tiny 10x15 room to try to accommodate my 24 guests. From the very beginning they should have let us know their facility was too small. They didn't have enough chairs so my sister went and asked for a couple more and the owner told her we asked for 22 chairs and we were only getting 22 chairs. She also told my sister we had to be out promptly at 4 because they had to set up for another party. Well their 'next party' happened to be a party my aunt was throwing and didn't start until 6pm. They apparently needed two hours to set up for a party of 11. There were two other young ladies on hand that day. One of them was extremely friendly and accommodating, the younger of the two was just as stuck up and snotty as the owner. I would not recommend this place for a gathering of more than a hand-full of people. I personally will not choose to host a gathering here ever again and will think very hard before I come back as a guest of any one.