Afternoon Tea in Washington, DC: The Complete Guide
The Willard's harpist, the Old Post Office clock tower, a 1747 Annapolis tavern, and a Hunt Country champagne tea — where the capital takes its tea.
Tea Rooms.org Editors · September 1, 2026
Washington may be the most competitive hotel-tea city in the country. Four grand hotels between Georgetown and Pennsylvania Avenue pour on the same weekend afternoons, at $90 to $125 a head, with harpists and caviar as table stakes. But the capital also has a quieter tea life — Chinese tea shops on Dupont Circle, a 30-year-old tea house in Penn Quarter — and a ring of towns within an hour where tea comes with colonial brick, a waterfront, or a Hunt Country view.
Every listing is verified against the venue's own published information. Hotel teas are reservation-only and most run Thursday through Sunday.
The Grand Hotel Tier
The Willard InterContinental is the city's most storied tea: Peacock Alley on weekends and the Willard Tea Room Wednesday through Sunday, seatings at noon and 2:30, J'enwey Tea Company loose leaf, the hotel's famous scones, and live harp — $90 per adult, $110 with champagne, $65 for children. The Four Seasons in Georgetown runs the weekend service DC Anglophiles favor for its proper London style, with savories like foie gras terrine, poached lobster, and wagyu; the spring 2026 cherry blossom tea was $125. The St. Regis, two blocks from the White House, marked its 100th year in 2026 with a $119 Anniversary Tea of Dammann Frères teas, caviar, lobster, and opera cake, Thursday through Sunday. And the Waldorf Astoria serves Peacock Alley tea in the clock-tower atrium of the Old Post Office — $120 per person on the building's original 1901 terracotta floors, harpist included.
Afternoon Tea at The Willard InterContinental
$$$$Downtown / Penn Quarter · Washington
Washington's most storied hotel tea, served in the Willard's Peacock Alley (Friday-Sunday) and Willard Tea Room (Wednesday-Sunday) with seatings at noon and 2:30 PM. The service pairs savory finger sandwiches, pastries, and the hotel's famous freshly baked scones with premium loose-leaf teas from J'enwey Tea Company, accompanied by live harp music. In-suite tea service and to-go orders are also offered.
Afternoon Tea at Seasons (Four Seasons Hotel Washington, DC)
$$$$Georgetown · Washington
Weekend afternoon tea in the Seasons restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown, long a favorite of DC Anglophiles for its proper, London-style service. Seasonal menus feature elevated savories such as duck foie gras terrine, poached lobster, and wagyu beef alongside scones and pastry courses. The hotel's spring 2026 cherry blossom tea was priced at $125 per adult.
Afternoon Tea at The St. Regis Washington, D.C.
$$$$Downtown / 16th Street · Washington
Grand hotel afternoon tea two blocks from the White House, served Thursday through Sunday afternoons in the St. Regis lobby. In 2026 the hotel marked its 100th anniversary with a special Anniversary Tea inspired by its 1926 opening, featuring Dammann Freres teas, classic scones, and indulgences such as caviar, lobster, and opera cake, priced at $119 per person.
Peacock Alley at Waldorf Astoria Washington DC
$$$$Penn Quarter / Old Post Office · Washington
Afternoon tea in the soaring clock-tower atrium of the historic Old Post Office Pavilion, home of the Waldorf Astoria Washington DC. The Peacock Alley service is offered Thursday through Sunday at $120 per person with champagne upgrades available, set against peacock-feather wallpaper, the building's original 1901 terracotta floors, and live harp music.
The Leaf Side
Ching Ching Cha spent 25 years as a Georgetown tea house before moving to a bright shop-and-gallery on 21st Street, where it sells hand-sourced Chinese, Taiwanese, and Japanese teas and a deep collection of Yixing pots — retail-focused now, no food. Teaism, founded in 1996 and celebrating 30 years in 2026, is DC's original modern tea house: loose-leaf blacks, greens, and chai beside okonomiyaki and bento boxes at the Penn Quarter flagship, with sister shops at Dupont and Lafayette Park. Valley Brook Tea, inside The Ven at Embassy Row, pours single-origin oolongs and Wuyi rock tea from the owners' own mountains in China, with an in-store tea-set service.
Ching Ching Cha
$$Dupont Circle · Washington
A DC tea institution that spent 25 years as a Georgetown tea house before relocating to a bright, intimate shop-and-gallery space in Dupont Circle. Ching Ching Cha specializes in teas hand-sourced from mainland China, Taiwan, and Japan alongside herbal options, and carries an extensive collection of Yixing teapots, artisan pottery, and handcrafted gifts from across Asia. Note that the current location is retail-focused and no longer serves food.
Teaism Penn Quarter
$$Penn Quarter · Washington
Founded in 1996 and celebrating 30 years in 2026, Teaism is DC's original modern tea house, serving healthy Asian-inspired meals alongside high-quality loose-leaf teas. The Penn Quarter flagship includes an adjacent tea shop, with sister locations at Dupont Circle and Lafayette Park. The menu spans loose-leaf blacks, greens, and chai plus casual all-day dining.
Valley Brook Tea
$$Dupont Circle / Embassy Row · Washington
Specialty Chinese tea shop inside The Ven at Embassy Row hotel on Dupont Circle, pouring premium loose-leaf teas sourced directly from the owners' own tea mountains in China. The shop serves hot and chilled tea and signature tea-set service, and retails oolong, black, white, green, and herbal teas alongside teaware.
Annapolis, Alexandria, and Northern Virginia
Reynolds Tavern in Annapolis is the value play of the region: a 1747 landmark billed as Maryland's oldest tavern, steps from the State House, serving a colonial tea Tuesday through Sunday from a $17 cream tea to the three-tiered Afternoon Tea at $31 and Queen Anne Tea at $46. Lady Camellia moved from Georgetown to Old Town Alexandria's waterfront in 2023, pairing full afternoon tea with French-style pastries and macarons; reservations recommended, especially weekends. In Tysons, The Ritz-Carlton's Entyse lounge serves Friday through Sunday at 3:30 and 4:00 — your own pot, a three-tiered stand, live piano — at $85, or $99 for the Royal Tea with champagne, with Nutcracker and Cherry Blossom themes through the year. Out in Hunt Country, Salamander Middleburg hosts select Saturday teas at Harrimans with Laurent-Perrier, organic teas, and a New England lobster tart — $95 per adult, $45 per child, plus 23% gratuity and tax. Elden Street Tea Shop on Reston's Lake Anne Plaza rounds it out with a retail wall, a café, and private tea parties.
Reynolds Tavern
$$$Church Circle / Historic District · Annapolis
Afternoon tea in a 1747 landmark billed as Maryland's oldest tavern, steps from the Maryland State House on Annapolis's Church Circle. The colonial tea service of delicate pastries, finger sandwiches, and freshly baked scones is offered Tuesday through Sunday from 11 AM to 4:30 PM, with reservations strongly recommended. The building also houses the 1747 Pub in its historic basement and candlelit fine dining in the evenings.
Lady Camellia
$$$Old Town Waterfront · Alexandria
Pastry and tea room that served afternoon tea in Georgetown for years before relocating to Old Town Alexandria's waterfront in 2023, steps from the King Street corridor. Lady Camellia pairs full afternoon tea service with French-influenced pastries and macarons, and reservations are recommended, especially on weekends.
RITZ Afternoon Tea at Entyse (The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner)
$$$$Tysons · McLean
Northern Virginia's signature hotel tea, served every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in the Entyse lounge at The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner with seatings at 3:30 and 4:00 PM. Each guest receives their own pot of tea and a three-tiered stand of canapes, tea sandwiches, and desserts, with live piano entertainment. Reservations are required and themed seasonal teas (Nutcracker, Cherry Blossom, Princess Fairytale) run throughout the year.
Afternoon Tea at Harrimans (Salamander Middleburg)
$$$$Virginia Hunt Country · Middleburg
Afternoon tea at the Five-Star Salamander Middleburg resort, held on select Saturday afternoons at Harrimans with sweeping views of the Virginia countryside. The service features organic teas, refined tea sandwiches, and artful petit fours paired with a glass of Laurent-Perrier champagne, at $95 per adult and $45 per child. Reservations are made through OpenTable.
Elden Street Tea Shop
$$Lake Anne Plaza · Reston
Neighborhood tea shop and cafe on Reston's Lake Anne Plaza, combining a retail wall of loose-leaf teas, tea bags, and accessories with a cafe serving tea and snacks. The shop also hosts private afternoon tea parties and events, and offers wholesale tea to local businesses.
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