Bea's Vintage Tea Rooms, Bath, Somerset

To visit to Bea’s Vintage Tea Rooms in Bath is to take a step back in time, especially if you make a day of it and combine your visit with a stroll around the Assembly Rooms and Fashion Museum next door. This unique little cafe, inspired by the 1930s and ’40s, is a real find and definitely worth adding to your ‘to visit’ list.

I had been looking forward to visiting Bea’s Vintage Tea Rooms for a while and thought it would be a great place to take my mother for tea. As soon as we entered and saw our lovely smiley waitress – complete with landgirl bandana and fabulous scarlet lipstick – I knew we’d enjoy it.

As we sat at our table, looking out of the window to the Assembly Rooms, I couln’t help but think of my grandmothers – from the wartime music and pretty tea sets to the embroidered tablecloths, they would have felt right at home here. Even the little lounge is like having tea at your gran’s!

The food is homemade, traditional and delicious. Breakfasts include West Country porridge with a dollop of clotted cream (a brilliant idea!) and boiled eggs with soldiers; there are light lunches of quiche, pie, soup, ploughman’s and sandwiches; or teatime treats such as cake, scones or afternoon tea. If you’ve really worked up an appetite sightseeing, you could even treat yourself to a rather epic-sounding high tea.

You can tell the owners have put a lot of love into this tea room because everywhere you look there are thoughtful touches – stacks of floral tea sets, wartime posters, vintage china and bevelled mirrors on the walls to take you back in time.

Bea’s Vintage Tea Rooms is a lovely place for a cup of tea or a light bite, and the perfect location if you are visiting the Assembly Rooms or Fashion Museum in Bath.

For a hen or birthday party with a difference, you can take afternoon tea in their private party room, and have a 1940s hair and makeup session too!