ComScore

This Hotel Near Buckingham Palace Is Selling a $200 Cup of Tea, so You Can Sip (and Spend) Like a Queen

Someone call Queen Liz, because this sounds like royal highway robbery to us.

But if you want to sip tea (and spend money) like a queen with a Royal Treasury at her disposal, there's probably no better spot to go than the Rubens at the Palace, a hotel near Buckingham Palace that looks out on the Royal Mews.

The swanky five-star hotel offers a rare tea blend, called Golden Tips, for £500 ($620) per pot, which is about $200 per cup, according to CNN. While the tea is from the highlands of Sri Lanka and "hand-picked by expert tea-pluckers" (side note: expert tea-plucker sounds like resume gold), it's no Twinings, which is rumored to be the queen's fave (how commonplace of you, Your Majesty!).

The tea leaves of this fancy overpriced refreshment are silver-hued when they're picked. They're then sun-dried on a velvet cloth, turning them to a shiny yellow color (we refuse to say gold again).

The hotel does have some royal history that may make you feel like you're on the set of The Crown. Since it's located directly opposite Buckingham Palace, the Rubens used to serve as a debutante hotel for young society-climbers looking to rub elbows with royalty. 

So, while it may seem ridiculous to shell out two Benjamins for a cuppa, you're in drinking view of the Royal Mews, which is where the royals' cars (and horse-drawn carriages) are kept. If Queen Elizabeth (or any other royals) happened to be leaving the palace that day, you may even see them get driven through the gates and onto Buckingham Palace Road.

Or you could always just grab a pint at a nearby pub and wait for your prince charming to whisk you away from your acting career (*cough, Meghan Markle, cough*) and live happily ever after. Either or.



RF1

Director, Branded Content + Cohost, Royally Obsessed Podcast

As Director of Branded Content at Gallery Media Group, Roberta helps oversee the ideation and execution of sponsored content and experiential campaigns across PureWow and ONE37pm...