Mary’s English Kitchen

Loved this place for a quick and easy tea. For a full fancy tea service, I didn’t enjoy the entire selection. Although they had delicious offerings on my multi tier of snacks, their scones and portions was a little too plain and too much. I always have leftovers, which is a good thing with lemon curd (mmmm lemon curd…), but the whole service didn’t feel as fancy as most American’s are probably used to. However, for a cheaper quick alternative, it’s a decent choice.
I enjoyed their tea, and the multiple times I’ve been here, each tea has been lovely.
The atmosphere is very casual and more like a café. Nice for my mom friends who have to tow a kid and really can’t dress up too much. Jeans are definitely ok for this place. My boyfriend wasn’t too intimidated and a good gateway to getting him to take more to more tea places ;)
The best part, which more people ought to have tried are their English fare. The meat pies, hand pies, and quiches are all delish! I actually like to come here to pick up snacks with tea rather a full tea service and I think that may be most people’s misconception of what this place has going for it. It’s an English Kitchen first and a tea room second.
Also, I like the cute little London tourist décor. Makes me want to go back for another touristy visit.

So disappointing! After a stellar review in the LJ Light I was not prepared for the lackadaisical service for the Friday noon «High Tea.» This was on Feb. 27. I need to go back to give them another chance, and hopefully a better rating next time. Erica L’s Feb. 12 review reflects our experience.
Not surprising that they closed after 15 months so never got a chance to go back after the February loss. Too bad. Great idea, disinterested server.

Been here with my sister and I absolutely love it. It’s different from other restaurants I go to. The staff is very nice and friendly. I enjoyed my salmon sandwich. They also have different types of tea selections. As always I love the idea of being able to dine in fresco. I will surely come back and try something else in their menu. It’s nice that it’s also walking distance from our place of business. Try them out when you’re in the area.

Brilliant Crumpits!

For quite a long while now, I have wanted to come here. From driving by several times only to find them not open, to just not having made the commitment to go; I finally did and I am happy to say I got that out of my system, cuz I shall not be returning nor lusting over what «could be».
I was excited because they serve traditional English scones and that was the only reason I wanted to drop by. I am not a fan of the American sugar, soft scone, and luv the drier, flakey, bisuity, salty, butteriness that distinguishes a Euro-​style scone.
Well, this scone had one quality– DRY. Water? Yes, I bucket to help wash it down. Then the «clotted cream» was tasteless. I mean, I actually slurped, chewed, and swished the cream to try and manufacture some flavor to no avail. Oh wait, there was some moisture in my scone with the presence of raisons, but I can attest to the fact that just a tad bit of salt & butter would go a LONG way.
Ahh, bloody disappointed. Did I mention that it cost $ 3.17 for flour water (Scone)?

Great tea, great service, amazing food, best scones in SD!!! Must get the cream and jam to make the experience perfect. My fav’s, full English breakfast! Full Afternoon Tea, Chicken Pie & Cream Tea!

I’ve been dying to try this new English breakfast/​tea place and finally got to today. The staff were very friendly and helpful. I ordered a Cream Tea (2 scones, Devonshire cream, jam and a small pot of tea) for $ 8.95, and my husband had the English Breakfast (eggs, bacon, sausage, mushrooms, ½ grilled tomato, toast) for $ 13.95. The scones were fresh and warm, tasty with the cream and jam. My husband’s breakfast was also good, but seemed a bit overpriced for a basic breakfast you can get at any breakfast spot for $ 8 – 10. I had the White Coconut Crème tea which was quite yummy (and they added hot water to my pot when I was done so I enjoyed a second seeping).
Overall, good experience and we’ll be back but there are two other English tea spots in town I prefer. To be more competitive, I’d recommend to MEK owners adding fruit to the afternoon and cream tea options as most English tea placed do, and decreasing the price of the English breakfast or including a cup of tea or coffee in the price.

An unassuming restaurant that can easily be missed if you aren’t looking. English food can get a bad rap, but the simplicity and heartiness of the offerings are sometimes the belly warming comfort food you need.
No over the top kitschy decorum, the interior matches the food. Simple, elegant goodness, complete with a white picket fence. English homestyle cuisine, the kind your Mum would make if your Mum wasn’t Mom and made terrible meatloaf. I had the pleasure of meeting the spirited owner Alison, and she cheerfully explained the best offerings of the house.
Cream Tea & Scones ~ I chose a lovely Coconut Chai upon recommendation and the plain and raisin scones were both crispy perfections. although anything is amazing in my experience with clotted cream. The strawberry jam was good but I prefer mine room temperature and not refrigerated.
Strawberry Tart ~ Great flavored little bite if you aren’t in the mood for a bigger portion of sweets… Pervert.
Shortbread Cookie ~ Crunchy buttery biscuit, perfect for dipping in the tea and getting powdered sugar all over your person.
Fish & Chips ~ I’m perturbed. This is what fish and chips is supposed to taste like?!? All these years of fish with dry, overcooked, funnel cake batter are not the standard across the pond?!? The order comes with three pieces of delicate golden brown battered fish that maintained it’s light flakiness through the flash fry. Nestled in a basket of plump thick cut chips, you have yourself a blue ribbon winner.
The best place for teatime and English viddles I have come across in Merry Olde San Diego.

Probably one of the worst afternoon teas I’ve ever had. I’m scratching my head as to why some of the reviews have 5-​stars.
The service was non-​existent. There is one waitress inside and one waiter outside. We made reservations for 11:30 am and it was not busy at all. After sitting at the table for about 10 mins, the waitress saids there weren’t enough tea menus to go around. What!!! Okay fine how about taking our orders? It was another 10 – 15 mins before we were able to order.
We were really tempted to just up and leave at that point.
There were 3 of us. My friend and I unfortunately ordered the Afternoon Tea. My other friend was smart enough to order their Chicken Pie. She saids it tasted homemade and there were plenty of chicken meat inside.
But this is where it all went down.
–The scones were too DRY and boring. They only had 2 flavors (regular or with raisins). Considering this was fall, one would expect seasonal flavors on the menu (such as pumpkin).
–The mini sandwiches were too small and the bread was DRY. It tasted as if the bread was left out all day or even all night from the night before.
–The quiche tasted frozen and warmed up in the microwave.
–The brownies were DRY.
–The lemon bar had a thick crust of sugar on top and sprinkled with more powdered sugar.
–Mini jam tart was STALE.
–All the desserts tasted store bought.
–The tea was WEAK. I kept pouring more tea thinking that I might’ve put too much cream without knowing the problem was the tea itself.
–The clotted cream was simply disgusting. There is water at the bottom of the cream that you can actually pour out. It tasted more like butter than cream.
YES I tasted everything to give them a chance to redeem themselves.
And I will not expand on the décor, the dirty plates nor the rock music in the background.
**Go at your own risk people, you’ve been warned**

Just had a terrible breakfast at Marys English Kitchen. We are British, the Brits don’t serve a cup of hot water with a tea bag on the side? The food was greasy with undercooked sausages. Served toast with no jam or marmalade, just a pile of toast falling off the minute plate.
The food came at lease 10mins before the tea?
As a afterthought had a mini jam tart. This was stale. This was a great failure for breakfast.

A great place to go for breakfast. I was originally going to mission coffee, but I heard about this place. I’m glad I decided to try this place out. I had the little Britain breakfast and it reminded me of breakfast when I used to live in the uk. Although, I wished they had blood sausage. I kinda miss that. The people here were extremely nice and attentive. They had a lot of teas. I had the Ceylon which was really good. Although I may try the English breakfast next time. They say that’s the tea to get
Definitely sit outside if you can. It’s really nice to sit outside and relax.

Tea and Scones! Tea and Scones!
These scones are off the chart! So perfectly paired with any of Mary’s teas. I love how cute this little restaurant is and service is wonderful as well. Don’t forget to try their shortbread cookies too! This place is perfect for a girls lunch or a cute little date night stop!

Stumbled on this place while wandering off the beaten path around the cove. First off, the staff and service is EXCELLENT! Not only are they friendly and inviting but they make sure you are well taken care of. Emily– the manager I believe-​is nothing short of awesome. She is very helpful and is always interacting with patrons like they were old friends.
Now on to the food! I was there in between breakfast and lunch so I opted for the traditional breakfast tea and bruschetta. Wow! The tea, probably the best I’ve had! The bruschetta, fresh/​delicious and without a doubt a go to for me now! I would highly recommend giving this place a try.

This super quaint cozy restaurant offers lovely and genuine cream tea! (That is a big deal– most places don’t serve clotted cream) Delectably naughty clotted cream with crusty scones and tea served in fine porcelain.
Hubby and I enjoyed a romantic lunch break and happily reminisced about our visits to the UK– even the restroom with it’s quirky fun British décor of the Tube map and the Thames made me smile and reminded us of London.
The service was friendly, the tea and scones lovely $ 8.95 (plus extra scone $ 3.85.) the $ 8.95 roast beef and horseradish sandwich full of flavor, the side salad a generous portion, the $ 9.95 chicken pie slice chock full of shredded chicken and buttery
crust… Overall a thoroughly enjoyable lunch and we will return.
The slight detractions: I found it too warm inside, while there was a fan/​portable air conditioner, it needed more oomph.
The chicken pie slice was slightly dry and I would have liked a bit of gravy in it, though I certainly ate every bite. My husband thought it was on the bland side and needed more seasoning; I just thought it wasn’t moist enough. We both agree the crust was delicious.
In my opinion, the policy to order and pre-​pay at the cash register detracts from the Cream tea experience: how can someone determine the tip percentage prior to tasting the food and receiving service? That fast food approach does a disservice to the quality of the food and the caliber of the servers. Why make patrons feel uncomfortable about a leisure High Tea/​Cream Tea experience (that sometimes needs a reservation) by asking them to pre-​pay and wonder about a tip amount before experiencing? This is at direct odds with the fine porcelain. I assume it is a way to be efficient (in a café that gets busy that makes sense) but it is confusing for patrons who want a High Tea as it makes us wonder… How much to tip or not? I think it is certainly a nice enough place to warrant table service. (Yes of course one could simply leave more cash at the table, but some folks don’t carry cash these days.)
Anyway, still enjoyed our Cream Tea and will be back with friends.

An absolutely wonderful little tea place. The selection has something for every taste but is not so large as to be daunting. The tea is very good and they serve it with a proper tea timer as well.
As for the food, everything was very good. Especially their side salad. The vinaigrette they use is amazing, if it’s made in house, they should bottle and sell it. We also tried the quiche, chicken pie, and fish and chips. All were very good, the fish and chips were a bit heavy for me but that’s probably because I’ve been eating hippie California food for too long. We sampled most of the desserts as well, the bread pudding and toffee bars are their best.
Simply put: you’ll come the first time for the novelty and the location. You’ll keep coming back for the tea and food.

Cute and quaint new eatery in Prospect. If I lived in San Diego, I would frequent this place at least once a month.
I had a raisin scone with clotted cream and strawberry jam, an order of the chicken pie with salad, and a complimentary cup of loose leaf tea for checking in on Unilocal.The chicken pie was unlike any other I’ve had in that it’s chock full of chicken breast! No peas, carrots, or other fillers were in this pie. If you like a gooey chicken pie oozing with sauce, look elsewhere. Also, the scones are only a hint sweet.
Service was friendlier than average but slow. I ordered a slice of apple crumb pie to go and they left it in the fridge for me until I was done eating.

I was gobsmacked to find real clotted cream and a proper English cup of loose leaf tea this far from the UK! Insiders tip: my tea was free with a Unilocal check-​in and with purchase of a lunch at Mary’s English Kitchen, on 1^st visit only. I enjoyed a warm, tender, homemade English apricot scone with real clotted cream and strawberry jam. It’s rare outside of the UK to find a café that serves properly hot tea instead of lukewarm tea, and clotted cream!
I chose the Darjeeling tea, and it comes with a tea bag filled generously in house with high quality loose tea leaves, so it makes more than one cup. The cup of tea with refills of hot water is normally $ 1.95, but mine was free with a Unilocal check-​in and purchase of a lunch.
Clotted cream, my love, how can I live without you?! How I missed you since my trip to Lindon! If you haven’t tasted clotted cream, do it now! It looks like butter and tastes like heavenly thick unsweetened cream. I put a dollop of it on my warm fresh apricot scone, with a dot of strawberry jam.
My chicken pie came with salad for $ 7.50. The pie crust was packed with nicely flavored chicken. I’m very picky about salads, and I didn’t finish the salad. They said just ask for fruit or soup instead of salad next time, if I prefer. I’m not sure if there is an up charge for substituting soup for salad. I’ll find out next time.
Mary’s is a family owned, family run business. It’s brand new, and shows a lot of promise. I’ll definitely return to try a properly hot cup of Midnight Vanilla tea with my breakfast or lunch! Plus more clotted cream… can’t stay away!
The tea is a good deal, since they will bring you more hot water, and the tea bag is generously packed fat with premium loose tea leaves. You can also choose to have the tea leaves swimming loose in a pot of tea in case you know how to read tea leaves to tell your fortune! But I prefer the fat tea bag.

Finally! For all of you lovers of the classic English traditional afternoon tea, meet this La Jolla gem.
The teas are delicious (mmm…caramel pu-​erh) and there is a great selection from herbal to green to black.
Absolutely delectable scones with Devonshire cream and preserves, superb little tea sandwiches (as delicious as they are adorable), chocolate strawberries, lemon bars, berry tarts and chocolate brownies… all made using Grandma Mary’s original recipe!
The prices are quite reasonable (a welcome surprise for downtown La Jolla) and the people that work there are lovely as well! I have yet to try the other food, but do yourself a favor: make a reservation for afternoon tea. I can’t wait to return, as soon as I can breathe again :)
Love love love.

If you are a fan of English food, there is a very good chance you will dig this place. Dig it? I stopped in for breakfast and ordered the Bills Bacon Buttie $ 5.95, basically a breakfast sandwich with bacon and eggs, a house made plain scone $ 1.95, and a cup of house drip coffee $ 1.85 (
)
The Buttie was very good, and the freshly scrambled eggs were well scrambled and seasoned. (
) The wheat toast was lightly toasted, a little under buttered, but good, and the bacon was very good. The fluffy eggs and chewy and mildly crispy bacon went well together (
). One thing this sandwich needed was some fresh cheese. The cheese would not only help bring it together better, but helped the ingredients stay inside the sandwich. The Buttie was garnished with fresh berries. Nice touch.
The plain scone was terrific, and I was very impressed with its texture. It was just the right density, softness, and moistness. It fell apart very easily and was perfect to drink with the coffee (
). You can order the scones with home made jam, but I’ve been easing up on my sugar, so I passed on it. I do hear it quite wonderful. The scone also had a great golden yellow color with a light crunchy exterior (
).
The coffee was great and so was the service. I really like the way the place is decorated, a modern appeal, but with comfort. They also offer and mêlée of loose leave teas to fancy a tea aficionado’s desires.

Randomly stopped by because I clicked «nearby» on Unilocal and found this new business. I always like the idea of an afternoon tea experience, so we decided to give it a go.
We shared a pot of tea, which was around $ 4.25 or something (serves 2). It was served in a cute little pot with a pink pig on it, and cups and saucers. It also arrived on a tray with a «perfect tea timer» with little hour glasses to time how dark you want your tea.
I got a jam tart for $ 1.50 (very sweet, but just bite sized, so perfect). Mini-​quiches, also bite-​sized, were $ 1 each. I tried a vegetarian one, and a ham one. Both were really good. We had just a few bites of snacks and a pot of tea while sitting outside on the patio and the experience was charming.