London and tea are practically synonymous. Personally, my youth was filled with old British sitcoms and Mr. Bean\u2019s most famous sketches, in which British humor went hand in hand with what, in the collective imagination, is perhaps one of the most quintessentially British traditions of all: the sacred five o\u2019clock tea. A ritual that, ever since I was a child, I\u2019ve learned to associate inextricably with Anglo-Saxon culture. Tea rooms, afternoon tea, high tea, and the many, more elegant variations of this ritual have now become part of the European collective imagination. But London remains\u2014at least in the collective imagination, and likely also due to the variety and quality of what it offers\u2014one of the premier destinations for experiencing tea culture. <\/p>\n\n
Selfridges, the historic London department store and a true institution of British shopping, knows this well; it has made experience, creativity, and the fusion of fashion, art, and culture one of its defining characteristics. And it is precisely here that the legend of tea is reinterpreted with a contemporary twist. In fact, Selfridges has just opened the Imagination Caf\u00e9, a truly unique tea spot that takes the place of Dolly\u2019s Caf\u00e9, the historic Art Deco caf\u00e9 located in the heart of the department store. <\/p>\n\n