A review of the afternoon tea at BG Restaurant inside Bergdorf Goodman, the iconic New York City luxury department store. Perched on the seventh floor, tea service comes with a pretty view of Central Park.

BG Restaurant at Bergdorf Goodman

Bergdorf Goodman is a luxury department store on New York’s Fifth Avenue right next to The Plaza hotel. Take the elevator to the seventh floor and it lets you off right at the entrance of BG Restaurant.

The restaurant is the perfect setting for ladies who lunch. The decor is gorgeous and the view of Central Park is stunning.

BG Restaurant Reservations

Reservations are recommended. When making a reservation for two, I like to request the high-back whisper chairs for an intimate tea experience. I find the tables by the windows are way too close together.

Dress Code

No dress code is stated so I would stick with smart casual. You can do jeans but look put together.

Afternoon Tea Hours

Tea service is daily from 12PM – 5PM.

How Afternoon Tea Works

Afternoon tea is a light meal consisting of three courses and tea. The three courses are all mini portions of food and small bites. The first course is tea sandwiches and savories, the second course is scones with clotted cream and jam, and the final course is sweets.

As it’s a set menu, you don’t pick the individual food items but rather, you get everything listed. The one thing you do get to pick is the tea. Everyone at your table orders their own afternoon tea and the pricing is per person. Afternoon tea usually lasts about two hours.

BG Restaurant Afternoon Tea Menu

BG Restaurant serves two afternoon teas.

BG Tea Service
$75 per person
The traditional afternoon tea service with three courses on a three-tiered tray.

BG Tea Service Royale
$100 per person
It’s the BG Tea Service but with a glass of Champagne.

The menu and prices may change at any time.

Setting: ★★★★☆

The restaurant is very pretty with lovely details that gives it a very luxurious feel.

I ALWAYS request the blue high-back whisper seats toward the back of the room that line the wall for a party of two. The tables by the window are too close together for my liking and it feels like communal seating. You may not get the Central Park view by being away from the windows but it feels way more intimate.

The BG is a restaurant, so the room isn’t exclusive to afternoon tea service.It’s a good place for large parties since there is a section in the back that can be closed off.

Service: ★★★★★

Service was friendly and attentive. No complaints.

Tea & Tea Selection: ★★★★☆

Dammann Frères tea is served and there’s a nicely curated tea menu with just 10 teas. The teapots has the Dammann Freres logo on them.

Everything on the tea menu is a blend, except for the herbals. I like to see at least a couple of whole leaf tea options, so I’m knocking off a star.

Savories: ★★★★★

The dainty, two-bite tea sandwiches were very good. Tasty, fresh, and with 7 tea sandwiches per person, plenty to keep you full.

RELATED: Afternoon Tea 101: Course Order

Scones: ★★★★★

On the second tier of the stand were scones. One per person, which is a great portion size. The scone have a light sugary top and the texture was great with just the right amount of crumble. I love the extra touch with the BG logo on the Devonshire cream cover.

RELATED: How to Eat a Scone Properly

Sweets: ★★★★☆

Each person gets 5 bite-sized sweets. They’re pretty basic, but they tasted good.

Overall: ★★★★☆

At $75 per person, this is a great afternoon tea experience. It’s one of my favorites and one I recommend to people from out of town since the location and views are fantastic.

LOCATION:
BG Restaurant at Bergdorf Goodman
5th Avenue at 58th Street, 7th Floor
New York, NY 10019

AFTERNOON TEA HOURS:
Daily, 12PM – 5PM

COST:
BG Tea Service, $75 per person (as of this writing)

RESERVATIONS:
Call 212.872.8977 or book online.

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Afternoon Tea at Bergdorf Goodman in 2017

The interior of BG Restaurant, where afternoon tea is served looks exactly the same as it did in 2013.

In 2017, the afternoon tea was $49 per person.

The dining room has windows that face 5th Ave and Central Park.

Same design of tea cups and tea pots as always.

The tea service was solid then too and very reasonably priced. The savories were tasty and perfectly portioned.

I really like the scones at Bergdorf Goodman since they size is perfect. Not too big and not too small. I also love the little jars of preserves.

The sweets weren’t too memorable but they were good.

My rating in 2017 was 4 stars out of 5.

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Afternoon Tea at Bergdorf Goodman in 2013

The restaurant’s decor hasn’t changed at all since 2013 — no complaints, the room looks timeless with just the perfect amount of frou frou.

Tea has always been Dammann and the selection has been pretty much the same.

Why change something when it’s great? The tea sandwiches have changed slightly but it’s pretty much the same as it was then.

In 2013, the tea service was $35 per person.

I could have taken this photo last week! Same tasty scones served the same way.

Sweets are also pretty much the same.

Related

• Afternoon Tea at Tiffany’s
• Afternoon Tea at The Lowell
• Afternoon Tea at The Plaza
• Afternoon Tea at Laduree Soho
• Afternoon Tea at Tea & Sympathy