Pembroke Lodge, Richmond Park, Richmond, Surrey, TW10 5HX.

It was the most gloriously sunny bank holiday Monday and three generations of our family spent the afternoon wandering round the gardens in Richmond Park and then, naturally, finished up with some tea at Pembroke Lodge.

I hadn’t been to Richmond Park in ages and it was refreshing to be somewhere so green and open in London. On the drive in to the Pembroke Lodge car park I saw a deer with one antler lying down next to a man in a cloth cap sitting on a tree trunk rolling a cigarette. They were both so still and brown it took me a second to realise what I was looking at.

The gardens were filled with tulips and we thought, yes, this is spring. I took a photo of them to share with you but it didn’t come out. Go and see them for yourself.

Pembroke Lodge has a large patio overlooking Richmond Park. We sat outside and ate hot cross buns with butter and jam (odd concept, having jam with hot cross buns, but it worked if the jam was applied sparingly) and many pots of tea. The tea was good and the server actually offered us hot water. We had some jam left over in the little plastic pots and I snaffled them in my handbag. Then found them when I was looking for my car keys three days later. They’ve made it as far as this desk, perhaps they’ll make it to the kitchen sometime next week.

Teapot? Yes, big one between two.
Leaf tea? Teabag.
Milk jug? Yes, many little metal ones.
Price? £2.95 for tea, hot cross bun, butter and jam.
Cake? Yes.
Go again? Yes.