You don't need a plane ticket to London for a proper afternoon tea. Just outside Boston, in the small town of Wenham on Massachusetts' North Shore, a cottage-style tea house has been pouring cups since 1912 — making it widely considered the oldest still-operating tea house of its kind in the state, and possibly the country.

The story starts even earlier than that. In 1893, a group of local women formed the Wenham Village Improvement Society to spruce up the town, and one of their fundraising ideas was a tea house. It opened in a converted harness shop, and business went well enough that the society built a dedicated cottage-style building in 1916 — the same spot where tea is served today. The best part? The venture still works the way it was designed to: the nonprofit WVIS owns the property, and the tea house continues to fund community projects more than a century later.

The operation got a fresh chapter in 2024, when French-Mediterranean bistro Plat Du Jour took over the food service, keeping the vintage character while updating the menu. The pairing has gone down well — the spot holds a 4.3-star Google rating, with reviewers singling out the tea service for being polished without feeling stuffy.

So what do you actually get? Tea is served on Saturdays by reservation only, with a range that runs from bergamot-scented Earl Grey to Japanese sencha. The food follows the classic three-tier formula: house-made scones with clotted cream, cucumber sandwiches, plus smoked salmon toast and mini-quiches. If Saturday doesn't fit your schedule, the bistro also serves regular lunch and dinner on select days inside the historic building.

Wenham makes an easy add-on to a North Shore trip. Salem — with its witch trials history and colonial streets — is about 30 minutes away, and the coastal town of Essex, known for antique shops, is roughly 15 minutes by car. On site, there's also a clothing boutique called Irresistibles, the successor to the society's old Women's Exchange, so you can shop before or after your pot of tea.

For anyone who loves the ritual of afternoon tea — or just wants a slow, old-fashioned afternoon — this is a charming piece of living history within day-trip distance of Boston. Book ahead for Saturday tea, and build the rest of the day around the North Shore's coastal towns.