In the 1940s in Nashville, Tennessee, Emily's grandmother was introducing her to afternoon tea. When Emily got home from grammar school, awaiting her were, in order of importance: her beloved grandmother, a cup of hot tea (sometimes with milk, sometimes with lemon), and a freshly pared and sectioned apple.

In the 1940s in Trumpington, Cambridgeshire, England, Raymond's prep school was serving a mug of hot tea and an egg salad sandwich to all the boys promptly at 3 p.m. When one is boarding thousands of miles away from one's parents, this is a welcome grandmotherly substitution.

No wonder that the Hoche-Mongs take tea seriously. At the Goose & Turrets every afternoon at 4:30, the tea cart appears in the common room. It is laden with freshly brewed tea, a savoury, and a sweet. This might be:

• St. James tea with a cheese board of brie, tillamook, and Irish Blarney cheddar accompanied by a fruit tart
  
• White China tea with hot pimento cheese sandwiches and Lisa's brownies (ask about the name)
  
• Keemun tea with sausage-biscuit pinwheels and madeleines
  
• French verveine tea with cucumber sandwiches and strawberry/rhubarb pie
  

San Francisco tea guru Norwood Pratt evaluates a tea at a Goose & Turrets tea tasting.