B Bakery Bus Tour

When we went to London, I knew we had to partake in the longstanding tradition of afternoon tea, but it sounded a little stuffy and boring to me.  Then we found B Bakery Bus tours.  I love all things quirky, and what could be quirkier than having afternoon tea on one of the iconic red double-decker buses?!?  The B in the B Bakery Bus stands for Brigit’s Bakery and along with tea you enjoy a good assortment of Brigit’s baked goods.  

The experience combines afternoon tea with a tour of Central London that takes you by Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, St James’s Park, Hyde Park, The Royal Albert Hall, Marble Arch, Nelson’s Column, and Downing Street that lasts approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes (depending on traffic).

I mean, how cute is their little map??

The buses depart at 12:30 p.m. & 3:00 p.m. from 8 Northumberland Avenue near Trafalgar Square, and at 12:00 p.m., 1:00 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. from Victoria Coach Station.  The cost is 45-65£ depending on the seating.  There are 10 tables holding four people each, and 2 VIP tables holding 2 people on the upper level at the front of the bus.  Note:  There are no bathrooms on board and children under the age of 5 are not allowed. 

When the bus parks they have a cute little velvet rope near the door which they lift to let you on.  After checking in you are greeted by your hostess and taken to your table.  The VIP tables give you a view from the sides as well as the front of the bus so of course we had to try it.  The bus itself appears to be a tourist attraction and so many people were taking pictures and waving as we drove by.  I definitely felt superior as we drove by other double-decker buses and we were eye level with others whilst drinking our wine!

The traditional menu for the trip includes the following:

Freshly Prepared Savouries

Pastrami burger with tomato salad and mustardy mayonnaise
Ham and cheese and whole grain mayonnaise on granary bread
Salmon pretzel with chives, cream cheese and cucumber
Minty cucumber sandwich and cream cheese on beetroot bread
Seasonal savoury muffin

Assortment of mini Homemade Cakes & Tarts

Vanilla and apricot compote choux
Queen sablé and cream cheese mousse
Strawberry cupcake
Lemon Meringue Tart

Plain, freshly baked scone with clotted cream and jam

Water, Coffee & Hot Chocolate
Americano | Cappuccino | Latte Macchiato | Hot Chocolate

Tea Selection
English Breakfast | Earl Grey | Earl Grey Decaf | Rooibush Jardin Rouge | Peppermint | Lemon & Ginger | Berry & Elderflower | Darjeeling | Jasmine Tea | Green Tea

The bus seemed to very health conscious and also offered Vegan, Vegetarian, Halal and Gluten Free options.  Aside from the coffee and tea, the B Bus also offers wine, however this must be purchased prior to the trip as by law they cannot sell alcohol on the bus. 

There are special menus for certain events, and since we happened to be there in December, we booked the Christmas Menu:

Freshly Prepared Savouries
Turkey, cheddar and onion chutney finger sandwich
Minty cucumber and cream cheese finger sandwich
Coronation Chicken Burger
Smoked salmon pretzel, cream cheese and figs
Stilton and leek muffin with walnut

Assortment of mini Homemade Cakes & Tarts
Choux pastry with pistachio cream and cherry coulis
Chocolate and vanilla cupcake
Hazelnut whip ganache on sable breton
Coconut tart with raspberry coulis

Plain, freshly baked scone with clotted cream and jam

The drink selections were the same, but also included a Christmas Tea.

The little Christmas desserts were so cute, I almost didn’t want to eat them!

In December the 5 and 5:30 buses take a tour down Regents street to see the Christmas lights!  They currently offer a Gin Tour, and it appears they will also be offering a Chefs dinner and Thames river cruises in the near future as well. They have special menus for Chinese New Year, Valentines Day, Saint Patrick’s Day, Mother’s Day, Easter and Halloween as well.   

It was a bit rainy when we went, and the windows would fog up every once in a while, but it felt awesome to be on the nice warm bus, eating delicious food and taking in the sights while everyone else was walking around with their umbrellas trying to stay dry.  The servers were great and came to chat with you every once in a while, to make sure everything was satisfactory.  The drinks were served in a cute, little, B Bakery cups with twist off tops. There were holes in the table to put your drinks in to make sure they wouldn’t spill as you were driving around – you even got to keep the cups at the end!

The only place I thought the experience was lacking was with the tour itself.  I felt there could have been more narrative as you were driving around.  If you were looking for a good bit of history and knowledge, you might be better off on another tour.  It did offer a good taste of London though for those who wanted to see a glimpse of what was out there and decide what they wanted to go back and visit in depth later. 

The food served was tasty – and filling!  I really enjoyed the mustardy (their word not mine lol!) seasoning on the coronation chicken burger.  We ended up taking most of desserts back with us.  But don’t worry, if you don’t finish, they will pack it all up for you in a cute little box.  As with any of these tours, you are paying more for the experience than anything else.  All in all, I think it was a nice little splurge and would be great to celebrate a birthday or anniversary.  The price is a little more expensive than some teas, but you are really paying for the experience.  

If you can’t fit the bus ride in your schedule, Brigit’s also has a Bakery in Covent Garden where you can get their goodies, or even have Afternoon Tea.  When you walk in your eyes will fall upon a wonderful cake counter filled with sweet treats all baked daily by an expert team of French pastry chefs. Fruit tartlets, chocolate eclairs, cupcakes, macarons, cookies, scones, cakes and pastries.  They even serve breakfast!