But for something a little bit more special you can't go wrong with afternoon tea at South Lodge in Horsham. South Lodge, a beautiful manor house in the heart of West Sussex, is about a 30min drive from Brighton.
Afternoon tea is served in one of the Lodge's stunning lounges, with large bay windows and views of the South Downs, elaborate wing-backed chairs and crisp white table linens. The kind of place a girl could get used to!
There's a choice of two different menus: a Nyetimber Celebration Afternoon Tea (with or without a glass of chilled local Nyetimber Sparking wine), and South Lodge Cream Tea, which is just the scones and pastries.
The food came presented on a traditional cake stand and you are 'introduced' to the different cakes by your server. All the ingredients are locally sourced and the cakes are baked fresh on the day.
At £24 per head (without the glass of fizz) it's by no means cheap, but the service was incredibly friendly and attentive, with refills of sandwichs and tea offered throughout. In fact, the portions were so generous that we couldn't finish them and our server kindly offered to boxed them up for us to take home.
Once you've finished your tea you are offered the choice of a slice of homemade cake to take away with you - a really nice touch.
All in all the experience was deliciosly indulgent and made for a really memorable day, even if we all had to have a cake-induced nap when we got home!
All photography © Heather Elizabeth Wilkinson 2013