It’s a truth universally acknowledged that an afternoon tea aficionado in possession of a ravenous appetite must be in want of The Hotel Windsor’s offering.

Billed as the “high tea in style”, the Grand Hyatt’s weekend afternoon tea epitomises chic surroundings and on-trend gastronomy.

It’s 10am on a Saturday morning and the Hopetoun Tea Rooms is full.

It’s not everyday you have a pianist serenading you on a grand piano. Or beautiful patterned Wedgwood bone china laid out. It’s little touches like these that make the weekend high tea at the Sofitel Melbourne on Collins a stylish affair.

It’s being billed as a traditional afternoon tea with a French flair, and The Sheraton Melbourne’s revamped menu is certainly très bon.

One minute, you’re walking along the ultra-hipster Johnston St in Collingwood. The next, you’re transported into the type of boudoir-style setting you might expect to see in the Moulin Rouge. That’s what it’s like to enter Mamor Chocolates and High Tea Szalon.

New year, new high tea offerings at the InterContinental Melbourne The Rialto.

Looking for a non-traditional high tea at a stylish venue? With its high ceilings and expansive chandeliers, large windows overlooking the Yarra River, high-backed leather chairs and mostly white, cream and mint colour scheme, there’s no doubt the Conservatory at Crown oozes class – and it comes with a price tag to match.

Many high tea venues are serving such generous portions among their three-tier trays that high tea can now be seen as an entire meal in its own right.