Pretty much everything at the Ocean House in Watch Hill is over the top, including afternoon tea, which, post-pandemic, has been elevated to an entirely new experience.

The Sipping Terrace at Ocean House is a peaceful oasis of shrubs and flowers, lemon and lime trees, and four intimate greenhouses that are perfectly set up for afternoon tea or summer supper.

And then there is the gin. Ocean House has partnered with Sipsmith, London's first copper distillery to open in nearly 200 years, for cocktails that are available with the traditional savory sandwiches, sweet treats and tea..

There’s Anna’s Gin Garden, a concoction of Sipsmith lemon drizzle gin, cucumber slices, both elderflower and cucumber liqueurs, tonic, and a cucumber ribbon garnish. It pays homage to Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford, England, who historians credit with creating afternoon tea. It was in the 1840s, and the duchess would become hungry in the late afternoon and knew her dinner wouldn’t be served until almost 8.

So she asked her waitstaff to bring a tray of tea, bread and butter, and cake to her room about 4 p.m., and as this became a habit, she started to invite friends. Afternoon tea was born.

At the Ocean House, formal tea in the lobby living room served with champagne was a tradition that had to be canceled because of the pandemic. When it returned, general manager Antonia Korosec said the staff reinvented it as “a whimsy pop-up.”

Located off the porch of the north lawn of the property, the tea garden is secluded, bright and cheerful. It’s a garden oasis with a gin bar, the greenhouses, a swing set, cabana chairs, Jenga, potted lavender and bee blossom, and croquet on the nearby grass. In the evening, the location offers a terrific view of the sunset.

Patrons may opt for afternoon tea or summer supper. Both are pricy, but they are limited experiences with no more than four parties there at the same time, and each with their private greenhouse.

Everyone gets a gin and tonic, made with Sipsmith gin and Fever Tree tonic, and the tea. They serve Ikaati brand, which is packed in hand-tied pouches that are steeped and poured from English Wedgewood tea pots into matching Wedgewood tea cups.

The female waitstaff is attired in white Lily Pulitzer dresses, and every time they pour, their pinkie is up and the tip of the index finger on their other hand is snug on the cap of the pot.

The food arrives on a three-tiered platter, with savory sandwiches on the lower decks and sweet confections grandstanding on the top. The most popular sandwich is the truffled egg salad, but the smoked salmon with pickled red onion, herbed goat cheese with Mediterranean vegetables, and the radish with cucumbers and Vermont butter, get high praise, too.

The sweets include scones with Devonshire cream, lemon curd, and preserves, as well as a variety of macarons and fruit-topped miniature pastries.

There was a party of four on a recent weekday enjoying tea and the cocktails in one of the ventilated greenhouses. They were visiting from Carlsbad, California, and had read about the Ocean House. They planned to visit and booked the Sipping Terrace tea after seeing a post about it by a social media influencer.

They all agreed it was a good decision — enjoyable and delicious — and they commented on the décor, the greenhouses, and the cocktails.

Nancy Zhou, who is the Sipping Terrace supervisor, said guests for afternoon tea are all ages, from young women in their 20s to grandparents and couples.

Some women come attired with tea hats, scarves and gloves, and most dress for the occasion. They like to pose on the garden swing set, beside the hanging lemons and limes, or with a cup of tea.

The cocktails are a big hit. The Cuppa Gin — a take on a cuppa tea — combines lemon drizzle gin, chamomile liqueur, lemon juice, lemon soda, and a lemon twist. In the Weeds, another favorite, is gin, lemon juice, lime, yellow chartreuse, house-made tarragon tea, and a tarragon garnish.

There are also a variety of teas, including black, green, lemon verbena, mint, royal breakfast, Earl Grey, and chamomile.

Jonathan Feiler, the group wine and beverage director for Ocean House and all its affiliated properties, said afternoon tea was a part of Ocean House since it opened more than a decade ago, and it was important to bring it back after the pandemic shut it down.

“We talked about it and thought, why don’t we do a tea and gin garden? We can do a traditional afternoon tea outside and offer a gin experience along with it,” he said.

They converted the space they’ve recently used for a fondue village set in repurposed vintage ski gondolas for the Secret Garden and Sipping Terrace. Tea and summer supper will continue until Oct. 10, when the fondue event returns.

Korosec, the Ocean House general manager, said customers have found New England, and specifically the Ocean House, Rhode Island and its sister properties, post pandemic.

“We are almost sold out until September,” she said. “If you call today and ask for two nights anytime this summer, I don’t think we have something until September. Maybe one night here or there, or a couple nights in the penthouse, but we are very busy. We are always extremely busy, but this has never happened. People are coming back multiple times. We have a new market that we didn’t have before — people who didn’t know New England or Rhode Island, and it is a market that we will capture going forward.”

It’s the same at the Sipping Terrace. It is a luxury to drink fancy tea and sip gin cocktails while nibbling on delicate sandwiches and petite confections, but people are doing it.

Feiler, the wine and beverage director, said he’s seen it both personally and professionally.

“People are willing to pay for experiences, for access,” he said. “Because we were all at home, and now we are able to go to places like this and spend time with friends and create memories that will last forever.

“There is value there,” he said.

If you go

What: Afternoon tea and summer supper at the Sipping Terrace

Where: Ocean House, 1 Bluff Ave., Watch Hill

When: Every day except Wednesday, tea at 3 or 3:30 p.m. and dinner 5:30, 6, 8 and 8:30 p.m.

Price: Tea for four is $260, dinner for four is $500, plus tax and gratuity.

More: Call (888) 897-8338 or visit www.oceanhouseri.com/sippingterrace