A waiter serves afternoon tea at The Tea Box in the basement of Takashimaya in Manhattan.

AP / JIM COOPER

NEW YORK — Manhattan’s legendary Fifth Avenue is home not only to some of the world’s most upscale stores but also to some plush respites for afternoon tea. The Gotham Lounge in the Peninsula Hotel is all upholstered chairs and floral carpet and dark wood tables. The newly renovated Plaza famously offers afternoon tea in its Palm Court. But with tea service starting at $55 and $60, respectively, these venues might be a tad expensive for the browser more inclined, by interest and wallet, to window-shop than buy.

Still, a visitor may yearn for that spot of tea in the fading afternoon. That’s when a stop at the Tea Box in the basement of the elegant Takashimaya department store on Fifth Avenue at 54th Street might be in order. Afternoon tea is served daily except Sunday, and for $18, the Tea Box’s East-West afternoon sampler includes ”a pot of tea with a cross-cultural selection of pastries, cookies, finger sandwiches, and fresh fruit,” the menu states. And the experience is a blend of Eastern and Western culinary traditions.

Tea is a product of ancient China. The highly choreographed Japanese tea ceremony traces its origins to the ninth-century Buddhist monk who brought tea to Japan from China and the later customs of medieval samurai. The British didn’t take up tea until the mid-17th century, after Dutch and Portuguese traders brought it to Europe. The English tradition of afternoon tea is believed to stem from the 19th century, when the Duchess of Bedford, who suffered afternoon hunger pangs, had servants sneak her an array of small cakes and sandwiches and tea.

At the Tea Box, the cultural fusion shows in tea sandwiches that might include salmon or cucumber on pressed rice, curried crab or spring rolls wrapped in rice paper, or chicken with wasabi mayonnaise on Japanese bread, all of them tasty and light and impeccably presented.

The tea choices are mind-numbingly extensive. Customers can select from among 39 teas from around the world, including green from Japan, jasmine from China, Darjeeling from India, and a wide range of fruity teas, including plum cinnamon, citron, apple, and mango. For those who don’t want the full sampler, the menu offers à la carte sandwiches and pastries, including mascarpone chocolate mousse tart and citrus cheesecake.

The setting, with its straight-backed blond wood chairs and cushioned banquettes, is as clean-lined as rooms such as the Gotham Lounge and Palm Court are ornate. The cafe shares the Takashimaya basement with a shop that features all things tea, from boxes of loose tea to ceramic teapots with a blue crackle glaze.

The specialty store that houses the Tea Box is the only U.S. branch of one of Japan’s oldest and largest department stores. Founded in 1831 as a purveyor of kimonos in Kyoto, Takashimaya now has 19 stores around Japan, and in Singapore and Taipei. Takashimaya first set up shop on Fifth Avenue in 1958 in more modest digs and in 1993 opened at its current location in a six-floor, classy-chic oasis of clothing, jewelry, and items for home and terrace.

New York is nothing if not diverse, so tea lovers have their choice of settings, and Fifth Avenue is no exception.

The area’s hotels offer overstuffed opulence. The Gotham Lounge presents a variety of tea sandwiches, including smoked salmon on brioche with crème fraiche and caviar and scones with Devonshire clotted cream.

The Plaza’s Palm Court boasts a freshly restored stained glass ceiling that is lighted from above. It serves English, Russian, and French tea goodies — including winter black truffle on baguette and passion fruit meringue tartlet — on Bernardaud Limoges china.

The colonnaded Astor Court at the St. Regis, which wins kudos for elegance in Elizabeth Knight’s Tea in the City: New York (Benjamin Press, 2006), features elaborate crystal chandeliers and linen tablecloths and gilt-trimmed walls for an afternoon tea that includes petit fours and tea sandwiches of goat cheese and sun-dried tomato on whole wheat bread.

The Pierre is undergoing renovations, and doesn’t expect to start serving afternoon tea again until early next year.

Takashimaya is not the only Fifth Avenue department store to serve afternoon tea. Bergdorf Goodman’s BG Restaurant offers it, as does Saks Fifth Avenue in its Cafe SFA.

For those with little girls and their own memories of make-believe tea parties, there’s always afternoon tea at American Girl Place, at Fifth Avenue and 49th Street. Dolls welcome.If you go . . .

The Tea Box, Takashimaya, 693 Fifth Ave., (800) 753-2038, (212) 350-0100, takashimaya-ny.com; Monday-Saturday 3-5:30 p.m., $18; à la carte selections available.

The Palm Court, The Plaza, 768 Fifth Ave., (888) 850-0909, (212) 759-3000, fairmont.com/theplaza; daily 2-5 p.m., $60 ($80 with champagne) or $100 ($120 with champagne).

The Gotham Lounge, The Peninsula, 700 Fifth Ave., (212) 903-3049, newyork.peninsula.com; daily 2:30-5 p.m., $50 ($65 with champagne).

Astor Court, St. Regis2, East 55th St.(at Fifth Avenue), (212) 753-4500, starwoodhotels.com/stregis.com; daily 3-5 p.m., $48 ($60 with champagne).

BG Restaurant, Bergdorf Goodman, 754 Fifth Ave., (212) 872-8977, bergdorfgoodman.com; daily 3-5 p.m., $30 ($45 with champagne).

Cafe SFA, Saks Fifth Avenue, 611 Fifth Ave., (212) 753-4000, saksfifthavenue.com; daily 3-5 p.m., $21.50.

American Girl Café, American Girl Place, 609 Fifth Ave., (877) 247-5223, americangirl.com; daily 4 p.m. seating, $20.