It’s not just the British transplants in San Diego extending their pinky fingers for afternoon high tea these days. At the Corner Shoppe on India Street, the ritual of sipping loose-leaf Earl Grey from flowery chinaware and nibbling on finger sandwiches from three-tiered trays is taking root among locals.

Afternoon tea is served at the Corner Shoppe from 12:00 noon to 4:00 p.m., Thursdays through Sundays. Titillated Americans comprise about 30 percent of the clientele at the tucked-away shop, which features a quaint outdoor patio and an inventory of about 700 different items imported from the Emerald Isles.

According to the store’s new owner, Selina Stockley, the weekly high teas “are very personal affairs,” and a few eyebrows raise among her British compatriots when they spot a first-timer.

“There are people who use the spoons from our jam pots to spread the jam onto their scones, and then they return the spoon back into the pots with crumbs stuck to them,” she cites with a chuckle. “The jam should be plopped on the side of the plate and spread with a different utensil.”

Another faux pas occurs with the tongs used for fishing out sugar cubes from the miniature bowls. “Some customers use the tongs to stir the bloody sugar right into their cups.”

Stockley points out, however, that her high tea service isn’t “a frilly affair,” but rather relaxed and casual, as opposed to the starched atmosphere you’d find at, say, London’s Savoy Hotel. There, the dress code is largely formal. Men who arrive without neckties are given one at the door.

Yet the actual tea presentation remains in check with any that you’ll find throughout the United Kingdom. Candlelit teapot warmers are used to keep your choice of brew warm– the Christmas spiced and P.G. Tips are among the most popular, says Stockley. Small metal strainers fitted to the dainty teacups comprise each place setting. And the three-tiered trays that form the centerpieces for each table are stocked with noshes such as homemade scones with double Devon cream, sausage rolls with Branston pickle, imported British bisquits (cookies) and a medley of crustless finger sandwiches containing ham, egg salad, cheese and cucumbers with butter.

During cooler weather, Stockley will also provide blankets to customers “for that extra English touch.”

Inside the shop, visitors are further transported to England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland as they peruse various dry goods and frozen meats uncommon in American grocery stores. Her gay clientele, she notes, are particularly taken by such items as Fairy Liquid dish soap or Spotted Dick, a canned steam pudding with raisins that you heat in a saucepan of boiling water before serving. There’s also the Scottish chicken-and-leek soup, called Cock-a-Leekie.

Danish and Irish bacon are the only meats that the FDA allows Stockley to import directly from overseas. “The bacon is lean and unlike the fatty American bacon that turns into a crisp when you cook it,” she notes. Other animal items, such as frozen haggis (sheep stomach lining served often with potatoes and turnips), Scotch eggs and sausages originate from British butchers operating within the U.S., and the Cornish pasties and sausage rolls are made in-house.

Additionally, the store carries an assortment of imported jams, including those made by Robertson’s – the Smucker’s of England – plus instant Chip-Shop batter for making fish ’n’ chips, Luxury Brandy Sauce with fresh cream used for hot or cold desserts and chocolates by what Stockley calls “the real” Cadbury company. “American Cadbury chocolates are made by Hershey and aren’t as good,” she says. “I think the cows in England produce better milk.”

Stockley, who emigrated to the U.S. from England about 13 years ago, recently purchased the Corner Shoppe from the current owners of Shakespeare’s Pub, located in the same complex. “I had a map of America and a big knitting needle, closed my eyes and pointed around the map as to where I’d go, and the eye of the needle landed in Point Loma.”

Shortly after arriving in San Diego, she worked at the pub and store until accepting an offer to purchase the Corner Shoppe in November. “Two weeks after buying it, I found out I was pregnant,” she says. “It was a big step for me. It’ll be an opportunity for me to bring the baby into work and keep the business running, so this will be cool.”

The Corner Shoppe is located at 3719 India St. It is open from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Friday through Sunday. For more information, call (619) 683-2748.