Tag: tea

Unassumingly wedged between a bike shop, an auto repair shop, and the train tracks on the upper Westside is Atlanta’s only traditional Chinese-style teahouse. The shop is called Wai’s Gong Fu Tea House. Wai is Belonoha’s adopted name as a certified kung fu master, and gong fu (which roughly means “mastery”) is the Chinese style of tea service in which whole tea leaves are steeped several times, each time brewing only a few ounces of tea for each guest.

What began as a kitchen ritual passed down from generations in Monica Sunny’s family is becoming a full-fledged cafe. The Chai Box Cafe is set to open in the former Doughnut Dollies space on Howell Mill Road in November. This 625-square-foot Upper Westside shop is the first retail location for Sunny’s nationally recognized chai company—and the only dedicated Indian chai cafe in Atlanta.

My 6-year-old daughter Sydney and I arrived at the Waldorf Astoria Atlanta Buckhead for its Queen of Hearts High Tea not knowing what to expect. In my mind, it could have been over-the-top and kitschy, or upscale to the point of snobby, or child-centric, or focused on day drinkers. In the end, it was actually none of these.

The 5,000-square-foot space looks like an old Victorian house with a patio and serves to pay homage to the owner Jill Harris's grandmother, Mary Lucille. “She taught me to bake at age 8. She’s the reason I love food,” Harris explains. Much of the food is made using her original recipes, including cinnamon rolls and pies. Patrons can purchase items to-go from the bakery, from bacon, egg, and cheese biscuits to baguettes to brownies.

Monica Sunny’s life revolves around the tea. “It was the first thing my mom taught me how to make in India,” she says. “From that moment, I started experimenting on my own and combining different teas and spices to come up with my own custom blends.”

Two-time James Beard Award nominee Asha Gomez has shifted her focus from cooking to entertaining. The Cardamom Hill founder moved to Conyers and opened Tulip & Tea, a retail, education, and high tea space. There, she sells floral arrangements on a weekly subscription basis, offers cooking and floral design classes, and serves an elaborate high tea on Fridays and Saturdays.

Mother-and-daughter team Rita and Brittany Campos are bringing their own version of high tea to Virginia-Highland. They’ve taken over the space formerly home to Ten Thousand Villages on St. Charles Avenue and are transforming it into an Instagram-worthy parlor with seating for 55.

Yaupon holly—North America’s only native caffeinated plant—has a long history in Indigenous cultures. As the tea becomes trendy in the U.S., will those roots be forgotten?

The local Indian tea company partners with chef Philip Meeker for a unique event on January 22.

Need to center yourself before a stressful workday or release tension after an intense workout? Try dimming the lights, lighting a candle, and hopping into the tub for a long, hot soak.