Afternoon Tea 101: Tea Quality

The essential oils in the leaf is where the flavor of the tea comes from. Once the leaves are broken, they lose most of the essential oils, leaving a less flavorful tea. This is why loose leaf tea results in a better tasting tea over tea bags and tea sachets which contain broken leaves and tea dust.

Water circulation is also important. With loose leaf, there's plenty of room for the leaves to unfurl and expand, bringing out more flavor. Tea sachets with their pyramid shape, are better than tea bags for this reason. There's more room for the water to move around the tea as it steeps.

Loose leaf, with little packaging, are less expensive than tea bags or tea sachets since you're not paying for the packaging. However, with tea bags and tea sachets you can't beat the convenience. 

Tea Scented Candles

1/ How pretty is that packaging? The scent is called Stacks of Pretty Paper with notes of white tea, white lily and jasmine. 
2/ Le Labo's Petit Grain 21 Vintage Candle - orange blossoms blended with green undertones in a vintage tin container.
3/ White orchid with green tea leaves candle.
4/ An Etsy find. Kumquat tea soy candle.
5/ The Au Citron limited edition candle with a mix of black tea, citrus and lavender. 
6/ From D.L. & Co., this candle mixes fruit and floral scents. 

Photo Credit: From Linked Sources

Maison Kayser

I love bread. So, when I heard Maison Kayser had opened up a bakery/cafe on the Upper East Side, I headed up there for a bread pilgrimage.

I was surprised by the size of the place. It was bigger than I thought it would be with a bakery on the left hand side and 100-seat cafe on the right. The cafe is quite adorable and all the servers wore black and white striped shirts.

Before I ordered, they brought out the bread basket. I could have made a meal out of it. Seriously, I'm going back just for that bread basket. There were about 4 - 5 different types and they were all heavenly. Perfectly soft on the inside with just enough chew and crusty on the outside. They served the bread with butter packets – the silver-foiled ones you would get with your pancakes at your local diner. I thought that was a little odd in terms presentation.

For my lunch, I ordered the Tartine Roast Beef ($16) which was really good. For dessert, I ordered an English Breakfast tea ($5) to go with my Fondant Chocolat ($5), a half cookie, half cake-like circular pastry. The Fondant Chocolat was not good; in fact I didn't even finish it. It tasted so bland and flavorless. Friends who have gone, have not been thrilled with the pastries either.

Go there for the bread and the food and skip the dessert, which should be easy if you've filled up on bread anyway.

One thing that I was wondering was how they washed those bread baskets/bags made of burlap. They're weighed down by beans or something similar. Maybe they don't get washed at all as it gets refilled and placed on table after table? Hmm, maybe I shouldn't linger on that thought.

LOCATION: Maison Kayser | 1294 Third Ave. at 74th Street | New York, NY 10021 | 212.744.3100

Franchia Vegan Cafe

The first time I went to Franchia, an Asian fusion vegan restaurant, I had no idea they served vegan until AFTER I ate my meal. It's fairly convincing. I've been there a total of four times and each time, I end up getting the same thing – the Royal Tea Tray ($26.95). First, you're served a tea of your choosing and I went with the Korean Wild Green Tea 1st Picked (The Royal Green Tea), which tastes really pure, clean and full of flavor; you can really taste the essence of the green tea. Instead of a teapot, they bring out a small carafe of hot water with your teacup.

Next, the tea tray arrives which is basically a tray of assorted appetizers. The tray arrives with kimchi, as this is a Korean place. Overall, it's good and I like having a variety of things to eat. Desserts come with another choice of tea. I went with an iced chai, which was excellent and refreshing. The dessert plate had two pieces of mochi and a scoop of soy ice cream. I skipped the ice cream since I didn't like the texture nor the flavor, but enjoyed the mochi with sips of iced chai.

LOCATION: Franchia | 12 Park Ave. between 34th and 35th Street | New York, NY 10016 | 212.213.1001

Cha-An Japanese Tea House

The daily lunch donburi at Cha-An is the best deal around. For $13, you get a rice dish, a pot of genmaicha tea, and two side dishes. There's one special dish available per day with a limit of 15 servings. I love it since it's filling and delicious.

I went on a Tuesday and the don served was the Ebi Chili Don, a spicy shrimp rice dish. I cleaned the bowl, eating every single grain of rice. For an additional $3, you can add dessert to your meal. You don't pick off a dessert menu; they'll serve you whatever is being served that day. It's always good.

My favorite don at Cha-An is the Unagi Hitsumabushi Don, which is a grilled eel rice dish that's served on Saturdays and Sundays only. They mix the eel in with the rice so each bite is perfect. 

Tea is served continuously with the pot being refilled with hot water for your entire stay. If I"m not careful, I'll sometimes have up to six cups of tea. Then I wonder why I can't fall asleep at 3AM.

Note: They open at 2PM on weekdays.

LOCATION: Cha-An Japanese Tea House | 230 E 9th St, 2nd Floor | New York, NY 10003 | 212.228.8030