Lauren W
Google
Location:
The tea is hosted in what is the lobby/cafe of the hotel. They have just repurposed the same furniture so it’s a pretty awkward set up, not conducive to tea and a whole arrangement of finger food. It’s also a little awkward with the foot traffic from guests. The hotel itself is pretty nice and the bathroom was great.
Tea:
If you care at all about tea you are going to be disappointed. Their selection is decent and I like how they have the teas out for you to smell. The way the tea is served is you are given a bag (maybe wood pulp based?) and it is filled with the leaves. You then have a communal pot of hot water, which you pour into your cup with the tea bag. You get an hourglass and when it he time is up you can stop steeping the tea. There is no differentiation made for water temperature or steep time for different types of tea. For reference, on average, green tea should be steeped in 175 degree water for 2 ish min, whereas black tea should be steeped in 210 degree water for 3-5 minutes.
Finally, most heinous of all was how the matcha was served. I was intrigued to see it as an option, so I ordered it thinking they would whisk it as it is meant to be prepared. Instead, the “ceremonial grade” matcha (which looked rather anemic) was poured into a tea bag before being emerged in hot water.
They did have really good honey, made on their rooftop garden.
Food
Honestly the best part of the experience. Lobster roll was great (although they skimped on caviar) as were the desserts. Some things were whatever, like the meatball? and the bland mushroom thing. The sandwiches were fine, but I really liked the scone with cream and jam.
Service
It was fine. That’s it. Could have been more attentive.
Overall
Would not recommend if you care about tea at all. For the price point definitely not worth it, in my opinion.