Ophelia B.
Yelp
The ambience and food was perfection as always. I really wanted to give this place a five star rating again yet I had to dock a star off due to some sudden changes in the Mad Herbalist.
Service was satisfactory yet there was some loss. Whenever I went to the Mad Herbalist and ordered a flight of teas, it was superlative and served with raw sugar crystals, honey, and sugar. Not anymore, there were no stirring sticks or spoons provided with my hot tea like before. They gave simple sugar syrup for sweetener and a small knife-like utensil when asked for a spoon or stirrer for our tea. The server was nice, always asking if we needed something, and went out of her way to serve me a sample of one tea. Yet she charged me $7.50 for a flight of hot tea instead of the $6 listed on the menu. I guess I was charged $1.50 for a sample.
We had the best chicken sandwich but it cost $19 for the extra chicken salad to make a decent sandwich. It was suggested that we do that if we wanted regular sandwich bread instead of the croissant bread along with enough chicken salad to make a decent sandwich. We paid an extra $9.50 for that, yet it was delicious. $19 for a simple sandwich with an adequate chicken salad amount seems pricey though.
We were seated by a very talkative bunch of people. They were polite and it was fine with me. Yet, my companion was not happy. It was his first experience there and it was not like all the wonderful peaceful quiet experiences I had there in the past.
We should have come when it was quiet for him.
Despite the minor inconveniences and changes, we did not complain and paid $64 included a 20% tip for one flight of hot tea (excellent), a small 16 ounces tea (so so), an appetizer (good), a small soup (satisfactory), and an excellent yet pricey chicken salad sandwich with chips. It was more expensive than my first lunch (one of the best meals and service I ever had) at the Mad Herbalist with another companion - the price of two full exotic entrees, appetizer, and two desserts with one flight of tea & water was $20 less (including tip). I understand that change happens all the time yet I cannot give a five star rating for an experience that was not as spectacular as past experiences in the Mad Herbalist. If we come back, a less expensive yet more filling lunch menu item will be entertained, a more quiet time selected for lunch, and bringing a spoon with packets of honey & sugar for the tea will be a must.