High Tea Series: T Room and Bakery
3 Comments
Karen Hamilton
July 26, 2009
Of the four afternoon tea experiences I’ve had since my High Tea Series began, it is strange that the first one I embarked upon is the last one I’m writing about. It’s not that I was reluctant to publicize the place – more that the days slipped by without me ever taking the topic off the backburner. Thank goodness for Blogathon days! You and I both get to catch up on the subjects I should have brought up long ago.
Anyhoo, let’s get back on that subject of the T Room & Bakery in Point Grey.
Design partner Jason Lau accompanied me on my first afternoon tea excursion to the hard-to-spot T Room along the far west stretch of 10th Avenue. Finding the storefront, which presents itself more like a cookware store than a tea room, was worth it: the left-hand side was a cozy but bright and modern bakery, with plenty of kitchen gadgets to peruse on the store off to the right.
We were seated for our $13 mini-tea at 2pm to a table decked with spring flowers and plateware adorned with a scroll wrapped in green ribbon. Unravelling it revealed the tea menu – and what a menu it was! Nearly 40 varieties to choose from, as easily seen from the wall of leaves to my back. I went dizzy with choice.
Luckily, our server was more than happy to recommend a tea to fit our individual tastes. Within minutes, we each settled on a tea: I with an unusual fruit tea and Jason with a black tea variant. Wish I could tell you more details, but my mommy brain is blanking on me at the moment.
While I cannot report the specific tasting notes this far removed from the experience, I can tell you that unlike most other afternoon teas I’ve had, this first visit still strikes up memories of delight, intrigue, and curiosity to explore the rest of their tea arsenal. Jason enjoyed his tea as much as I did mine, though I must say that in hindsight, I really should have ordered a tea that went with the food that came with our service.
The 3 tiers that came with expedience sported your standard afternoon tea fare: savoury sandwiches, scones, and desserts at the top. Other than the desserts, which numbered one per person, we were treated to at least two of each item. I’m not sure if this was because we were a table of 2 and they had a minimum service amount, but we did deliberately order the mini-tea and were surprised by the quantity.
The consistently of quality was what struck me most about the dainties we sampled. Usually, the places I’ve tried excel at savouries, or have terrific scones, or make fabulous sweets to the detriment of the other categories. Here, we were satisfied with the entire selection, though I cannot say that any one tier would get top ranking against the others I’ve now had.
The verdict
By the end of our meal, we still had half of our food left on our plates. Not because we didn’t want to eat it (it sure was good enough for that) but because we couldn’t possibly stuff ourselves further.
This quantity, combined with the consistent quality of both food and drink plus the cheapest price tag I’ve seen yet, makes the T Room my value pick for anyone that wants good eats without paying a premium for the typical chintzy or ritzy atmosphere.
Categories: Blogathon 2009, Blogging for Social Change, Food, Point Grey, Restaurants
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