Ah, tea. Few things could seem further removed from L.A. and its taco trucks, strip malls, and In 'N Out burgers than a cup of English Breakfast and a couple of cucumber sandwiches.
But as a former tea snob (at least of the "loose-leaf-Twinings-Earl-Grey-with-milk-and-two-lumps-of-sugar" variety), I'd say that when it comes to tea and its entourage of sweets and finger sandwiches, I wouldn't count L.A. out.
There are straight-ahead tea rooms like the Huntington's, where we recently had afternoon tea with Aki's Lolo and Lola. And there are places that like to juice up the somewhat stodgy traditions of tea time with an East Asian or Californian twist, like Chado or Jin Patisserie, where we joined Tommy, Lisa, and a couple of their friends for high tea to celebrate Lisa's birthday.
Whichever way you want to cut it, most of your tea party desires can easily be quenched in the City of Angels. And yes, you can put your pinky up in the air while you sip your Darjeeling. We'll just look at you funny.
Jin Patisserie
Though we didn't opt for a full-fledged "babymoon," Yuri and I lived it up after we found out we were pregnant with Aki. By living it up, I mean we feasted our hearts out at as many not-so-baby-friendly places as we could before the due date rolled around.
This past spring, we got to join Tommy and Lisa as they did the same thing, dining at some yummy-licious L.A. establishments before baby Keagan burst onto the scene in June.
Jin is a converted home, with its exclusively outdoor seating wedged between the "house" (a photos-forbidden bungalow with the cashier, dessert display, and restroom) and a fence separating diners from the sidewalk and the bustling, bourgie Abbott Kinney neighborhood.
I had an elegant pot of Darjeeling and Yuri had a strong pot of macha; we split a pair of sandwiches with clean presentation and balanced flavors. As far as the tea-time sweets and pastries, though, I'm still a little partial to the Scarlet Tea Room's. (It's probably just Pasadena pride!)
Jin is a little narrow, muted in volume, and tough to negotiate in case of a toddler meltdown, but luckily, there seem to be many other stroller-toting folks in attendance. (Tea and sympathy, or so you'd hope!)
Like everywhere else in the Venice/Santa Monica ballpark, Jin's bright, clear ocean air is a meal in itself. With the dog days panting down our throats, the idea of a pot of gourmet tea by the ocean is more than a little tempting.
The Rose Garden Tea Room at the Huntington
Who knew that ginger and carrot pressed between two slices of bread could be so good?
The Rose Garden Tea Room's buffet-style sandwich and sweets selection might be off-putting to some, but if you put your pride and prejudice aside, it's easy to enjoy the Huntington Tea Room's bed-and-breakfast atmosphere, and of course the matchless view of the railway magnate's prized rose garden.
Speaking of roses, the Huntington's rose tea is wonderfully complex and aromatic, and fills your mouth and nostrils at the same time. And what could be better than walking off the sandwiches (and caffeine jitters) on the garden's grounds, maybe popping in to peruse the Gutenberg Bible?
And did we mention those warm scones? And rammies of clotted cream?
Desert Garden at the Huntington
Huntington's Japanese Garden
On the parental side of things, the maitre d' couldn't have been sweeter to Aki, and the bustling atmosphere was perfect for him (especially after wolfing down some of those scones), especially with the promise of a dip in the Children's Garden's mesmerizing fountains.
Rating for little ones? Two thumbs up. Rating for tea time, overall? Two pinkies up. Way up.
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