Tea and I go way back. I remember as a young teen, whenever we went to Canada on vacation, I'd choose a
bone china teacup for my hope chest. And in later years, my parents would bring one back for me when they traveled to England. I also received them as gifts now and then, so I have quite a collection now.
As a family, we enjoyed going out to what was called (incorrectly I've learned) "
high tea", which in reality was "
afternoon tea" - a light meal consisting of fruit, little sandwiches, scones, sweets, and of course, the requisite tea. As
daughter dear was growing up, she just loved tea parties, and many of her birthday parties were celebrated in that fashion. I've got quite a little library of tea books still, as well as all the appropriate accoutrements. So you can see, even though I'm mostly a coffee drinker these days, I have a real fondness for tea, especially when accompanied with all the special touches and tasty treats.
So when I was invited to a tea party last weekend, I was intrigued. It was the maiden gathering of a home party venture by
Queen Mary Tea Room, which just happens to be the oldest independent tea room in America, conveniently located here in Seattle.
The invite promised:
Enjoy sweet and savory tea fare.
Experience a tea tasting and learn about the wonderful world of tea.
Shop for everything to make your perfect cup of tea with an experienced tea queen.
Find the idea gift for everyone on your holiday list!
Mom and I went and really enjoyed tasting teas (my favorite was a seasonal chestnut), learning a few things (like the high tea inaccuracy), and of course consuming some scrumptious nibbles.
Oh, one fun bit - we got to pick what tea cup we wanted to use, and I chose one unlike anything in my collection - this bright yellow one!
It all kind of took me back . . . like visiting an old friend.
