Drinking tea has many health benefits. Many studies have shown drinking tea can radically reduce cancer risks. Also polyphenols in tea help reduce risks from blood clotting thus reducing heart disease in tea drinkers. Aside from being full of antioxidants it can also calm you and help release tension. Plus, having tea with friends can be fun!
My sister, bonus mom, and I have a birthday tradition of going to have tea to celebrate each of our birthdays. For those of you who are not hot tea drinkers having high tea can still be a fun experience.
We have always driven to Charleston, SC in the past to go to Charleston Place’s Thoroughbred Room; it’s easily a day trip since it can be reached in a little over an hour. It is devine and the selection of local and organic tea is impressive. However, this trip we decided to try a tea room closer to home, Laura’s Tearoom in Ridgeway, SC. This tea room is located just outside of Columbia, SC on I-77 from Charlotte, NC. The dress up nook filled with hats and shawls makes this tea an especially fun girl’s trip. Notice all of us in our borrowed attire; we tried on several options before settling on them. Well, actually my sister didn’t want a hat at all so we had to select one for her; she probably then wished she had picked one herself.
We three all love hot teas and make it at home for ourselves regularly. For my sister’s baby shower last year we actually hosted a tea in my parents’ home as her shower, which shows our devotion to tea! We typically have high tea. High tea includes several courses of small fare including scones, tea sandwiches, and bite size desserts. At Laura’s Tea room everything is made fresh in house, nothing store bought. They select the tea for you, both hot and cold. Then they bring out a fresh scone with Devonshire cream. You also get a choice between quiche` or another small entree item. I opted for the cornbread salad, which was similar to a pimento cheese or chicken salad texture and included pinto beans, peppers, and cornbread. Next course is a tower of chocolate covered fruit and tea sandwiches. Finally, they bring out sherbet and two small but good cookies. The portions are very small but filling. We loved it and will put it in rotation with the Thoroughbred club in Charleston. I think this tea service would be a fantastic starter for those who want to try high tea but are intimated by all the selections at a more formal tea room. It got three thumbs up from us!
No comments:
Post a Comment