Afternoon Tea from Buckingham Palace: Just in time for the Royal Wedding

The countdown continues with less than two days until the Royal nuptials of Prince William and Kate Middleton. With little time to spare, my package from Buckingham Palace arrived this weekend with the essentials for royal wedding viewing: English Afternoon tea and the official William and Catherine tea towel to commemorate the occasion.

You may be surprised, but these items are not out of touch, even for commoners. To order the tea and other wedding - dare I say it - souvenirs, go the the royal's website and head right to The Royal Collection Shop. It clearly states it is "the only official range to commerate the Royal Wedding". I trust you believe them.

I've got my fancy hat ready and my DVR set for 4:00 am, so that when I am free, I can sit back, have a spot of tea and view the Royal Wedding and procession for the spectator sport that it is.


It will also take me back to our visit to London in 2006 where, among many must-see places, we stopped at both Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey. Having had some experience in scoping out wedding sites, I think William and Kate have chosen well.


Cheers to some Royal reality TV and some serious tea drinking this weekend!

Barb's TEA Shop teams up with Holiday Catering to offer full Afternoon Tea Service

We are excited to be teaming up with Holiday Market Catering to bring a full service afternoon tea to your event. We'll not only provide you with high quality loose tea, but now we've added scones, savories and sweets for a complete tea experience.

Afternoon tea prices, for a minimum of 25 guests, start at just under $18.00 (slightly more for 12 - 24 guests) and include two mini scones, three tea sandwiches and two mini desserts per person. In addition, we'll brew and serve your choice of two different loose teas.

And, that's just for starters! You can add fruit plates, quiches, salads and cheese platters. If you need serving platters, tea cups or linens we can help with that, too.

For more information, give us a call at 248-840-4356 or reach us at barb@barbsteashop.com.

St. Patrick's Day tea table: Irish tea, Irish linen and a bit o' green

Hello TEA Friends,

Holidays provide inspiration for tea time tablescapes and St. Patrick's Day is no exception. Key ingredients for a March 17th afternoon tea table include Irish linen, green accents and, of course, great Irish tea.

During a recent visit to Kristea's tea gift shop in Berkely, we were motivated to start our own St. Patrick's Day tea table after viewing their seasonal tablescape on display. The retailer's eye for design and attention to detail comes together with emerald-hued plates and glassware accented with a hunter- green plaid tablecloth.

Inside the store, we also spotted some beautiful Irish linen napkins with a shamrock pattern on the border - what an elegant crumb catcher for our McVities' Digestives.

Back at home, we put the kettle on for some hearty Irish tea and set out to furnish our finest Irish afternoon tea table. Using cherished family treasures, I took out my grandmother's light green depression glass tea cups and dishes and set them on a beautiful Irish linen tablecloth from my mother-in-law. With such finery, only the best of tea would be suitable and we had just the one. My good friend, Joni, just back from a trip to Ireland, brought me a tin of Bewley's Dublin tea. After one sip, it went right to the top of my favorites' list.

St. Patrick's Day tea time should be an elegant affair. With fine design and excellent tea, it can be achieved. However, we reserve commenting on what occurs after tea time. What happens on St. Patrick's Day, stays in St. Patrick's Day!

Top O' the Morning/Evening to all!

Barb

Spend Valentine's Day with tea, chocolate, roses and. . . hamburgers?

It's Valentine's Day and we all have our own idea of how the perfect February 14th should be celebrated. I like spending the day with chocolate, roses and tea (see our blog entry from February 12th on Adagio's Valentine tea which combines all three!). Throw in a candlelight dinner and my ideal has been realized. But I never, in all my romantic daydreams, considered fast-food hamburgers in the scenario, let alone reserving a table at the neighborhood White Castle. But, maybe it's time to break out of the heart-shaped chocolate box and reconsider.

In a story I first ran across this weekend by The Restaurant Examiner, Anya Vinclauv, I thought it must be a one-time, one-locale promotion. Further reading and a visit to the White Castle website, proved, however, that across the county, one could celebrate Valentine's Day at the short-order grill with tableside service and flowers on the table. It's all part of White Castle's "Sweetheart Meal Deal" and, if this sounds at all tempting, you'll have get to your phone quickly. This is a reservation-only affair and, per White Castle's website, "seating is limited".

The White Castle menu includes not only its signature "Sliders", but exotic fast-food fare such as fries with cheese, fish nibblers and chicken rings. In addition, you'll see they also serve chocolate shakes and a hot tea (the latter's menu picture proudly captions "have a sip and meditate on the depths of White Castle Flavor"). Chocolate, tea and a rose on the table - this is starting to sound dangerously familiar.

Should you never want to forget such an evening, White Castle advertises that you can have your picture taken during dinner. Somehow, though, I don't think a photo would be necessary. I have a feeling, this is an experience that would remain in one's memory for a very, very long time.

It may be too late for this year, but I'm keeping options open for 2012. For now, I'll console myself with some Valentine tea, chocolate truffles and a beautiful rose on my dining room table (thanks, Chris and Rob!)

Happy Valentine's Day to all - no matter how you spend it!

Barb

Celebrate Valentine's Day with Chocolate, Tea, and Roses from Adagio

Valentine's Day is almost here and we're celebrating with all the traditional ingredients of the holiday. At Barb's TEA Shop, we are spending February 14th with tea, chocolate and roses. In fact, we like the combination so much, we turned to Adagio Tea's Valentine tea, which allows us to enjoy all our favorite things in just one cup.

For those of us who have sampled a lot of chocolate tea, it's easy to get disappointed. The aromas can promise delicious things to come, but it doesn't always translate in the brew. Adagio's Valentine tea, however, will not only have you at "hello" when you open its package, it will keep your interest until it has the last word at the end of your cup.

Starting with Ceylon black tea, Adagio's romantic blend, adds rose petals and natural strawberry and chocolate flavors together to bring all the delights of February 14th to your teapot. Roses will fade and chocolates bring calories, but Adagio's Valentine's tea will satisfy all year long.

Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Barb

Scones for your next Super Bowl Party?

On the top ten list of the most popular food items consumed on Super Bowl Sunday, even I was surprised that tea made the list. Even more shocking was what made it to the top. According to the NY Daily News, the market research group NDA reports the most popular food eaten on professional football's biggest day of the year are vegetables. Who knew?

Well, certainly not anyone who attends my brother Glenn's annual Super Bowl party. It's a holiday feast starting a few hours before kick-off with a 6-foot sub, salty snacks and delicious dips. The pot-luck menu gets better every year with gourmet cookies, home baked chicken wings and spicy meatballs. At half-time, while we wait for the next potential celebrity wardrobe malfunction we munch down just delivered deep dish pizzas. All this typically gets paired with a diet cola or low cal ale in attempt to counterbalance the super-sized caloric intake for the day.

So how do vegetables, salads and milk make this top ten list? According to NDA, not everyone watches the Super Bowl. It's hard to believe as long-time attendees of my brother's Super Bowl party. How insular can we be to forget that most households in America don't watch it at all? So in all the years we devoted fans have endured times where the commercials were better than the game and indulged on dips with sour cream, double-fudge brownies and pizza with cheese-stuffed crusts, most other folks are sitting down to dinner with vegetables and tea? Incredible.

Based on this recent information, I have informed my brother that I will be bringing a pot of Earl Grey. He's up for the new addition, but says it will remain a BYOV (if you want veggies, you have to bring them yourself). I don't think the pre-Super Bowl trivia games are in threat of being replaced by a viewing of A & E's Pride and Prejudice nor do I think Chris' from-scratch chicken wings will get any competition from scones and crumpets.

Let the best tea/football party begin!

Yours in tea and friendship,

Barb

January is Hot Tea Month, but still iced in northern Michigan

Hello TEA Friends,

Although it's the end of January, one still has time to continue celebrating Hot Tea Month. It's a wonderful occasion - no need run to Hallmark, wrap presents or haul out forgotten decorations stored in the basement. It's just one month on the calendar to remind us that hot tea is a special treat and, especially for those of us who reside in the northern climates, it's a welcome relief to some chilly temperatures. It's also a great month to guage the progress of my tea garden.

Last weekend, we were at our up-north cabin, Pemberly, for a marathon cross-country skiing event with the family at Garland Resort. It's officially known as the "Gourmet Glide" and it's a four-mile-plus trek across groomed trails with several fine dining stops in between (all who attended gave it a fleece-lined mittened two thumbs up). My husband and I came up a few days early and practiced skiing on our small compound. We made a routine stop at the tea garden I started last year. As you can see from the picture above, the herbs are literally chilling out.

Inside Pemberly, however, my Camellia sinensis is safe from the unfamiliar seasonal temperatures of its new locale. We keep it in the corner of the kitchen, a cozy spot flanked by a picture window and a glass doorwall. Here, when the sun does come out, it floods light and warmth to such an extent, my tea plant, if it closed its eyes, could easily believe its back in its subtropical home. It seems to be happy, budding on schedule this fall and growing noticeably in length every month.

So, while January is hot tea month, our outdoor herbal tea in northern Michigan gets served with ice. But after the down vests come off and the ski boots are left dripping on the boot rack, the tea kettle goes on, another log gets thrown on the fire and we enjoy hot tea from the inside. We get as toasty as our transplanted Camellia sinensis in the kitchen corner, where it puts its roots down for the winter. It may be the end of Hot Tea Month, but its not the end of hot tea up north, even when when the naturally iced tea is gone from the garden.

Maybe next year, I will send cards for Tea Month.

Happy 2011 to all!

Barb