With spring (hopefully!) just around the corner, we're warming our way through March with hot cups of tea. Here's where to enjoy a cup in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
New York
Hao Noodle and Tea
The tea list at MICHELIN Bib Gourmand Hao Noodle and Tea is well-curated, a selection of seven Chinese teas like Wuyi Narcissus Oolong and Jasmine Gold Needle, both grown in Fujian province. Enjoy a cup at the West Village or Chelsea outposts as you take comfort in a steaming bowl of chicken and mushroom noodle soup dotted with verdant bok choy.
Berber Street Food
Just a few blocks south of Hao Noodle and Tea is MICHELIN Plate Berber Street Food, Diana Tandia's tiny, inviting pan-African eatery. Everything on the menu here is warm and transportive; one spoonful of Djolof rice and you're in Lagos; a bite of the Maghreb sandwich and its grilled merguez and you're in Algeria. Sip hot cups of Mauritian mint or ginger turmeric tea or try the refreshing Berber mint iced tea.
Tamarind
Among the 13 teas served at Tribeca MICHELIN Plate restaurant Tamarind are chamomile, the flowers imported from Egypt, violet mint, and smooth, rich Ceylon orange pekoe. Work your way through a pot at the gleaming marble bar as you polish off sirkha gosht (lamb in a coriander and chili chutney).
Chicago
Pleasant House Pub
MICHELIN Bib Gourmand Pleasant House Pub is best known for its draft craft beers, but they've also got eight teas on their menu from local tea sourcing company Kilogram. For Chicago's blustery winter, a cup of turmeric tonic or Kilogram's 333 blend (rosehip, chamomile, and peppermint) are just the ticket. Come summer, cool down with a pint in one hand and a glass of delightfully refreshing ginger plum iced tea in the other.
The Publican
The four teas on the menu at MICHELIN Plate The Publican come from local importer Rare Tea Cellar. Sip a cup of magnolia blossom oolong rich in antioxidants or emperor's chai, with tea from Assam and vanilla from Madagascar, in between forkfuls of chocolate mousse cake with banana cream and candied pecans.
Los Angeles
Gjelina
Winter in LA tends toward warm and sunny, so MICHELIN Plate Gjelina in Venice serves half its eight teas iced. Cool off with hibiscus or an Arnold Palmer, or go for a hot cup of immune-boosting ginger tea. Double up on ginger—it's a health food!—by tucking into warm date cake with a whiskey caramel and scoop of ginger gelato.
Hero image: Pleasant House Pub's English Breakfast Tea and Tumeric Tonic. Photo courtesy of Pleasant House Pub
