Local Tea Shops

'Never trust a tea drinker' is what I say - this is coming from a latte drinker. Okay jokes aside, I do enjoy the occasional tea but I'm not sure who is going to be drinking so much tea in our neighbourhood since we will soon have 4 tea shops in the 'hood.
The oldest tea shop in the area is Nectar Fine Teas on Wellington. I have been there to buy loose leaf teas for a gift but I'm not what you call a regular customer.  I however have been tempted to try out their Devonshire cream tea. This is tea served with Devonshire cream (made from clotted cream), jam and fresh warm scones. The last time I had this was in England and it was delicious.


If you have seen the aqua and white take away cups in the neighbourhood, they are coming from the newest tea shop called Davids Tea www.davidstea.com on Richmond. You can find a Davids Tea shops all across Canada and rumour has it that the owner is a veteran of Westboro and that is why he opened one here. I went to check them out and it was very reminiscent of Starbucks but they serve tea. The staff is very friendly and knowledgeable on their tea selection. The only thing I didn't like about it, is that they let you smell the canister of tea leaves before you try it. I'm all for smelling tea leaves, however everyone sticks their nose in these canisters and I'm not sure how hygienic this is. I just have a vivid imagination and I just think what if someone has a runny nose and sticks their nose in that canister and then they make you tea from those leaves. Call me crazy, but that grosses me out.


The other tea shop is The World of Tea across from Mrs Twiggy Winkles on Richmond. Now if you are a tea snob you will love this tea shop. They sell loose leaf teas and as the owner says, these are pure tea leaves not mixed with anything. If you have time on your hands, the owner is happy to make you a tea sample of his tea of the day or you can go to his beautiful wooden tea sample table to try a selection of teas. You can't be in a hurry at this place, as the owner says, tea takes time to make. With that being said, there is no take away brewed tea at this place, but in the future, you will be able to enjoy tea and pastries in store. I did go in there for a take away tea, so I had to settle for a tea sample; it was chrysanthemum tea. As the owner said, these are special chrysanthemums, they are closed flowers not like the open chrysanthemums they sell in other stores. All in all, it tasted like chamomile tea to me.


Now rumour has it, that we are getting a fourth tea shop right beside Mountain Equipment Coop. Currently there is an open space (formerly a framing store) but soon a building will be erected and one of the newest inhabitants will be Tea Store www.teastore.ca. You may recognize them from their store in the Byward Market. They are very popular in the Byward Market and I'm sure they will do quite well here. Looking forward to them opening.


My question is, will all  the neighbourhood tea shops survive the year? Time will tell.