Tempting Teacups

Consumers are spending quality time with tea.

By Erin J. Shea, Associate Editor -- Restaurants & Institutions, 10/1/2006

Fruit-flavored bubble teas are popular at Vong’s Thai Kitchen.

“Tea is comforting,” explains Erin Waldron, director of beverage for Vong’s Thai Kitchen in Chicago. “People feel like they’re allowed to take those few minutes out of their life as the tea brews. They associate tea with relaxing moments and healing.”

While not a threat to coffee in terms of consumption or popularity, tea has built a strong consumer base. “Tea service differs from the grab-and-go mentality associated with coffee,” says Cynthia Gold, tea sommelier for The Boston Park Plaza Hotel and Towers. “It’s more than a drink; it’s taking time for yourself and friends.”

As with anything served to guests, tea’s quality is partially dependent on preparation. To meet customer expectations, operators need the right tools. “Tea is much more fragile than coffee and it’s temperature controlled,” says Michelle Mah, executive chef of Ponzu, an upscale San Francisco restaurant serving contemporary Asian cuisine.

Gold recommends “forgiving teas”—requiring no specialized preparation—for operations looking to move beyond basic tea offerings. “Unless you commit to hiring new staff and investing in training and the equipment to get the timing down, you don’t want to invest in really high-quality teas,” she says.

While blended bagged teas are designed to allow more room for error, Gold opts to serve loose-leaf teas. “Work with a vendor who understands your service levels and knows what’s available in terms of loose-leaf teas,” she advises.

The variety and flavor of tea are as key as the proper brewing equipment. “You need to make sure that you’re heating water to the correct temperature,” Mah says. “It varies from variety to variety. The temperature for green tea is lower than for black. If you oversteep a tea, it’s ruined and becomes bitter.”

To best brew loose-leaf teas, Gold and Mah recommend user-friendly equipment that allows guests to enjoy the process of brewing tea at the table. “A restaurant that has high turnover is not going to want to invest the time in training the staff to steep tea anyway,” Gold explains. “Teapots with built-in infuser baskets eliminate the worry about timing and precise brewing or straining the drink.”

As for selecting varieties, Gold believes that “teas are seasonal, like wine. Choose what complements your menu.”

Hot herbal, green and black teas are so popular at Vong’s Thai Kitchen that the restaurant has expanded its selection of cold tea beverages. In addition to traditional Thai iced tea (sweet tea with condensed milk or cream), the restaurant menus cantaloupe, kiwi and strawberry bubble teas that are made with tapioca.

Vong’s Thai Kitchen uses its own mix of liqueur and green-tea additive “in any number of our cocktails,” says Waldron, “and the popularity of tea has opened up the doors for us in terms of beverage creativity.”