The world of tea can be intimidating to enter: so many kinds, names, temperatures, serving styles, flavors, so many leaves!
Luckily, Austin is well-equipped with some of the best tea producers and servers around. These shops are your best bet to make your experiences with tea sweet, not scalding.
Contributed by Hannah Wisterman
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photo via facebook
1601 West Koenig Ln
Brentwood Social House is a neighborhood, female-owned cafe where you can get some of the best coffees, teas, and house-made baked goods in Austin. As far as teas go, you can pretty much get anything your heart desires. From hot teas made from loose leaf teas bagged in-house and steeped to order to tea lattes and a variety of iced teas, you will certainly get your tea fix. Wanna have a tea party? Book one of their afternoon teas which includes their chef's choice of 3 different tea sandwiches or savory pastries, a tea scone with butter and jam, 3 desserts, and your choice of tea.
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photo via Goldie's
600 W 2nd St
For the ultimate, luxurious tea experience, visit Goldie's, the intimate cocktail bar at the Austin Proper Hotel. Their Proper Afternoon Tea takes inspiration from Southern tea rooms with an elevated twist, offering classics like cucumber sandwiches, egg salad canapes, French macarons, and of course tea! They serve a curated selection of health-focused teas that are rich in superfoods and antioxidants, designed to uplift the body and spirit. No worries if you're vegan, as they have a vegan menu as well! Afternoon Tea is happens every Saturday and Sunday from 12 pm-4 pm and you can reserve your table here.
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Photo via TripAdvisor
1400 E 4th St
While tea may not be their specialty, Texas Coffee Traders is still pretty damn good at it. They sell seven categories of tea, each with specific flavors. For the tea drinker who wants “tea, just tea,” TCT is the place, offering blends that are straightforward and no-fuss, plus the hardware to make it: strainers, teaspoons, and even sachets to turn your by-the-ounce leaves into ready-to-go teabags. It’s not all bare-bones, though! Texas Coffee Traders offers plenty of flavorful blends for those who want something a little sweeter or more fun.
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Online Store
Did you even know it was possible for a place to carry so many teas? For the uninitiated, the pages and pages of varieties may be overwhelming, but for the tea veteran, this is hog heaven. In addition to endless tea options, The Steeping Room also offers pots for brewing, filters for steeping, and mugs for sipping, plus more. If you just can’t decide on a single tea, you can join their monthly tea club, a subscription service that sends you a bundle of hand-selected teas with extensive reading material about each.
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Photo via Elizabeth Street Cafe
1501 S 1st St
Any old restaurant can give you a teabag in a mug of hot water, but not everywhere can give you beautifully brewed tea from China and Vietnam by the pot to go with your delightful brunch. You guessed it, the Elizabeth Street Cafe does just that. As an added bonus, you’re supporting local twice: the cafe sources their teas from The Steeping Room! Perfect for if you’re curious about the store’s offerings, but don’t want to commit to the pantry space.
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1715 E 7th St
The good folks at West China Tea will get you the good stuff right from the source. They’ve been importing tea to Austin directly from farms in China since 2012, but they don’t stop there. They are always finding ways to bring tea education to the people; you can regularly catch classes on Gong fu cha, the traditional tea service that owner So-Han Fan so passionately loves, or other tea-related subjects. They offer beautiful clayware to serve your ethically-sourced brew, and not one, but two tea subscription services.
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Photo via Facebook
1023 Springdale Rd #7a
Zhi is a bit of an institution in Austin. They’ve been chugging away at the fair trade tea game for just about 15 years, and their tea isn’t just theirs--you can find it at local restaurants that pride themselves on beverage offerings. Like many small tea businesses, Zhi takes fair trade principles to heart, along with sustainable growing and organic sourcing. With that in mind, you can feel great picking any of their dozens (and dozens and dozens) of teas or tea blends. While you’re at it, stay for a while and try some teas and grab some tools and accessories to bring home to make your tea-time complete.
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13011 Shops Pkwy #600
Y’all aren’t ready for what Austin Tea Xchange is doing with tea. Like any good Texas establishment, of course, they offer sweet tea, but they simply can’t stop mixing up delicious beverages. Try green tea mixed with kombucha, “cappu-tea-nos” that add milk to fan-fave teas, or adding CBD to your latte (not tea, but wow, they’re on the curve). Check out their delish food menu, too!
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Photo via White Cloud World Teas
Online Store
The nice people at White Cloud World Teas have their flavor skills honed to the max, with offerings like banana bread rooibos, chocolate-ginger-bourbon black tea, and even a coffee-black tea mix for extra ka-pow in the mornings. They also offer teaware, and partner with The Brothers Apothecary to offer CBD hemp tea.
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photo via facebook
Various Locations
Get your boba fix at local favorite, Kung Fu Tea. Whether you're a classic fan or you like to make it a little more fancy, Kung Fu has something on the menu for tea (and coffee) lovers of all kinds. For more boba, check out our full list of where to get The Best Boba In Austin.
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What's the tea?
