Dee
User's reviews
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DarTealing Lounge
On this first visit to DarTealing, I was pleasantly surprised to discover a cute tea room located within walking distance from AT&T park. To be completely honest, I never would have expected a tea room to be located in this spot. I would have easily walked by had a friend not made reservations here. I’m so glad that she did because Dartealing turned out to be a very nice place for tea. We ordered the afternoon tea for two which included a choice of 3 sandwiches, a mixed salad, a pot of tea for each of us, scones, and petite deserts. We selected the mushroom sandwich, smoked salmon sandwich, and the chicken curry sandwich. I especially liked the mushroom sandwich and the smoked salmon one, and would definitely order both again. I thought the chicken curry sandwich had a dash too much curry. The scones and petite desserts were good. I just wish lemon curd had been served too. Lemon curd always pairs well with a scone. Dartealing ranks among some of the best tearooms that I’ve been to in the bay area and I would rank it higher if they included a savory or two.
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The English Rose Tea Room and Gifts
Over the December holidays I had tea at the English Rose and was stunned to see that the Saturday holiday tea cost $28/person. That is $5 more than the normal Saturday tea. I would have been okay with the price if there was something additional provided, but the only changes were ambrosia as the first course and a different type of dessert. Not quite worth five additional dollars. Plus, the service on that particular day wasn’t very good. Normally, the service is exceptional, but on this visit we felt somewhat neglected. As much as I always enjoy having tea at the English Rose, I will have to reconsider going again during the holiday season.
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Lovejoy's Tea Room
Whenever someone talks about tea in the bay area, Lovejoy’s is always mentioned as the tea room to visit. I finally made me way to Lovejoy’s this month, and was not disappointed. There was an ample size list of sandwiches to pick from, and I selected the chicken salad and smoked salmon. Both were delicious! My friend selected the roast beef with horseradish and the chicken & asparagus sandwiches . They too were good! The highlight of tea at Lovejoy’s was the hot crumpet. No other tea room I have been to in the bay area has served a crumpet and they should because it was really good. The scone on the other hand was average. I’ve had better. For dessert, we were able to select an item from a tray that carried petite fours and other treats. Although I enjoyed my visit to Lovejoy’s and will visit it again one day, it isn’t my favorite tea room in the bay area. If you’re willing to cross the bay, my favorite one is located in Pleasanton at the English Rose.
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The Pleasanton Hotel
Although the tea selection was limited and the decor in the tea room was somewhat lacking, I enjoyed my overall tea experience. Compared to other tea rooms in the bay area that charge $21.95 and more for a complete tea service, it was only $18.95 at the Pleasanton Hotel. Our tea service included a pot of tea for each person, 4 different types of tea sandwiches, many different mini desserts, a scone, lemon curd, clotted cream, and preserves. The sandwiches were all delicious. One of our favorites was the cucumber and strawberry sandwich. The scone and mini desserts were all quite good. One suggestion would be to decrease the number of desserts and add a savory of some sort. All in all, I recommend having tea at the Pleasanton Hotel.
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August Tea Room
The August Tea Room is located inside a Livermore shop. Lety and her staff attempt to provide a lovely tea experience, and take the time to bring a tray of tea leaves to the table to allow customers an opportunity to view and smell them. Unfortunately, the food and overall service were average. One major complaint I have is with the clotted cream. The texture was runny and it tasted very similar to Cool Whip.
Tearoom response:
Dear MB,
Thank you for taking the time to review our service and our food. We encourage
our guest to bring it to our attention,
what they feel we are lacking. We do not
use cool whip, apparently that day your
devonshire cream was not as it should be.
We could only improve our food and service if we are told that it is not
to your satisfaction. We hope to see you
again. Thank you.
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Secret Garden Tea House
The Secret Garden is conveniently located near Golden Gate Park with metered parking available on the street or at the nearby public parking lot. When you walk into the Secret Garden you are immediately surrounded by a lovely Victorian scene. Although the service was pleasant, we were not immediately greeted when we entered the establishment. It would do the place well if the servers were dressed more appropriately. The sweatshirt style jackets that some of the servers wore did not go very well with the floral print aprons. The tea selection was ample, and we each got our own pot. Unfortunately the tea was served lukewarm. We had to ask that our second pots be served with much hotter water. I ordered the Bedford’s Delight; which included a scone, 6 tea sandwiches, a small savory, and a choice of either the dessert of the day or a selection of mini tea pastries. The scone was absolutely wonderful and was complemented by the Devonshire cream and preserves. The sandwich fillings were creative, but a larger array of breads would have made the sandwiches even better. They only used white or wheat bread whereas other establishments I have visited have used multigrain, hye rolls, etc. Unfortunately, the desserts were disappointing. I ordered the mini tea pastries, and they were all lacking in flavor. My friend ordered the dessert of the day; which was a delicious mini raspberry and lemon mousse. It’s definitely not the best tea establishment that I have visited, but it is worth a visit if you are in the area.
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Chado Tea Room
This was my first visit to this tea room, and I think it is appropriately categorized as “urban”. Unlike the other tea rooms that I frequent, this room was lacking the charm and ambience of a more English style place. Chado is very reasonably priced, and must be praised for their incredible tea selection. Unfortunately, serving the tea in a coffee mug type cup takes away from the beauty of a true tea experience. Despite the lack in charm, Chado offers very tasty sandwiches and the strawberries with cream were fantastic. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for the desserts. Both the carrot cake and upside down cake were dry and bland.