Serge
User's reviews
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Ten Ren's Tea Time
I really don't know who is going to read this review. If you are a fan of Tea Gallery, Fang's, or Luh Yu, please don't bother. For everybody else, welcome to the wonderful world of Chinese teas.
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Fang Gourmet Tea
I discovered them by a pure accident and got addicted very quickly. It's very hard find a better tea shop in the NYC area. The majority of teas are from Taiwan although they offer some other varieties. The quality of teas is next to perfection: as a bigger company they work directly with tea farmers, mostly in Taiwan, and their blending/storage is excellent (I never-ever had to wash their teas, maybe except for bitter undertones, which is common in some blends). Unfortunately, the mainland teas are somewhat underrepresented. The stuff is very knowledgeable and friendly, but Mandarin is their language of choice; if you don't speak any a student assistant would be assigned to you. As a bigger company, Fang's makes every effort at Internet marketing: you can find them on both Twitter and Faceboook, and in the blogger space. They have regular tea tasting events in Flushing. Best of all, what they are marketing is nothing but a good tea.
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Luh Yu Tea Emporium
A little gem in the heart of the Flushing Chinatown. They didn't have an English sign until last year. This is a family business run by a friendly Taiwanese couple. They are both very knowledgeable and personable people. The quality of teas offered is excellent and, although not particularly cheap, is worth every penny. The selection is quite good but they only offer what they know firsthand. Frankly, you can get a very good deal: there are no happy hours, but they give away samples of exquisite teas: frankly, I was shocked to discover this. The tea quality is outstanding.