Alices Tea Cup

I know I’ve blogged about Alice’s Tea Cup before but I have to do it again. That’s how much I love coming here.

Is it the food? Kinda. Is it the atmosphere? Maybe. To be honest, I’m not sure why I love it here so much. One things for certain: I love scones and the people here make pretty damn good ones. Although the scone lineup changes daily, they almost always have my personal favorite: pumpkin. Now I know you’ve probably had pumpkin scones before. Just about every bakery makes them when the leaves begin to fall. Why is this one so different? Because it is MORE than just a dry scone. It’s a bakery wonder. Circular instead of the traditional triangle, it has the consistancy of a moist pumpkin loaf with the added bonus of a thin sheet of caramel glaze ontop. When its warm, there is no better accompaniment to a cup of ginger tea.

Speaking of tea, lets talk about the kinds of tea they have here. Well, they 100′s. At least it seems that way. They’ve got all your typical tea types: black, green, red, white, herbal, tisane, organic, and decaf. Each category has about 20 different flavors with all the standards like ginger, chai, chamomile, french vervain, peppermint, vanilla bourbon, jasmine, rose, and genmaicha. Along with some other outstanding teas such as Hawaiian Paradise (apples, berries, apricot, orange peel, rosehips, and hibiscus), Mango Mate, and Herbal Detox (alfalfa, dandelion, nettle bush, and mint). They basically have a tea for every palate and they are all delicious.

So if you are in the neighborhood come on over to Alices for a pot of tea and a blt…unless it’s a national holiday and kids are off from school…then be prepared to wait in a sea of 5 year olf girls.

Argo Tea

If you are going to Chicago and love tea like I do – go to Argo Tea. I make a point to go to one everytime I’m in Chicago or Evanston I stop by and grab yummies. Its like the Starbucks of tea but only in Illinois (for some ungodly reason!). Why arent these hear? C’mon! Vosges Haute Chocolat branched out to NY. Why can’t Argo?? They literally have over a dozen locations in Illinois so find one wherever you’re going. If they arent near by – grab a cup while you’re at O’Hare…cuz odds are you’ll be there for awhile (shakes fist in anger at O’Hare Airport).

My Favorites

Iced Pom Tea^TM – pomegranate juice and iced red tea. Simple and Delicious.

Red Velvet^TM – red tea, raspberry and white chocolate. What a surprising combination – I love it!

Chocolate Mint Tea – a mixture of chocolate milk and mint tea. It sounds weird but this is the best tea drink ever. I crave it monthly.

Mojitea - mint tisane with lime juice over ice. Probably the most refreshing thing to drink when its warm