We wandered back into this wonderful tea shop for the first time in a while spending the morning in the International District snacking on baked goods. As we entered the warm greeting and offer to help us select the right tea was immediate. We welcomed the help as the variety in this small cozy shop was dizzying. We were walked through some options based on personal taste- we were interested in a few of them and he offered samples of each before we decided. It felt like we could talk to them much longer but had to get going. read more

nice tea-tasting location that only seated 5 people. crowded, so watch where you go because delicate products and furniture all around u. the lady who led the tea-tasting experience was good, but I felt like a better introduction of each tea would have made the entire experience just the best . It was just okay. It felt rushed, too. also, a walk-through on how she preps the yea would have been much appreciated. shop looked pretty , but also was pretty expensive for the ceramics. oh well...nice place to walk around if u got time to kill read more

New Century Tea Gallery - Tea Rooms Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Stopped in on Monday to try some teas and ended up buying a really lovely oolong. The shop owner was very sweet and gave us a sample of a couple types to make sure we picked one we liked. It's smaller but there's a lot to look at and it's well organized. Would definitely come back! read more

Great mom and pop shop in Chinatown that specializes in tea. They have a large and diverse variety of teas also- caffeine and no caffeine, green tea, chrysanthemum tea, rose tea.. so many different profiles and types. They also offer tea tasting at the table. The husband and wife that run this place have been here for a very long time, and this shop is a local gem and mainstay to the neighborhood. This is a business that I have supported for years and will continue to do so! read more

New Century Tea Gallery - Rose tea - Tea Rooms Near Me - Seattle, Washington

I had such a great tea tasting experience with the owners, their family are tea farmers. But then had to leave in a rush to my facial appt. The teas were much more expensive than I was expecting. $146.25 for one type of tea. The most expensive I have ever purchased. Remember to ask for a subtotal or estimated price before finalizing your purchase, otherwise you will experience buyers remorse. :( Anyhow I'm ok with most of my purchase, except there is a mysterious $78 tax charge in addition to $7.88; two types of tax. - I emailed them on their website - Hope to get this resolved, credited soon Well it turns out the $78 is a subtotal on taxable items (anything non-tea, like bamboo serving utensils set and tea pot). read more

New Century Tea Gallery - Not sure about this $78 charge. Two types of tax??? I sent them a message about this. - Tea Rooms Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Absolutely the best tea I have ever tried. Ask the owners for their suggestions based on what you like and they'll blow you away with something new and special. Buy whole tea cakes or by the ounce, try before buy, or just refill your favorites. I sat down for a couple hours on my first visit and met a bunch of like-minded people and had a good time. Even if it's just for socializing, it's an excellent experience. I only wish there were more places like this. read more

What a gem of a place in Seattle's International District! If you are a tea lover or interested to learn more about tea, you must make a visit to New Century Tea Gallery. The owner was very knowledgeable and patient to teach us about all the different high quality teas in her shop and how to brew them. She invited us to sit down at a table set up for complimentary tea tastings of the teas we were interested to try. We had a lively and lovely conversation with her and a couple who joined in on the tea tasting fun. I wish I took more photos to share with you, but I decided to live in the moment and put the camera phone down. Check this place out. You'll love it!!! read more

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great people, always kind and incredibly well informed, never try to upsell you or or get you to buy stuff you don't need. they have tons of teas and are almost always are making tea and giving out cups read more

It's my go-to for authentic Chinese teas. The owners are incredibly knowledgeable, friendly, helpful, and work directly with tea farms. They buy the tea directly. You can find everything you need for an amazing tea experience from herbals to rare pe'urs. They are also very accommodating and do elaborate tea tastings. You can find a wide range of affordable tea sets and more pricey ones. Great sampler boxes for gift shopping. I cannot say enough good things about this shop. If you're in the ID or near the area and you like tea, give it a go. read more

New Century Tea Gallery - a painting of a man in a suit - Tea Rooms Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Lots of reviews raving about New Century, and I have to agree. I have spent time talking with the staff in every tea shop in downtown Seattle (I don't think I missed any). Each shop has it's own high points but this one has the best combination of friendly knowledgeable people, top tier teas, a warm authentic environment and almost non stop tea tastings. Every time I go in, we spend time sitting at their table tasting and learning about tea. They are patient with my ignorance and help me find my next "favorite". They only sell Chinese and Taiwanese teas, but there is a broad selection of teas from there so the variety is still very wide. If aged teas are your thing, they have a wide variety from whites through pu-ers of every style and age. Aged teas are an acquired taste, and this is the perfect place to start getting your feet wet since they will let you taste it and help steer you in the right direction. I have spent far too much time and money in this place and enjoyed every minute of it. Thought I would share. read more

New Century Tea Gallery - Mikes Noodle House next door - a must stop after tea! - Tea Rooms Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Great place, with the best Chinese tea in Seattle and an amazing selection of teaware. If you're a tea connoisseur, this is the place to go! read more

Can you say "best experience ever"!!! Please, repeat after me..."This.Place.Is.The.Best.Ever"!!! Here we go...we walk in, after looking on yelp (of course), and the owner welcomes us, as does her super adorable daughter, to sit for a tea tasting. Not really sure what we're going to have, we opt for jasmine tea. Instantly, we were taught that we were steeping and drinking tea incorrectly our entire lives. I know, how do you drink tea wrong???? I thought it was like brushing teeth...but I guess folks mess that up too. So, she pulls out her wooden tea table, tea, cups, super dope steeping tea contraption, and makes the best tea I've ever had. All the teas are imported from China, and served to us. After talking with her, her husband, and briefly smiling with her daughter (who was busy being super cute), we bought a contraption and some tea (apparently to help us digest our food - I think we may have looked like we ate our way through Seattle). This place has all the teas and all the stuff to drink the teas with. It's the tea version of Disney. It's the tea that everyone should google and hopefully amazon. It's the tea of all teas. It's the tea place that makes you order online because it's just that good. If you're ever in America, fly here. read more

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Wow! I stopped in this delightful tea shop on a quick trip to Seattle to get my passport. Grace was so nice to help me learn about and try some beautiful teas. I bought a Phoenix oolong tea, teacups, and some tools. It was so nice to slow down and enjoy her shop. I will be back soon! Thank you for a lovely afternoon! read more

New Century Tea Gallery - Tea Rooms Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Amazing experience!!! We found this place during a little walk around the International area of the city. We wanted to have a tea tasting and this place came up highly recommended. We walked in and was greeted by a delightful woman who offered us a tasting of their Jasmine Green Tea. She taught us the correct way to brew the tea and explained the various phases of the tasting. She also talked a lot about the health benefits. We talked family and travel and she gave lots of suggestions for our upcoming trip to Hong Kong! We then tasted a 20+ year ages Pu-er tea that was awesome!! It was so smooth and had no caffeine. She explained the aging process and showed us various types that we could take home. Needless to say we bought tea and a tea "press" of sorts. We could've seriously sat there all afternoon having tea and learning everything there is to know about tea. Hey have a large selection of teas and all of the necessities for proper tea service. read more

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This place is amazing! The proprietors were very knowledgeable and brewed us a cup of the tea we were purchasing. Their guidance was spot on as we shopped for Christmas gifts there. Can't recommend enough, they had teas and great tea accoutrements. Going to be a regular visitor! read more

My husband came across this Tea Gallery and brought me some jasmine pearl tea. I loved it! So this time I joined to pick up the tea and had such a pleasant experience here. The host is one of the nicest ever. She remembered my husband have visited there before. She guided us to few of different teas and explained how we make each of these teas. They have tea tasting too, the store is well organized and looks very pretty. read more

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All I have to say is Wow! Okay, I have more to say. I stopped here in my search for a Ti Kuen Yin (a type of Oolong) I was introduced to a couple of weeks ago by a Chinese colleague. This is not your Americanized pseudo friendly Teavana Mall Rat experience. This is a full on, personable world of the independent Chinese tea house. And what an education of something I knew of but knew little about. I learned with clarity the differences in Chinese tea preparation as opposed to English and Japanese preparation. They have 2 nice tea preparation areas for hosting tea and watching them prepare the tea in a Chinese guywan (basically a small bowl with a doomed lid). Here, I learned the proper way of infusing the leaves so they can be used up to 6 or 7 times. Also, the preheating of both the infuser and the tea cup is important since the temperature of the water will change the flavor. Given that teas can be anywhere from $40 to $2000/lbs, reuse is nice. They also sell sample packs if you don't have time to enjoy the samples of the tea of day at their tea tables. This can be a nice, inexpensive way, to develop your sense of likes and dislikes of tea. And they have a nice assortment of Chinese style tea cups, preparation and complete serving sets. Overall, the experience here is analogous to a fine wine store hosting wine tasting except you don't need a DUI Lawyer on retainer! read more

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Continuing my education in this thing we call life Last night I went to Seattle's Chinatown-International District Night Market and had a great time walking around an mingling with all the people, but then I stumbled on the Century Tea Gallery I had been eying the Huge Buddha from across the street thru the open door, I had to get a closer look and that's when my night took a turn to educational as I said at first I just wanted to see the Statue of Buddha and maybe get a couple pictures, if the owner was cool with that, but I got oh so much more I got Schooled on Tea, now this place usually closes at 6:30 pm but was open for the Night Market, so Instead of ignoring the crazy white guy like happens so often and yes I know my looks have a lot to do with it, but the man here just asked me a little about my knowledge of Tea and how long I had been drinking it. then he started to show me a few different Tea's and explaining to me about there age and about the difference between a young picked Tea and a older picked Tea, and then there are Tea's called High MN Tea, these usually are Tea's that grow wild on the MN and very much relished as a better Tea ( thank you for the added help from the Chinese Lady I was drinking Tea with) Also I was surprised to learn Tea doesn't go bad or get Old, like a fine wine it Ages and with Age it goes up in price I also found out, that is why it was used for money at one time and Tea is relished and some times passed down to children as it may be 50 or more years old Now this isn't your Daddy's Lipton Tea Bag Grasshopper So as People are watching Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon across the street in the park I am learning how to make and enjoy Tea, and one of the biggest thing I learned was that a good Tea can be used 6-8 times not a one time brewing then throw out the Tea Bag here, well there is no Tea Bag here we are using Tea leaves, even after 6 steeping of the Tea leaves there is still no bitter taste, the Tea is just as crisp and refreshing with a slight sweetness on the tip of your tongue just after it goes down, and kinda like a good brandy it warms your belly, but in a good way almost like you can feel the Tea working its Magic so go in and enjoy learning about Tea, the Chinese have hundreds of different teas to drink, and don't let the prices scare you, as you young Chinese lady told me last night you can get the same amount of Tea, and for about the same price of a box of Tea, but it is so much better tasting and for you in whole leaf form I know I will be back to purchase more Tea and to try other types of Tea, I hope to bring a few friends with me as it so much better to enjoy with others read more

New Century Tea Gallery - Tea Rooms Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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I stopped by this location after eating dumplings and visiting my favorite tea shop up the street as I had always been wanting to check out its tea selection since reading the yelp reviews. They seem to have a nice selection of teas at the New Century Tea Gallery, but I cannot say that it felt very inviting when compared to my favorite tea shop in the I-District. When I went in, the store was completely empty. So I started walking around and then saw that there was a woman in back who did not even look up at me. She just said to let her know if I had any questions. This is much different than the warm greeting that I am accustomed to, and I think might be the reason why there was noone in the store, while the one I had just left was packed. Needless to say, I did not do a tasting here... read more

We stumbled upon this tea room after visiting the park across the street. The shop owner welcomed us warmly and invited us to sit for a tea tasting. We were intending to just poke around the shop for a few minutes, but tea sounded nice so we sat down and it was the best decision ever. The tasting was a highlight of our day- we learned so much about tea and tried several varieties that we hadn't even heard of before, including an aged 'purple tea'. Our favorite was the jasmine pearl because we both live floral teas so much, but the oolong sand greens that we tried were all great. We left with three bags of tea and two complete tea sets. No regrets at all, though. I was only too glad to be able to support this local business! read more

New Century Tea Gallery - Buying tea and tea sets after enjoying a lovely tea tasting - Tea Rooms Near Me - Seattle, Washington

One of the best places to buy Chinese tea. I am Chinese myself and I know the green tea here has spectacular quality. I will recommend the special grade green tea. The best fragrance and flavor from the high mountain. They only get the best quality tea which is picked between March and April 5th. If they didn't get the best quality batch because of the weather they will tell you the truth and ask if you are okay with a second grade for cheaper. They also have awesome collection of oolong and pu'er. Their oldest pu'er is 26 years old! Their Dian Hong is also one of the best. I have been to Yun Nan myself and had the tea there. The Dian Hong here has the distinct sweet potato flavor from the ones I have drank. If you come here, you might pay a little more for your tea but you know you are getting the best quality tea. read more

I drink and buy a lot of tea, both Chinese and Western style. Usually, I go to Richmond, B.C. to buy my Chinese teas. But glad I found this place because they have a superb selection. Overall, the store is nicely decorated, the service is good, and they offer a wide variety of teas both affordable and in the high end. Definitely best I've seen in the Seattle area. For Chinese tea this is the best spot in Seattle. read more

Great selection and they are very helpful in finding the tea that will work for you. Nice selection of traditional kyusu.

Incredible. We had been wanting to learn more about traditional Asian teas, so we wandered in here on a Saturday afternoon hoping to find some authentic selection. We were immediately greeted by jars and jars of high quality loose teas. Already excited, a prompt invitation by the owner to taste some teas was an unexpectedly perfect surprise. Seated at a beautiful long wooden table, he placed a tiny sipping cup in front of each of us. Another patron, who was there before us, had already been immersed in the tasting and was having a hard time finding an excuse to leave. The owner began steeping and pouring: green, jasmine, ginseng oolong, and a special taste of aged pu'er from 1992. It was delightful experience and temporarily transported me to a different world. Of course, the owner tried to nudge us toward purchasing a few things. After all it's a family business and he needs to make a living. I definitely didn't feel pressured and was not offended like some of the other reviewers. He lamented politely that it's hard to sell tea in a city of coffee drinkers. Truly unfortunate considering as this blows the experience of any Seattle coffee shop out of the water. If I had to make any critique, I wish they had some information cards in front of each of the teas. As a newbie it was impossible to understand what I was buying and if it was going to fit my tastes. The owner did let us smell a lot of the jars though, which helped. We will be back. read more

One of the best tea shops I've ever been to - this isn't a place where you order tea or a meal, but rather a place where you look at tons of beautiful teas ... and then the proprietor sits you down and makes you numerous tasting pours and chats with you and is just amazing. The Ying Hong #9 (their family blend) is absolutely delicious. read more

Amazing tea place - the best puerh shop in the US (there is one just as good in Hong Kong.. a little far though!) I was recommended to this shop by my friend. I waited for the shop to open and once the shop was open, I met Dafe and told him I was looking for good puerh. He showed me several different years (92, 98?, 2006) of "cooked" puerh and started preparing to let me sample all of them. Not wanting to take advantage of Dafe's hospitality, I saw that the 92 was a bit more than I was planning to spend so I told Dafe that it was ok and I did not need to drink that. He said it was no problem, just try it to taste differences in the tea. We drank all 3 kinds at least 5-6 brews and talked and discussed tea, my visit to Seattle, the shop, everything. It was like drinking tea with an old friend. After tasting all 3, it was obvious the 92 was the best tea by far so I ended up buying it anyway. We were joined by 3 other tea seekers and they stayed for awhile to try the jasmine (I declined not a fan) and special grade green tea. The special grade green tea has all the best qualities of dragonwell without the odd taste I don't like. I bought this for my mother in law since she loves dragonwell. The special grade green is also from the shop's family farm. So cool to know where it came from :) After the 3 others left, I tried the moonlight sheng puerh. It was really good, crisp and not astringent. However sheng has a strong waking effect on me so I can't drink too much so I didn't buy any. At that point I didn't really want to leave but I was starving (I spent 3 hours drinking tea!). As I was leaving Dafe wanted to give me a puerh knife as a gift but I told him I can't since I only had a carry on. He came me some tea samples instead. Now the incredible part - 2 weeks later my friends went to visit the shop and mentioned I visited. They remember everything about me and also gave my friends the puerh knife to bring back to me! This tea shop needs to get 1000 stars :) It's too bad I don't live in Seattle :( read more

Great little shop. We were able to try a variety of teas. Owners were not pushy at all and super friendly!

Simply the nicest people I've ever met in a retail establishment. They have exactly what you want from an owner-operated business: items they believe in, chosen for a reason, at reasonable prices, sold with pride. What more could you ask for? The best Pu-erh in Seattle? Oh yeah, they have that too... A lengthy discussion of tea-culture while sipping multiple high-mountain oolongs? Yep, that too. What don't they have? Well, it's not a place to go have tea with a friend while talking about your week, kids, strange rash, etc. That's not their purpose. For that, head up to Teahouse Kuan-Yin, where you'll have a table to sit down at, tea that's almost as good, and some nice munchies to nosh. But when it comes to getting the best loose-leaf oolong, pu-erh, green, white, or herbal teas in Seattle, or finding an amazing yixing pot or gongfu set, you've gotta get down to Chinatown and the New Century Tea Gallery. read more

The New Century Tea Gallery is a beautiful little tea shop in the I.D. Here you can find many fine, high quality teas by the pound, tea pots and tea accessories. They also carry these hard to find aged tea leaves that are sold in the form of a large circular "tea cakes" often stamped or molded beautifully. I've never seen these, but maybe they are common in China? They do carry the 2008 Beijing Olympics commemorative teacake made of "pu er" tea. They are not cheap and range in price from $85-$200. I got a wonderful education by browsing in the store/gallery one afternoon. I have never seen anything like the two gorgeous wooden tea tables there. We sat and were treated to a tea tasting where they prepared and brewed the tea in a traditional fashion. It felt very ritualistic and an elegant way to experience and taste the fine teas before buying. Who knew that there are tall tea cups for smelling and shorter tea cups for tasting. It's definitely worth a visit if you are in the area and want to buy teas. In addition to the black, green and pu er tea, they also carry flowery teas like jasmine and rose teas. read more

This is my new favorite tea shop in Seattle, because this one is the real deal! Nestled in "chinatown" in the International District, where any respectable tea shop ought to be, this sweet little store is a gem. This isn't the place to go if you want a yuppy floral blend to brew in large pots at home and serve in super-sized starbucks mugs, rather, this shop is authentic; it serves traditional teas in the traditional ways. The space is beautiful! Gorgeous tea tables and services, decor that feels authentic, and that just-slghtly-cluttered sense that makes you feel like you're going to uncover treasures. They have a large selection of tiny tea pots and cups, complete tea services, and all of the special little items that make serving traditional tea feel like a sacred ritual. Prices for these items vary from inexpensive starter sets to pricey collectibles; a good selection in every price range. The tea collection is extensive (in fact, the name "Tea Gallery" is totally appropriate!) Multiple offerings at various price-points for a wide variety of teas. Their buyers travel to china personally to bring back the best teas to share with Seattle. The best part is the service! Walk in even just for a visit and you will be treated to not only samples of many kinds of teas, but full on tea-service, complete with a download of information from their delightful servers. They will make sure you know everything you need to know to serve their teas right. New Century Tea Gallery is doing everything right! A casual visit might just turn you into a tea-ceremony convert. read more

How can I say how much I love this place? My husband and I by chance saw it while walking to a dimsum place. I actually intended to go only to Floating Tea Leaves during our visit to Seattle, but I'm so glad we went exploring since Tea Gallery is amazing! The owners are so welcoming. This is one of the few tea places I've visited that let you taste tea for free. They were so generous since I think we tasted at least 5 different kinds of tea the first visit. And though we've been drinking gong fu for a few years now, we also learned a few things from them. They introduced us to a form of tea play that we've never considered before even though it's so obvious. They mixed brewed shou and sheng to see what taste that would create - it was cool since the shou balanced the sharp taste of sheng. When we went in, I was just looking for a simple solid green tea that we can get a decent taste from without access to good water or a kettle. And that's how I ended up with a pack of "Special Grade Green Tea." Granted not the best name but we found out that the owner's family make it. It is like dragonwell but has a fuller taste. I really wish I bought more of it. After tasting a few more green oolongs, we quickly moved to puerh. The owner had us taste a shou that he's been brewing all morning but is still so flavorful. It turned out to be one of the best puerh in the store. He apologized for starting us with that one since none of the other puerh tea could compare. It was a purple leaf 701 brick; I hope there's still some left when we visit again. I really want to taste everything they have in stock, but unfortunately, they have at least 50 different kinds of puerh, not to mention the all the other types of tea. I will say that in the tie guan yin category, the one called Monkey Pick is the best tasting tie guan yin I've ever had. read more

Best tea shop in town if you are looking for a high-quality Chinese tea. Tea tastings are free as well. The owners were very generous, letting me try four to five different teas before making my selection. read more

First and foremost, this tea shop is without equal. If you want tea from the source of excellence (in terms of quality, selection and knowledge) then Dafe and Grace's shop is THE place in the United States to satisfy your need. I have such a strong emotional connection with New Century Tea Gallery, Grace and Dafe are gracious hosts, come in and sit down for a free tea tasting, you will learn more about Chinese tea than you could imagine- and in the meantime, make two wonderful friends! Every time I visit Seattle, there are two things that absolutely MUST be on my list of things to do: 1. See family and friends 2. Go to New Century Tea Gallery for tea with Dafe and Grace in this beautiful little refuge from the world! Live well, and drink tea! read more

The woman running the shop was awfully rude. I was browsing through their pu-erh (not touching anything, just reading the information), and she came up and asked my friend and I what we needed. Very bluntly. I was a bit flustered and asked what she meant, so she repeated herself slowly in an annoyed tone. We both felt really unwelcome, so rather than buying some tea to try at home, we left. I think it's important to note that everyone else in the store was white+a tourist, and we were clearly college students, so she must've assumed we didn't have money. Which is both inappropriate and untrue. I was really excited to find a nice, well-stocked tea gallery since there aren't any in our area, but unfortunately the rudeness of the woman who interacted with us made this a location I won't be revisiting. read more

If you want to buy tea from an expert this is the place to go. I wandered in on a whim, but I was greeted by a tea tasting that allowed me to really sample what I was buying. Most of the time purchasing tea can be hit or miss, but this place has every kind and grade of carefully cultivated Asian tea that you could hope for. The owner grew up on a tea farm so he is extremely knowledgeable as well. Even though prices can be more steep than some of the other markets nearby, it is so worth it! I would highly recommend the Special Jade Green Tea. It is amazingly fragrant and better than any of the 30+ different varieties that I have tried so far. It is vacuum-packed by the quarter and half pound for easy travel (especially if you are flying)! read more

New Century Tea Gallery - White pu-er, special jade green tea, and a couple small jasmine pearls mixed in a homemade tea bag! - Tea Rooms Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Thanks to Grace and Dafe for teaching me about drinking, storing, and sharing great puerh tea. A tea tasting here is a relaxing way to spend the afternoon in the International District. Once I sampled some puerh, I knew I had to bring some home with me. read more

I came in here with a couple of friends while wandering around the ID. We were just looking around and kinda window shopping when the owner came out and greeted us and urged us to stay for a tasting. The experience was absolutely fantastic! First of all, the most flavorful and refreshing jasmine tea I've ever had in my life. Second, the entire experience of the tasting and the tea boards and the ceremony was just so much fun, it kinda felt like we were being let in on a big secret tea party, that left us refreshed and relaxed and all around happy. Of course as soon as we finished we bought a ton of tea to enjoy for later. If you can appreciate tea, or if you're just looking for a solid moment of peace I highly recommend this place! read more

I went here to try to find a tea-related gift for my sister. I knew I wanted to get her some tea and some sort of teapot, but other than that I was clueless. They sat me down and explained the differences in the teas and let me sample some until I found a few I thought my sister would like. They also had nice glass cup that steep your tea in water and then drop the tea down into a cup (very cool and efficient). I never would have imagined there is so much to learn about tea! I will be going here for all my tea needs. read more

Wonderful shop. Took my daughter here to buy some tea for a her tea set that I got her for Christmas. The guy working there was very helpful and patient with all of my questions and set us up with a really great combo pack of tea. He even threw in one of the blooming tea flowers for my daughters. I miss this level of service ... other retailers should take note. Also, the place felt really nice ... obviously smelled good, but it was also lit well, and the layout made sense to my westerner mind. read more

It is one of the best tea shops in Seattle! Please try their Yunnan black tea and aged Puerh, very clean with high quality. I enjoy the environment too, typical Chinese style decorations. read more