NOW OPEN: Cups & Chairs Tea Cafe

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NOW OPEN: Cups & Chairs Tea Cafe

POSTED: Wednesday, June 30, 2010, 9:59 PM

Filed Under: Openings | Tea

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Thanks to trusted Meal Ticket tipsters JC and DO for simul-sharing word of Cups & Chairs' opening with us. (We first mentioned it back in March.) The tea-centric cafÃ©, located at intersection of Fifth, Passyunk and Monroe (701-03 S. Fifth St., 215-238-8TEA), is the brainchild of Kylie Tsai, a tea fanatic who left a career in IT to open the shop. (Former co-worker Jen-rung Lai designed the spacious interior.) The 30-seat shop carries 59 varieties of looseleaf tea sourced from around the world — Japanese matcha (aka ceremonial green tea; Tsai's greatest love/specialty), African rooibos, South American yerba mate, etc. — plus tea drinks (the "Before Sunrise" is matcha floated over orange juice), home-steeping accessories and a simple menu of sandwiches, salads, pastries and light bites. Tsai also showed us an outdoor courtyard that she hopes to have up and running in a few months' time. Hours: Mon.-Fri., 7 a.m.-8 p.m.; Sat., 8 a.m.-8 p.m.; Sun., 8 a.m.-6 p.m.

danya

Posted 2010-06-30 18:44:34

Who's making the food?

vance

Posted 2010-07-01 12:05:11

Ooo. yum. matcha. can't wait.

michael

Posted 2010-07-02 17:53:56

Love their Before Sunrise special - a delicious blend of OJ and matcha.

michael

Posted 2010-07-02 17:59:45

Don't know who makes the food, but the sandwiches and salads were unique, fresh and tasty.  I have to sample some more.

Terry Bell

Posted 2010-07-04 16:51:09

Kylie!  Congrats on your opening.

Erin

Posted 2010-07-06 12:33:58

Yay for matcha! Thanks for the early tip on this post, Drew. Any luck in me buying straight matcha powder from there? Or any suggestion where? Dying to make a matcha finishing salt!

Drew Lazor

Posted 2010-07-06 13:58:18

Erin, yes, I believe you can buy any of their teas looseleaf, and I don't see why that wouldn't include matcha.

Natalie

Posted 2010-08-19 12:21:55

You can buy loose matcha at the tea place on 4th and monroe (around the corner - across from Essene).  it's $10 an ounce.

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Founded in October 2008, Meal Ticket is a City Paper blog about food, drink and assorted other things that make you go mmm. We do recipes, interviews, restaurant news, commentary and much more. We don't do restaurant reviews here — those are handled in print, mostly by our critic (and Meal Ticket contributor) Adam Erace. Got a tip, question, thought or concern? Just want to say hello? Please shoot a note to caroline@citypaper.net.

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