Stop 3: A Cause for Tea

With a rainbow of colors, flavors and textures, boba, matcha, milk tea and other riffs on Asian beverages have dominated the tea category for about a decade. Although their popularity shows no sign of waning, concepts like A Cause for Tea provide a refreshing counterpoint to the hyper-trendy tea beverages.

Housed in a historic colonial farmhouse in Monroe, about 40 minutes southeast of Charlotte, A Cause for Tea has all the Instagram-ability of modern bubble tea concepts but with extra frills that would be at home on the set of “Bridgerton.” Indeed, groups of young girls don their Sunday best—some even with fascinators—as they gather round a communal pot of tea and order tea sandwiches, scones and Southern staples like chicken pot pie, pasta salad and sausage gravy.

The tea selection ventures beyond the expected, with varieties like Corsican Pear (rooibos, cinnamon, apple and pear pieces, blackberry leaves, lily flower petals), Pretty Please (green tea, papaya pieces, sunflower petals) and Duet (fermented pu-erh, cocoa beans, green coffee beans, ground coffee, chamomile petals). Our teapot, the Plentiful Chai, is spice-forward with an extra peppery kick, thanks to the addition of white pepper, and some floral notes from dried rose petals.

Concepts specializing in tea service are unlikely to boom à la bubble tea, but their unique service format harkens to a bygone era, appealing to consumers’ desire for one-of-a-kind dining—and sipping—experiences. It also invites guests to slow down for tea, which, like coffee, is often consumed in a hurry.

Feeling a bit of wanderlust? Our Flavor Postcard series spotlights markets around the world for culinary inspiration.