Reviews - East Hampton, NY

Last weekend, my dh and I went to East Hampton, NY to celebrate our 4th wedding anniversary. The Hamptons is way too far to travel for the weekend from New Jersey and really isn't my scene, but we did have some wonderful tea that I wanted to mention.

We stayed at the Mill House Inn, which was delightful. The breakfast was unbelievable. Really. Second only to my Aunt Pixie's cinnamon rolls. But, I am here to talk about tea and the Mill House offered a decent selection. Everything was in a bag, which is not ideal, but I recognize that I live in a coffee drinker's country so I can't be too particular. What I did appreciate was the selection of Tazo teas (including my much-needed Awake) and a selection of other teas (I can't remember the brand) that included decaf Earl Grey. So, I had a cup of Awake in the morning and a cup of decaf E.G. in the afternoon with several yummy cookies that are always out in a cookie jar on the sideboard. Four tea pots.

Next, we stopped in at the Golden Pear Cafe for iced tea. Four tea pots here too because they offered a Paradise iced tea that was so good we bought a box to bring home.

Finally, I must mention the tea at the 1770 House where we went for dinner. I'll admit that I chose the restaurant based partly on the recommendations of friends, but primarily because of the tea selection I saw on the menu on their Web site. And, I was not disappointed. The 1770 House ranks my highest ranking so far, an almost-perfect 4.5 tea pots. If they add a decaf Earl Grey to the menu (which we did mention to our fantastic server) they'll have the highest 5 tea pot ranking sewn up. The 1770 House serves Harney and Sons teas with water that is scaldingly hot in a silver tea pot with silver tea service. Their tea menu includes a decaf black tea, a green tea option, several herbals, and other caffeinated blacks, including an Earl Grey. Thus far, it was, without a doubt, the best tea quality, selection, and service that I have encountered in a restaurant. (The food's amazing too. I had some gnocchi underneath an unbelievably moist chicken breast that rivals the gnocchi we had at this small, restaurant with no sign in the Marais in Paris.) It's a shame we won't be spending very much time in East Hampton.