#smith&hsu

[survivingtw]

If anyone could help with my afternoon tea addiction, that would be grand.

[erin-chao]

[callme-jojo]

Smith&Hsu 台北市南京東路1段21號1 & 2F (捷運中山站4號出口直行) 營業時間: AM 10:00 - PM 10:30 Taipei, Taiwan May 2014 Our dear friend Mini is tying the knot! We decided to have her bridal shower at Smith&Hsu--a rather hip tea house of sorts that I had heard much of but had never been to. They also serve coffee and food, but they are known primarily for their tea and SCONES.  We ended up ordering an afternoon tea set that included two pots of tea, cakes, a few cookies, jellies, 4 scones with four spreads, and six small sandwiches. The set is meant for 2-4 people. We also ordered a few more scones and separate teas to satisfy the minimum per person charge. My favorite part was smelling all the different teas and choosing which ones we wanted to try.  Everything was good, but next time I would be content to just order a pot of tea and all of the scones. It's not like I've ever been a huge scone fan. I think they're nice, I just don't usually eat them. My mom used to make some yummy cranberry scones and chocolate chip ones. Her scones were probably the last ones I ate before these. But I could definitely see these scones being something I might crave every now and then here in Taipei. They're good on their own and delicious when slathered in cream and lemon curd. :)   Unfortunately, the service we received was pretty sub par. For one, it was very slow and the staff was not particularly pleasant. Luckily there are several locations. I'll definitely be checking out another location sometime to sample some different teas and get my scone fix.

[sun-rainy]

2013/11/26 smith&hsu

[sinclaireprowse]

Smith&Hsu

Smith&Hsu is a Taiwanese brand of tea, quite similar to T2 in Australia, but with a slightly higher pricetag. 

It made me think how much I love that the tea culture in Taipei hasn’t been drowned out by artisanal coffee or by trendy bubble tea joints. Smith&Hsu has proven a slow relaxing cup of tea can remain relevant in a bustling city. 

When you sit down, they present you with a taste of the tea of the day – which was orange pekoe and strawberry. Slightly too sweet for me. They then bring along the tray of samples for you to smell. The flavours are incredible, making the choice of just one very difficult.

I decided on No.35 Kir Royale – not because I was secretly hoping it would be cocktail-like but because the combination of flavors sounded incredible: hibiscus, papaya, strawberry pieces, red currant, black currant, elderberry, blueberry and rose petals.

There are Smith&Hsu stores dotted around Taipei. I went to the one at 忠孝市府店, which was nice and small and cosy.

Check out the website here.