(Preferably not) spilling the tea around Morningside Heights.

My beloved tea enjoyers, I find us to be criminally underrepresented, and that changes today. Here are some of my favorite destinations for tea on and around Barnumbia!

Hewitt 

I’m a freshman, and during orientation, I made the mistake of not looking through the bins of teabags in Hewitt well enough. For the first one or two weeks of life on campus, I was drinking decaf tea every morning. Eugh. I’m not a coffee person at all, but that doesn’t mean I don’t need a bit of caffeine to get and keep me going. Luckily, caffeinated tea is now easier to find in Hewitt. 

Tea: Lipton

Preparation: I like to make mine with a splash of milk and no sugar. 

Rating: A solid 6/10. You can’t really go wrong with a hot beverage to wash down your cereal, but it’s not super strong and nothing special.

Columbia + Liz’s Place

I’m grouping my review of the tea in Columbia dining halls and Liz’s Place together, since they use the same type of teabags. I usually just drink black tea, since they have more flavor options. One thing worth mentioning is that Liz’s Place accepts meal swipes for a 12 oz cup of tea, so if you’re a freshman looking to get rid of your swipes at the end of the week without enduring the line at JJ’s, this is a good option for you!

Tea: Bigelow

Preparation: Black tea, no sugar. Some honey if I’m at Columbia.

Rating: 7/10. Like I said, a bunch more options, especially at Columbia dining halls!

Qahwah House

At Qahwah House, I usually get the Adeni Chai, Meditative Mint Tea, or Ginger Milk (which isn’t technically tea, but I’d recommend it anyways if you like ginger tea, because they taste pretty similar to me!). No notes, to be honest. Qahwah House might be known for their coffee, but they know how to do tea. The Adeni Chai is strong, milky, and perfectly spiced, and the mint tea (they also have a Moroccan mint tea option) is soothing and perfect for the cold weather we’re facing right now. 

Tea: In-house blends, if I’m not mistaken.

Preparation: Adeni Chai contains milk, and the mint tea is black. I don’t get sugar, but some may prefer their Adeni Chai with sugar.

Rating: 10s across the board! 

Gong Cha

BURY ME IN GONG CHA MILK FOAM. So luxurious. So creamy. A medley of beautiful flavors—sweet, salty, layered. I’m an Earl Grey enjoyer (as you’ll soon discover), so I get the hot Earl Grey tea with EXTRA milk foam. This is indescribably good—I am currently chugging a cup of it as I type this. Bonus points to Gong Cha for having a whiteboard that I can promote my Instagram account on.

Tea: Unsure, but they do use teabags.

Preparation: Hot, 0 sugar, EXTRA MILK FOAM!

Rating: 11/10, honestly.

Hex & Company

A small London Fog from Hex & Co might just be the most affordable tea on this list (well, excluding the on-campus options). Like I said, I love Earl Grey tea, and hence, a London Fog is one of my go-to beverages. They let you pick between vanilla and lavender syrup, which I honestly don’t get. Picking lavender wouldn’t make your drink a London Fog at all, but hey, you do you. This is great homework fuel, and Hex & Co is just a fun place in general.

Tea: Again, unsure, but they use teabags.

Preparation: Hot, skim milk, vanilla.

Rating: 8/10. Pretty solid!

P.S. Magnolia Bakery is a little further away from campus, but they also have an amazing London Fog.

A few honorable mentions: 

• My friend’s Peach Rooibos tea. So good, I made a whole flask of it.
• The ginger tea pre-mix I brought with me from India.
• Matcha is green tea, right? I love Blue Bottle’s matcha lattes.
• Heytea’s Jasmine Tea. This is pretty mediocre, and I’d say there are definitely better options, but it’s okay.

I’m always on the hunt for a new tea-based beverage or type of tea, so let me know if you have any suggestions. Cheerio!

Tea via Bwarchives