Sanctuary T

My tea goal (there's categories in goals, you know) is to visit every tea shop/tearoom/ in New York. And then....the world! Well, that's kind of impossible. Still, if I can make it here...

When I heard about Sanctuary T, a restaurant that uses tea as an ingredient in many of their offerings, and boasts a rather decent tea selection - and some creative cocktails, I knew I couldn't rest till I'd tried out the place myself. And then I went back to bed. Still, there was a nagging determination as a Tea Queen to make a progress through my lands. So, six months after I'd first learned of this place, I finally hauled my tired rear over there.

Tired and not really in the best condition to sample a restaurant for the first time. I'd been off stomach-wise all week, but there was still an appetite lurking around.

When we got there, I was first of all impressed by its coziness. We had a table toward the back, right next to shelves of tea merch. Not a bad view. The place smelled like a tearoom. I don't know what it is - I guess some kind of fruit tea that permeates every tearoom. It's what I'd imagined fairyland would smell like.

The staff were really accommodating and friendly. I ordered the spring prix fixe, and the soup of the day was tomato. For some reason I thought it would be like the canned variety, which is more like tomato sauce than tomato juice. Sadly, this stuff tasted just like a tomato, which everyone knows is my sworn enemy. Seriously, if I were a superhero, tomatoes would be my Kryptonite. I put the face of death on after just one taste, and the waiter noticed from afar. He offered to bring another soup, a celery root one. Wow. This was more like it. Such a comforting soup, although a bit dangerous for my shaky stomach.

Next came the "main course", which was actually tapas style chicken. It was really good, but not big enough for me (the prix fixe was $33, and I'm not much of a believer in spending tons of money on food unless it's a massive amount of food. Too much dining in Astoria, I guess.) The tea I ordered was an herbal Moroccan Mint. Very nice, very soothing. It was served in a teabag, but a big one of quality. I do prefer a teapot, though.

Daphne had duck, which was delicious from what I hear (I don't eat duck. It's not one of those self-righteous things, but ducks are my favorite birds and I've heard it's greasy anyway.) The chef actually gave her some kind of macaroni cheese with truffle sauce, with his compliments. Gotta love nice chefs.

Finally, for dessert I had a ginger lemongrass citrusy creme brulee. This basically sealed the deal for me. I've always been a fan of creme brulee, and creative ones really rock my world. It wasn't overwhelming, either: the ginger was subtle, just as I like it.

Okay, so 4/5 for me. I think I'd like to try lunch there, as I prefer tea places in the afternoon. Brunch wouldn't be a bad idea either. It's not a tearoom in the traditional scone way - but if they all were, I wouldn't need to see them all, now would I?