Yoshan Tea — Restaurant in Arcadia

I have been purchasing teas from Yoshantea for over 5 years now. If you are a lover of fresh brewed teas, experiencing Yoshantea will elevate your tea palate beyond measure. You don't have to spend $2000 to travel to Taiwan to experience some of the best teas in the world.

I first discovered Yoshantea during a trip to Taiwan. Touted as the best Oolong tea that Taiwan offers, I ventured and purchased their famous "Mild Dong Ding Oolong" at a Taoyuan Airport Duty Free Shop. When I returned to the US, I brewed the tea Gongfu style and discovered the best Oolong tea I have tasted in my life so far. The tea had a depth of fragrance, flavor, freshness, and a smoothness that I had not experienced before. I was disappointed I didn't buy more when I was in Taiwan so I was flabbergasted and stoked to find out Yoshantea had just opened a branch in Arcadia, their very first store in the United States.

There are a few things that you can do at Yoshantea Tea House. You can shop for and try their premium teas, buy tea to go ($4-5 a cup hot or chilled), or dine-in (about $7-8 per person). If you opt for the dine-in option, they will brew tea and serve it to you using the Gongfu method or you can also learn how to brew it yourself. The tea is served with some snacks. The only caveat is that you can't share one set of tea with two people, so each person needs to order their own tea. This is still pretty affordable compared to the tea shops of this kind I visited in Taiwan and you also get to learn how to brew tea Gongfu style so I highly recommend it. They also have classes for tea tasting and tea roasting that will increase your knowledge about tea.

The tea shop itself is immaculately clean and beautifully designed, almost museum-like. You can browse their teas, smell the tea leaves in display jars, and even ask to sample a tea that you are thinking about buying. Their teas are a bit more expensive compared to the typical grocery store brands (ranging from $30 upwards to $300 for 150 grams) but you only need a few grams to brew a personal pot of tea. The price is justified by the quality of their tea leaves and this is reflected by the fact that you can rebrew those same leaves at least 7 times. If the prices of the tea cans are prohibitive, you can still experience their teas from their to-go or dine in menus.

A quick and dirty guide if you don't know where to begin: they are famous for their Dong Ding Oolong so you can choose between the fresh, mild, or roasted versions of that tea to start your journey. I recommend you try their "Fresh" editions of tea if you like more floral/fruity flavors in your tea, their "Roasted" editions if you want deeper and bodied flavors, or their "Mild" editions if you want something in the middle. My personal favorites in each category are Fresh Lishan Tea, Roasted Dong Ding Oolong Tea, and Mild Dong Ding Oolong Tea. They also have teas with unique fragrances such as their Oriental Beauty Tea or their Osmanthus Oolong.

The staff members are kind, accommodating and have an excellent understanding of tea and the Gongfu method of brewing. I appreciate their honesty and their willingness to help customers like myself find something that suits our palate. I unreservedly recommend that you visit this beautiful teashop to try some of the finest teas that human beings have grown and produced on this...

I absolutely loved my experience at this place. I brought my mother here for a tea tasting for her birthday and Betty was extremely knowledgable and passionate about all the different types of tea that was included in the tasting. She explained the difference between all the tea for us in full detail so we would understand and was very patient to answer any of our questions.

The tea itself was AMAZING—unlike any tea that dimsum places serve. I never knew hot tea could taste this good while leaving me feeling healthy and rejuvenated; the quality of the tea leaves was just incomparable! My mom and I ended up purchasing 3 of the different tea leaves from here to enjoy at home and they included thorough instructions on water...

I'm so glad that I found this one of a kind tea shop! I did not order the tea tasting , however I ordered tea for myself and a friend from a menu that detailed the differences between each tea and we each got our own set up. The employees were very through and helpful in explaining to us the proper way to savor the tea. Overall it was a very relaxing, almost meditative way to enjoy drinking tea. This is a Taiwanese tea shop with a very tranquil environment, this is not a Boba tea spot for trendy colorful drinks or fried chicken but instead a place to relax and enjoy an authentic...