E's Garden Teahouse — Restaurant in Charlotte Amalie

This is such a charming tea place, for those of you that want to change it up from drinking while chilling at the beach bar scene that is St. Thomas.

The hubby and I stumbled upon this while trying to escape a downpour. The building isn't marked, with the exception of a few tiny signs out front, indicating parking spots for the restaurant (There are only 6 parking spots, find parking on Government Hill if they are full) so it's easily missed. It's right across the street of Ideal Restaurant, and we've seen this building before, but never gave it a second thought.

For those of you that have no qualms with the time of day you have an adult beverage you can enter through the door on the left side. Upon entering, you'll find a a full bar. For those that have to ask "is it too early for a drink yet?" it might be, so go in through the right door, which is a tea bar. Both bars share the same space and are run by E's daughter simultaneously.

While you have a drink or cup of tea, you can peruse through an oil canvas art gallery which takes up the center of this space and back wall. For the most part the ambiance made us want to do yoga. You can choose from a few seating areas that are rustic Zen living room spaces, have a seat at a four top or at the tea bar. The place closes on Saturday at 2pm and we came in at 1:45pm, normally restaurants are already closing down but we were warmly greeted and encouraged to take our time and relax. We even placed a food order off their lunch menu after 2pm and were still accommodated.

I'm happy to report that E's does not participate in the crazy price gouging that a lot of restaurants and bars do with tourists here. A glass pot of tea is only $5, and you can get 3-4 cups out of it. What really put this experience over the top is that you are served tea with bone china, which was totally unexpected with the look of the place. Ok, so, bone china has been a huge topic for my family this year in whether or not it makes things taste better. It gives tea, more body and flavor because of the calcium in the china. The two teas we tried were the Passion Fruit Ginger White Tea (for those that like a sweeter tea) and Coconut Chai Masala (strong Indian tea). Both were excellent!

The rain kept on going to so we decided to get a quick bite and settled on the Chicken wrap ($9). It is large, delicious, fresh, loaded with veggies and a Caribbean chutney.

5 stars for this place because you just feel so healthy coming out of here, customer service is warm and welcoming, and you don't feel ripped off by high prices. What more can a tourist ask for? Well possibly winning the lottery while on vacation.....yup E's sells PowerBall and MegaMillions lottery tickets!

So for those of you that are hanging after a night out of drinking or want to change it up from the bar scene, go to E's...

A MUST DO! NO KIDDING AROUND HERE. AS YOU KNOW YOU CANNOT ENJOY ANYTHING DEAD. SO ONE MUST TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF.

YOUR CELLS ARE A LARGE PART OF THE FOUNDATIONAL BUILDING BLOCKS OF GOOD HEALTH. IN ORDER TO STAY HEALTHY OR BE HEALTHIER, TEAS ARE AN EXCELLENT WAY JUST LIKE JUICING OR EATING A VARIETY IF GREENS AND FRUITS AND OF COURSE NUTS.

TEAS ONCE PREPARED PROPERLY BY STEEPING FOR 2 MINUTES AND CONSUMED IN LESS THAN 2-3 MINUTES WILL DO THE MIRACLE OF ALLOWING THE BODY VITAL CHEMICALS THAT WILL WORK ON CELLS IN THE HUMAN BODY.

THEY ARE VERY CALM COOL AND COLLECTED LADIES IN THERE THAT CAN EXPOUND UPON THE SUBJECT OF HOW HEALTHY TEAS ARE AND WHAT YOUR DOCTOR IS NOT TELLING ENOUGH OF YOU TO DO.

ONCE YOU HAVE FLOWN FROM THE SUBURBS, AND CONCRETE JUNGLES TO THE CARIBBEAN, THIS IS THE KIND OF ENVIRONMENT THAT YOU WANT TO BE IN. IT WAS THOUGHTFULLY DONE WITH TOURISTS IN MIND. WE LOVE TOURISTS!

WE TELL YOU THIS! YOU MUST SEE IT TO UNDERSTAND. IT IS QUIET AND IT IS A LARGE SPACE IN WHAT WAS THE STRAW FACTORY MANY YEARS AGO BACK IN 1983 - 1986,7? YES. A BIG SPACE ALL 20 SOMETHING OR 40 SOMETHING OF YOU CAN COME AND THEN SOME.

THERE IS: A BAR FASHION TEAS FOR *CANCER AND MAHOGANY FURNITURE

WE ARE NOT DOCTORS BUT WE HAVE COMMON SENSE TO READ WHAT THE DOCTORS WROTE ABOUT...

We watched as this building was lovingly renovated over several months. We love teas, and many casual eateries that are in town don't serve a variety unsweetened teas. We were thrilled to see on opening on St Thomas, because I've enjoyed the ones I've tried in the States.

The Virgin Islands have a long love affair with teas - not only for refreshment, but for medicinal uses. E's Garden celebrates that cultural history, but encourages guests to seek medical advice from healthcare professionals.

The ambience is so colorful and calming. Tea pots and accessories grace the spacious dining area, and local artists display and sell their works. Various performances and meetings are also held there.

The teas are solo tasty and refreshing! You can enjoy any of the many teas hot or iced. Some of the teas are from local VI and PR farms.

Make sure you try the tropical pound cakes! Best cakes I've had...