The New Leaf Tea Room & Gift Shoppe — Restaurant in Riverton

I came here recently for a bridal shower that I helped put together. The food and tea were amazing and it's just about the cutest little tea room you can find. However, the service was just so unpleasant that I was taken back. I never ever write reviews, but I just could not believe how our party was treated. Our group consisted of 15-20 people (very small) and we only used half of the main room. We had a few light decorations such as picture frames to set on the table and some stuff for a mimosa bar. We felt as if our hostess was peering over our shoulders constantly as we set up telling us what we could or could not do. We were respectful of their rules and obliged politely. Once we were done set up, we set our extra boxes and bags (which were only a few) off in the corner of the other side of the room where they were hidden and completely out of the way. Our hostess told us to remove them and take them out to our car. I have never heard of a place making you bring all of your bags back out to your vehicle as your event is about to begin. She had kept mentioning this but never explained why. When I asked her, she had told us that it was a liability to have them laying in the corner because someone could trip. But then she moved them onto the floor within the narrow walkway to the bathroom where they were plain in sight. I did not really understand this reasoning and why it was such a fuss to move them from the hidden and undisturbed corner into plain sight where people are walking. They made us feel as if we were an inconvenience the entire time. Sometimes they would begin to help out, which was nice but we just did not get a very pleasant vibe. Also, we had a reservation from 12-3. At 2pm the staff were cleaning up the tables and taking our guests drinks and food away. I had one guest come up and ask me why her drink that she just refilled got taken away. Our guests had felt rushed out due to the staff cleaning up as if it were the last 15 minutes of the event. Once we did decide to clean up, we had plenty of mimosa left over in their glass container dispenser and our wine bottles were open but barely touched. When we had asked for the juice containers and corks to clean up the drinks and save what wasn't used, they had responded unapologetically, "Oh we threw them out, besides corks don't get reused". She said this in a dismissive tone and walked away. We did not feel they took the time to hear our concerns and work with us until I finally spoke up and showed that I was not happy with their actions. Once I did, they had a much more respectful attitude and offered solutions to help us bring home the rest of our drinks without wasting them. For such a small and simple party we were made to feel as if we were annoying them. I try to give people the benefit of the doubt thinking maybe they are just having a bad day, however my mother-in-law and I had attended the tea room earlier this year to be sure we liked it and were treated with the same disrespect. It is truly a shame because their food is excellent and the building is filled with so much charm, which ultimately sold us on having the bridal shower there. I am happy to see that some people have had the pleasure of rating this business 5 stars and enjoying their experience. I wish I could do the same. Hoping this business can improve their...

We scheduled a group event here. It's a cute place and nice vintage ambience. We called a month in advance to reserve a place and were told we were calling "very late" and they were "very busy." When we arrived there was only 1 other group in the whole place, and we had one whole room to ourselves. The hostess, for lack of a better word, had a very condescending attitude towards us the entire time we were there. The other staff were pleasant and friendly. For $25 a person we got tea, tea sandwiches, and little desserts. I'm not really sure it was worth $25/person. Maybe $15-20 tops. We unfortunately had a few people cancel at the last minute. They told us we would likely have to pay for them anyway since the food is prepared in advance. Okay fine- we didn't make a fuss. So be aware of this if you are planning a group outing with people you anticipate will flake out. When it came to the bill, the hostess, again I'm using the word hostess loosely, couldn't handle cash and more than 1 credit card. But instead of just asking us if could we limit it to cash and 1 card, she proceeded to complain about how the cost, gratuity, and tax all has to be entered separately into the credit card machine. It took upwards of 15 minutes to get this all resolved. They could have avoided all this by just recommending large parties bring cash. So if you truly intend on going after all this, just tell everyone...

I reserved a table for 9 for a birthday party for my sister. When I called to place my reservation I was told I was not allowed to bring gifts into the restaurant because there will be no room or time for gift giving. I was taken back by this never have I ever been told this by any other restaurant when planning parties. We got to the tea house only to find they set us up with a table for 5 and another small table in the corner for 4. I could not understand why they could not put the tables together for a party of 9. There was plenty of room the restaurant was just us and 3 other people. Made no sense whatsoever. The cost of the meal was $6 more then what was posted on the website which was what I was basing the cost of the party on. The sandwiches were made from what would appear a loaf of store bought Walmart brand bread dry and tasteless. You could hardly tell what you were eating because the food between the stale bread was so thinly spread you couldn’t see nor taste what it actually was. For $38 a person I think they could have at least put a tablespoon of ingredients in the sandwiches. The room was hot the plates on the tables were sticky. Tea was ok but honestly I tasted better. The staff all looked like they were being held as prisoners. They did not make you feel welcome to be there, it was more like here’s your food now eat and leave. Never again...