Valley Brook Tea — Restaurant in Washington

I visited DC from out of town and when I go somewhere new, I always enjoy seeing if there's any true tea places (and usually end up buying some leaves ^^). Valley Brook Tea is a true Chinese tea shop and I really enjoyed my brief time here! You can tell from all the pictures that they serve authentic, traditional Chinese tea. Talking to the owner, they said that all their tea and teaware comes from their own tea farms in Fujian, China.

I was a bit skeptical about the pour over technique, so I asked them why they use that instead of gaiwans or something similar. They mentioned that this method is easier for others to use, even though if they (the owners) brewed in gaiwans themselves, the tea would be better. I ordered a Da Hong Pao to go (a dark, earthy oolong tea -- one of my favorites) and did feel like the tea was a bit light, probably from the pour over technique. I wish I got to try the sit down experience that I see in other pictures, but I didn't ask about that.

I ended up buying 2 teacups and the oolong sampler. Each of their samplers (Green, oolong, black, white, all IIRC) has one sample pack of each of the teas that they sell. I was also tempted to get a teapet since those are also cute. I brewed the da hong pao at home myself in a gaiwan and it is indeed strong! Can't wait to try the rest :)

5/5...

I’ve been meaning to stop by this lovely independent tea shop for a while now, and it was well-worth taking a trip to Dupont! The oolong they serve is grown on the family plantation and shipped directly over from southeast China, so it’s wonderfully fresh and flavorful.

When you order tea, they brew it for you and pour it so that you don’t have a tea bag giving your brew an uneven, bitter taste. Expect to wait a bit for them to finish (it’s worth it!). I tried their Huang Guan Yin, and it was wonderfully fragrant and smooth…like a more jasmine-y Tie Guan Yin. My sister (not a huge tea fan) tried on of their chilled fruit teas and wound up loving it. The (admittedly pretty small) interior was pretty full, so we enjoyed our tea on one of the three outdoor balcony tables.

We also happened to stop by just as they were taking down their Sunday morning tea service; I’m definitely going to keep an eye on their instagram and try to catch...

Went there this summer and did not have a welcoming experience. The young female employee was very judgmental and condescending. She is Chinese and I am Chinese as well. I asked if they had milk tea options and she said “no, we only serve AUTHENTIC Chinese tea.” with a despiteful eye, as if my question offended their prestigious tea place. I chose from a few iced tea options. (Why serving iced tea if you only serve the authentic Chinese tea?) Because I wasn’t familiar with their iced tea, my tea was bitter and I asked if I could add cream or sugar to it. Authentic Chinese tea is never iced. Again, she repeated with despise “we don’t have cream because we only serve AUTHENTIC Chinese tea”, then she reluctantly took my cup and another employee added a syrup for me. I don’t know if she only does this to Chinese customers or if she looks down on American customers asking for options as well. I will not go back for their “prestige...