I've just been working on stuff for my etsy shop. that's been kinda my full time job right now. i've been nervous to go out there and start a yoga job because i don't know if we are staying or going ever. but at the same time i'm starting to freak out that i haven't been teaching. i just feel frozen.
but i have lots of great ideas for craft/art projects for my business and so on. i love creating. i've totally become a loose leaf tea snob now. i can actually tell the difference in the taste of tea when it's loose leaf vs a bag.
my awesome husband just finished my official etsy store logo. i totally am in love with it and my business cards are on their way!! :)
Monday, March 15, 2010
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Tea House Review
Beehive Tea Room:
I love the atmosphere and music. It's a kind of classy kitch with old english style decor and 40's music. The tea is amazing with some of my absolute favorites across the board. You can have a cup or tea and a snack or you can make a reservation for an afternoon tea service. The afternoon tea service is wonderful. I love the scones. I believe the have the best sandwiches. The dessert is also exquisite! Overall, the Beehive is my favorite place to go for tea and goodies, but it is a little more pricy. You have to pay extra for this tiny jar of devonshire cream for scones, which to me is a must. Compared to the Grand Hotel Tea service they are pretty much the same price, but at the Grand you get unlimited cream for your scones and lemon curd. Not sure why Beehive doesn't just make their own cream. For me, that is their only down side at this time. I think the staff is general friendly, and very good at giving you time but not forgetting about you :)One other down side is that when offering a resteeping it is just more hot water, so the tea is not the same. I compare this to the Tea Grotto where when asked if I wanted a free resteeping, I replied that more hot water would be great, the waitress was appalled and said you need to have fresh tea or it will ruin the tea.
I give the Beehive 4 out of 5.
The Grand Hotel Tea Service:
Very fancy and beautiful hotel. Great for a special occasion. The food was all very good. The waitress was very good at bring us more of anything we needed at no extra charge. For a very special occasion you can upgrade to have champagne with your service. I have only tried one of their teas, it was very good, but i don't think they have as big a selection as other tea places. The food was very good, but i still like Beehive better, despite the clotted cream issue :)
I give The Grand is 3 out of 5.
Tea Grotto:
Tea Grotto is a very different tea place compared to those previously discussed. It is more of a yogi/asian experience. It's a very relaxing environment with plenty of yummy teas to choose from. The service is great with very friendly staff. There is no tea service like an afternoon tea though. They have some muffins and things but not your traditional scones and sandwiches. The food they do have is very good and good for you. Great tea selection and they offer that free resteeping with fresh tea leaves as i mentioned before. They are accompanied by someone who sells gelato and crepes, which i also highly recommend. When i ordered the crepes with a friend they were short so my friend got a muffin instead. We had stayed so long however, that the cook had made more crepes during the time we sat and chatted, so she brought over a crepe on the house because she felt so awful that they were short when we wanted to order. Very very good! Even though the Grotto and the Beehive are quite different places their teas and service are really great. I recommend the Tea Grotto for a more informal gathering of friends, like say instead of going to Starbucks ;)
I give the Tea Grotto a 4 out of 5 as well.
I love the atmosphere and music. It's a kind of classy kitch with old english style decor and 40's music. The tea is amazing with some of my absolute favorites across the board. You can have a cup or tea and a snack or you can make a reservation for an afternoon tea service. The afternoon tea service is wonderful. I love the scones. I believe the have the best sandwiches. The dessert is also exquisite! Overall, the Beehive is my favorite place to go for tea and goodies, but it is a little more pricy. You have to pay extra for this tiny jar of devonshire cream for scones, which to me is a must. Compared to the Grand Hotel Tea service they are pretty much the same price, but at the Grand you get unlimited cream for your scones and lemon curd. Not sure why Beehive doesn't just make their own cream. For me, that is their only down side at this time. I think the staff is general friendly, and very good at giving you time but not forgetting about you :)One other down side is that when offering a resteeping it is just more hot water, so the tea is not the same. I compare this to the Tea Grotto where when asked if I wanted a free resteeping, I replied that more hot water would be great, the waitress was appalled and said you need to have fresh tea or it will ruin the tea.
I give the Beehive 4 out of 5.
The Grand Hotel Tea Service:
Very fancy and beautiful hotel. Great for a special occasion. The food was all very good. The waitress was very good at bring us more of anything we needed at no extra charge. For a very special occasion you can upgrade to have champagne with your service. I have only tried one of their teas, it was very good, but i don't think they have as big a selection as other tea places. The food was very good, but i still like Beehive better, despite the clotted cream issue :)
I give The Grand is 3 out of 5.
Tea Grotto:
Tea Grotto is a very different tea place compared to those previously discussed. It is more of a yogi/asian experience. It's a very relaxing environment with plenty of yummy teas to choose from. The service is great with very friendly staff. There is no tea service like an afternoon tea though. They have some muffins and things but not your traditional scones and sandwiches. The food they do have is very good and good for you. Great tea selection and they offer that free resteeping with fresh tea leaves as i mentioned before. They are accompanied by someone who sells gelato and crepes, which i also highly recommend. When i ordered the crepes with a friend they were short so my friend got a muffin instead. We had stayed so long however, that the cook had made more crepes during the time we sat and chatted, so she brought over a crepe on the house because she felt so awful that they were short when we wanted to order. Very very good! Even though the Grotto and the Beehive are quite different places their teas and service are really great. I recommend the Tea Grotto for a more informal gathering of friends, like say instead of going to Starbucks ;)
I give the Tea Grotto a 4 out of 5 as well.
trip home to chicago
the first part of my trip i was at my dad's. we went to some of my favorite restaurants in the south burbs like pancake house and aurelios pizza. we also watched alot of the olympics which was cool. i met with my friend juli for coffee. then when i got back up to my mom's i went to work at my job for the day. that is always awesome. i miss them so much! my mom and i went to my most favorite restaurant. i hung out with my friend brandi at the mall of course, but dr. todd did not drive us :( hehe
i had tea with our family friend bill and my aunt pat, lunch with carrie, and got to see more family friends carolyn and gary. i also went to my old yoga class and got to catch up with my yoga instructor which was so nice and got good feedback from her! got my hair done by my friend mindy as well. and went to see my uncle and have dinner with him. we joked about grandpa watching the olympics just like old times. then i went downtown to see my brother and whitney. whitney switch her work schedule to spend more time with me. i thought that was so sweet, that and she got me a couple hello kitty necklaces that i totally love! we went to the disney store and some other shops and to dinner. then jeffrey and i walked through millennium park and to the art institute to see the new modern wing. and then of course i had to say hi to my favorite painting by rogier van der weyden(it's the only painting we have of his). on our way out of the museum we saw puppetbike.com with cute little kitten puppets that posed for a picture. i love puppets!! my last day i got to have coffee with my dad after work just like old times. i hate leaving my dad. i miss him the most i think. then i had dinner with my parents at our old restaurant with our favorite bar tender dave :) classic! my mom and i also got to stop and see my uncle tom who had a lay over at o'hare for a bit. it was good to see that everyone i love back home is doing well.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)