“Hey There, Habib-Tea.” Tania’s Teahouse
The owners of a cute new cafe in Dubai are capitalising on everyone’s love of social media by opening the Emirate’s most instagrammable cafe. The two-story Tania’s Teahouse located on Jumeirah Beach Road is decorated in pastel pink, has covetable marble tables with rose gold wire chairs and matching accessories, framed quotes on the walls and serves mermaid toast.
But it’s not all about being the latest hype though, this family-owned business is the brainchild of Tania Lodi, a tea enthusiast who wanted to share her love of all things tea. Beside the twee pink colour scheme and the puns aplenty, the heart of the business is essentially a tea house for tea lovers. The wide range of teas includes black, green and herbal varieties as well as fruit based and speciality flavoured teas that are blended on site. Don’t be put off if tea isn’t your bag (pun intended) as they serve coffee from local roastery Gold Box, matcha lattes and plenty of cold drinks too including iced teas and fresh juices.
The menu, like the art and the t-shirts available to purchase, is ‘punny’ focusing mainly of teas and beverages. There’s a selection of sweet and savoury light bites too, all-day brekkie, super bowl salads such as Quinoa Get A ‘What Wha’ and Lets Taco ‘Bout It, three different Bougie tea sandwiches and tummy-pleasers such as Energy Bites. Despite all the fun the dishes are good and beautifully presented, we tried the pretty Chia Later Pudding, a chia seed pudding with coconut milk, fresh fruit topped with edible flowers and the Mermaid Toast both from the all-day breakfast menu. To clarify ordering rainbow coloured cream cheese on brioche toast decorated with a fruit made animal face is totally acceptable for an adult not just a six year old girl.
In a playful nod to the expats who reside in the neighbourhood there’s the Jumeirah Janes/James afternoon tea, a three tier tea platter with bite-sized sandwiches, assorted pastries and desserts served with tea and coffee. Match your designer logos to your coffee with the baristas replicating up your favourite brand logos like Chanel and Gucci on your latte, just request your favourite and match to your handbag for that gram photo. Try a ‘Don’t chai this at home latte’, a spanish latte or the ‘Market Medley’ a healthy iced drink filled with fruit and vegetables. There’s an array of flavours of the Cake-in-a-Teacup such as Apple Crumble, Banoffee, What The Fudge and Birthday Cake or perhaps sample a childhood favourite like Cake Batter Krispies from the Treat Yourself section.
When I say there’s a lot of pink, I mean there’s a LOT of pink. The counter tops, the cups, the menus, the walls and even part of the exterior and entrance are painted a shade of candy pink. There’s certainly no way of missing it as you grapple with the busy traffic on this stretch of road and unlike some of the converted villas along this stretch there’s plenty of parking out the back and a free valet service. Cute art and accessories lined the walls punctuated by greenery in all shapes and sizes, a rose gold spiral staircase with its gallery wall leads to more seating upstairs. There’s a selection of tea-themed accessories in the café’s retail area so you can take home a pink ‘Hey Habib-Tea’ emblazoned t-shirt, tote bag, notebook, mug or flask.
Alongside all its instagrammable features, Lodi has designed the venue as a community hub with areas like the top floor, ideal for local pop-ups, celebrations like baby showers and birthdays, craft events and yoga and mindfulness sessions. Customers are encouraged to use the space for ‘creativi-tea’, it’s a great place for digital nomads to work but equally a perfect spot to spend time with family and friends and if you want time off your screens, books and games are provided upstairs too.
If you are in Jumeirah pop in for a cuppa and a pink fix, it’s certainly an upbeat place and the staff are super nice and welcoming. It’s worth the drive down the E11 to our neighboring Emirate, I will definitely be back next time I’m in Dubai probably with my pink loving teenager in tow.
Tania’s Teahouse
Location: Villa 779a, Jumeirah Beach Road, Dubai
Telephone: 04 324 0021
E-mail: helo@taniasteahouse.com
Website: taniasteahouse.com
All the views are all my own. Unless otherwise stated, all photos on this page © Jo Brett 2018. All rights reserved. Additional photos used with courtesy of Tania’s Teahouse Instagram