Distinction award

It is now customary for me to drink coffee rather than tea in cafes. It is not just that my palate has finally learnt to savour the bitterness of coffee, but the sheer disgust I have in paying the same amount for what is often a Twinnings tea bag in a cup (the sheer gall of it!). Aside from the tea cafes, there are, however, a few cafes that exceed expectation. One of these is Maggie Scott café on the Upper Reaches of Dominion Road (near Burgerfuel).

I sent myself there today, away from my usual writing haunt, upon espying a new tea brand, Tea Drop, which had a blend I hadn’t encountered: Lavender Grey tea. So I ordered, sat down and set up. My tea came over in a tea set but with the best arrangement I’d seen in a standard cafe: a tea cup and saucer; a 2 cup tea pot of hot water; and a tiny square saucer upon which a tagged silk tea bag sat. The latter is the distinguishing point: a tea aficionado rarely wants their tea to overbrew, and a little saucer is what is often desired for the spent bag or tea-leaf cradle.

It wasn’t perfect though: the Lavender Grey was pleasant, but not outstanding; they had a radio playing in the background; the china was unadventurous. But in terms of surpassing all other cafes on a single point, it does achieve a distinction.