FEATURE

By Charlotte Smith | Photos by David Pinchot

The sitting room at Uniquely Yours on Millers Run Road.

The holiday season is upon us. Decorating – shopping – list making – baking – more shopping! The days are shorter, yet the lists of things to do keep getting longer.

Before one more day escapes, take some time out for yourself and friends and have a nice relaxing cup of tea.

You remember the pretend tea parties of your youth, particularly if you’re a female...dainty foods, calming music, relaxing atmosphere, dressing up.

Today’s tea parties are that and more. We are fortunate to live in an area where several tea houses are located.

The popular British custom of drinking tea in the afternoon was probably started around 1840 by Anna, seventh Duchess of Bedford. It was customary to have a large breakfast, light lunch and a late dinner. To tide her over between meals, the Duchess began serving tea and light refreshments between 4-5 p.m. The fashionable women who were often invited to join her helped the Duchess’s habit become a national custom.

Uniquely Yours Tea Room is in Cecil. The two-story building includes a second floor gift shop, filled with nostalgic hats and clothes, pictures, china, handmade soaps and floral designs, candles, handbags, stuffed bears, jewelry, small antiques, gifts, and home decor. Loose gourmet teas are available for purchase as well. The creation of gift baskets and a Tea of the Month Club are additional services.

Owner Harriet McCray carries more than 40 flavors of teas. A light tea consists of two sandwiches, scone and tea bread, fruit garnish and a pot of tea. An afternoon tea adds soup or salad, assorted pastries and desserts, and an additional pot of tea. She also has hosted book signings and used her Victorian-style tearoom for garden and historical society meetings.

Sisters SpecialTeas Café in Robinson Township, opened in November 2005, is in a strip mall setting and doesn’t match the Victorian-style image most people have when they think of a tea room. Judging by the recent Chocolate Tea held in early October, the food and company are just as important as the ambiance. On the menu were mushroom pastries, turkey mole finger sandwiches, caramelized pears and Brie, puffed pastries with shrimp and chicken salad, Mississippi Mud cake, chocolate chip scones, chocolate cheesecake, Bavarian chocolate pudding, and an assortment of complementing teas.

Owned by sisters Sue Login and Sharon Porta, the store offers specialty teas, pastries, breakfast and lunch, gift baskets and private tea parties. “We wanted to have a welcoming tea shop, just like walking into grandma’s kitchen,” said Login. Chef Josh Baranauskas, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, creates dishes just like grandma used to, but with flair. He will be demonstrating this flair during the holiday season with his new cooking classes at the Changing Seasons Learning Center in Peters Township.

The newly opened Crowne Plaza Pittsburgh South in Bethel Park (the former Holiday Inn across from the South Hills Village) hosts high tea every day from 2:30-5:30 p.m. Enjoy assorted tea sandwiches, scones, flavored butters and jams, pastries, seasonal berries and desserts in a contemporary setting of the main dining room or ask to bring the trays out to the cozy lobby to relax by the fireplace. The hotel promises holiday delights and decor to match.

American country-style tea is offered at the Garden Party Tea Room located within the Malone Floral Shop in Canonsburg. It’s ideal for card parties, showers, and Red Hat meetings; a recent little girls’ tea party featured petite finger sandwiches, chocolate mousse and a swan cream puff. The floral shop and tea room will be decorated appropriately for the holidays.

Fifteen different types of hot tea are offered at the tea parties held monthly at Trax Farm in Finleyville. Besides tea sandwiches, breads, scones, mini desserts and fruit, the upcoming holiday teas will also offer a Christmas basket raffle at each seating.

A special Victorian Tea for the holidays is being held at the Sweetwater Arts Center in Sewickley on Tuesday, November 28 and Thursday, November 30. Scheduled during the center’s Holiday Mart, an afternoon of delectable pastries, fruit and other light bites will revitalize the busiest shopper.

Tea time is always a pleasant break, a time to socialize and relax and escape from outside pressures. Afternoon tea is perfect for the holidays, or any time of the year for bridge clubs, birthdays, retirement parties, book clubs, or bridal and baby showers. No matter what you’re celebrating, you’ll have memories that last a lifetime. •