Local tearooms
Central Perc European Café, 2315 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood; (937) 299-5282
D's Victorian Teas, 1894 Shore Drive, Bellbrook; (937) 848-8412
Edith Mae's Tea Room and Gift Shop, 235 E. Second St., Xenia; (937) 376-8000
The Golden Leaf, 126 E. Main St., Tipp City; (937) 667-4653
Offerings Tea Room, 215 Main St., Hamilton; (513) 737-0216
Pinkie's Up Tea House and Patisserie, 1012 Lincoln Ave., Troy; (937) 684-1635
Strawberries and Daydreams, 12 N. Main St., Miamisburg; (937) 272-5066
The Tea Parlor, 5605 Yankee Road, Liberty Twp.; (513) 777-3949
Teaberries, 1600 E. Leffel Lane, Springfield; (937) 325-3030
Twin Creek Tea Room and Ivy Parlor Gift Shop, 19 E. Dayton St., West Alexandria; (937) 839-5094
Unique Celebrations Gift Shop and Tea Room, 33 W. Franklin St., Centerville; (937) 434-7467
With a new season of “Downton Abbey” on television this month, many fans’ thoughts have turned to all things British, including tea.
There’s no shortage of places to get your spot of tea. Our search turned up nearly a dozen tearooms in the region.
D’s Victorian Teas in Bellbrook doubles as owner Darlene Fricke’s home. Customers are often surprised to hear that the copious antiques and china knickknacks are not for sale. But her decorative items are mementoes of the 10 years she lived in Europe.
They’re also the reason she doesn’t do children’s birthday parties. She’ll take a mother and daughter for tea, or, as her brochure specifies, “well-behaved children ages 7 and up,” but because the china and decorative items provide “most of the intrigue” at her tearoom, she needs to guard them carefully.
Like many local tearoom owners, Fricke makes all the food she serves, using a standard menu that changes quarterly.
Similarly, Kathy and Samantha Jablinski, owners of Unique Celebrations Gift Shop and Tea Room in Centerville, make all their food, including their signature turkey and Havarti sandwiches on cranberry nut bread, plus cucumber canapes, cranberry-orange scones with homemade lemon curd and clotted cream, tomato bisque and butternut squash soups, cheesecakes, napoleons and more. Because they get repeat guests, they try to change the menu frequently.
Wedding and baby showers make up a majority of the groups they serve. They’re considering a series of quarterly “theme teas” for occasions like Mother’s Day.
Unique Celebrations also sells some of its teas and jams through the gift shop side of the business.
Similarly, The Golden Leaf in Tipp City doubles as a gift shop. The tearoom serves walk-in customers at lunchtime as well as groups for traditional high tea by reservation.
The shop’s claim to fame, according to owner Jayne Lewis, is “probably the largest selection of teas in the Dayton area” – more than 200 types of loose and bagged teas.
But you need not visit a tearoom in order to have a British-style tea. We’ve provided a couple recipes below.
Contact this writer at rebeccasodergren@hotmail.com.
CLASSIC CUCUMBER SANDWICHES
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
24 slices white bread
12 sprigs dill, for garnish
Blend cream cheese and mayonnaise in a blender until smooth, being careful to scrape down sides and blend thoroughly.
Combine cream cheese mixture with chopped cucumber, garlic salt, white pepper, and chopped dill. Spread mixture on top of 12 white bread slices, and garnish with dill sprigs. Cover with other bread slices to form sandwiches. Cut and discard crusts from bread, then cut sandwiches into quarters.
SOURCE: “The Unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook” by Emily Ansara Baines (Adams Media, 2012)
WHOLE-WHEAT RASPBERRY RICOTTA SCONES
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
¼ cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled
1 cup fresh raspberries
¾ cup whole-milk ricotta
1/3 cup heavy cream
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
In the bottom of a large, wide bowl, whisk flours, baking powder, sugar and salt together.
Add butter and use pastry blender to cut butter into the flour mixture until the biggest pieces are the size of small peas. Toss in the raspberries and use pastry blender again to break then into half- and quarter-berry-size chunks.
Using a flexible spatula, add the ricotta and heavy cream to the butter mixture and stir them in to form dough. Then use your hands to knead the dough gently into an even mass, right in the bottom of the bowl. Don’t fret if the raspberries get muddled and smudge up the dough. This is a pretty thing.
With as few movements as possible, transfer the dough to a well-floured counter or surface, flour the top of the dough, and pat it into a 7-inch square about 1 inch high. With a large knife, divide dough into nine even squares. Transfer scones to the prepared baking sheet with a spatula. Bake scones for about 15 minutes, until they are lightly golden at the edges. Cool them on the pan for a minute, then transfer to a cooling rack. Cool partially before eating.
SOURCE: “The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook” by Deb Perelman (Alfred A. Knopf, 2012)
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