Kenya: Tea Rooms Make a Grand Comeback
[2008-4-25]
Tag: Tea Product
In colonial days, tea rooms were set up to serve the beverage to travellers. But just when we thought everyone was acquiring a taste for coffee, and that tea rooms were relics from the past, a fancy outlet has emerged in Nairobi to serve tea and tea products.
It is all part of an effort by the Tea Board of Kenya (TBK) to promote tea-drinking-from the current 0.48 kilogrammes a person to about one kilogramme in the next two years. Local tea packers and exporters and the board launched the incentive to lure customers because global tea production is growing faster than demand.
The TBK idea has been taken forward by a tea exporter who has partnered with Blanco's Holdings, a restaurant consultant and management company, to open the first tea house in the city-Tea Spot.
Located at Chai House, along Koinange Street, the tea house is the last word in interior decor. The outside is equally attractive. "The Tea Spot is about educating the public who are not exposed to various teas that are available in Kenya," says Liza Uku, the operations director of Blanco's.
This two-year old company tried a concept that had never been tested before. It was something new in a market that is dominated by coffee houses Mr Leonard Mudachi, the executive director of the company, says he thought it was a great opportunity to conceptualise, develop and manage a restaurant other than his own- Blanco's Lounge and Grill located at Timau Plaza along Argwings Kodhek Road.
The partnership that was signed in June 2007 gave Blanco's the go- ahead to develop a tea house that would greatly change the traditional method of serving tea to a chic urban setting.
"It is supposed to have a feel -good factor and it is chic. It is not just about opening a restaurant. It is about building a Kenyan brand," he says. Ms Uku says from the choice of colours to the setting, the tea house shows continuity. The Tea Spot was started with the idea that the brand would grow from regional to the international market as a strong home grown Kenyan brand.
"The colours are orange, which is vibrant and brown which is a solid colour that represents the mature products Tea Spot is offering," she says. It is spacious, fresh and airy ,with the interior decor done exclusively by Kenyans to bring out the slogan "The Beauty of Tea". But what of the growing consumption of coffee?
Mr Mudachi says there is market for both beverages. Competition, he says, gives people more choices and keeps the houses in check because it will always be under pressure to offer the best. "Besides, tea has health properties," he adds.
The tea is provided by KTDA but all the grades and export quality are the responsibility of the house.
"The tea is fresh from the factory and it has more flavour than the those from the shop shelves," says Ms Uku.
She says she learnt in the course of her job that there are many tea varieties and flavours- some flavours which are best drunk black like the Black Orthodox or Oolong which is popular in Asia.
But she warns that the way Kenyans usually make their tea is not right. Tea leaves should just be put in hot water and gradually mixed with milk until the colour is right. "It is more of an infusion than brewing," she says.
Since the Tea Spot is supposed to present the best tea, Ms Uku and Mr Mudachi had to go for training at a KTDA factory not only to learn how to make the beverage, but the process of making the end product.
Their perception of tea changed after that. "There is a lot you can do with tea," he says. It has a stable taste that complements more spices and different flavours than coffee. The different grade of teas are taken differently. Some are best drunk black, and others with flavours like vanilla or milk.
One of the toughest tasks for the pair was to prepare a menu which took them seven months to come up with.
The Tea Spot aims to make tea- drinking coffee look chic as the coffee houses have done with the beverage. Unlike the latter, Blanco's team did not have a template to work on. Instead, they got KTDA tasters to help in developing the menu and came up with tea version of a cappuccino which they call teappuccino.
"They showed us what to tone down if something was too strong for the Kenyan palate," says Mr Mudachi, who added that they use tea machines and improvised on some coffee brewing machines, especially for teappuccinos, lattes and mochas. Surprisingly, the tea shot is too strong unlike the coffee one which is used to make two cups.
Mr Mudachi said the prices were fair and that they were targeting office workers and tourists. Being in high human traffic area, Tea Spot is expecting a lot of walk- in customers, he said. Tea Spot has a seating capacity for between 120 to 180 patrons.
"It is a good product at a fair price and there is value in what we offer," he says. The focus of the menu is tea and everything else in the glossy pages is supposed to support it. It has light meals and breakfast is served all day.
As a result, they have started using tea in cooking, including Green Tea Chocolate Chip cookie that smells and tastes like green tea. Mahamri and mbaazi are also on the menu?
In colonial days, tea rooms were set up to serve the beverage to travellers. But just when we thought everyone was acquiring a taste for coffee, and that tea rooms were relics from the past, a fancy outlet has emerged in Nairobi to serve tea and tea products.
It is all part of an effort by the Tea Board of Kenya (TBK) to promote tea-drinking-from the current 0.48 kilogrammes a person to about one kilogramme in the next two years. Local tea packers and exporters and the board launched the incentive to lure customers because global tea production is growing faster than demand.
The TBK idea has been taken forward by a tea exporter who has partnered with Blanco's Holdings, a restaurant consultant and management company, to open the first tea house in the city-Tea Spot.
Located at Chai House, along Koinange Street, the tea house is the last word in interior decor. The outside is equally attractive. "The Tea Spot is about educating the public who are not exposed to various teas that are available in Kenya," says Liza Uku, the operations director of Blanco's.
This two-year old company tried a concept that had never been tested before. It was something new in a market that is dominated by coffee houses Mr Leonard Mudachi, the executive director of the company, says he thought it was a great opportunity to conceptualise, develop and manage a restaurant other than his own- Blanco's Lounge and Grill located at Timau Plaza along Argwings Kodhek Road.
The partnership that was signed in June 2007 gave Blanco's the go- ahead to develop a tea house that would greatly change the traditional method of serving tea to a chic urban setting.
"It is supposed to have a feel -good factor and it is chic. It is not just about opening a restaurant. It is about building a Kenyan brand," he says. Ms Uku says from the choice of colours to the setting, the tea house shows continuity. The Tea Spot was started with the idea that the brand would grow from regional to the international market as a strong home grown Kenyan brand.
"The colours are orange, which is vibrant and brown which is a solid colour that represents the mature products Tea Spot is offering," she says. It is spacious, fresh and airy ,with the interior decor done exclusively by Kenyans to bring out the slogan "The Beauty of Tea". But what of the growing consumption of coffee?
Mr Mudachi says there is market for both beverages. Competition, he says, gives people more choices and keeps the houses in check because it will always be under pressure to offer the best. "Besides, tea has health properties," he adds.
The tea is provided by KTDA but all the grades and export quality are the responsibility of the house.
"The tea is fresh from the factory and it has more flavour than the those from the shop shelves," says Ms Uku.
She says she learnt in the course of her job that there are many tea varieties and flavours- some flavours which are best drunk black like the Black Orthodox or Oolong which is popular in Asia.
But she warns that the way Kenyans usually make their tea is not right. Tea leaves should just be put in hot water and gradually mixed with milk until the colour is right. "It is more of an infusion than brewing," she says.
Since the Tea Spot is supposed to present the best tea, Ms Uku and Mr Mudachi had to go for training at a KTDA factory not only to learn how to make the beverage, but the process of making the end product.
Their perception of tea changed after that. "There is a lot you can do with tea," he says. It has a stable taste that complements more spices and different flavours than coffee. The different grade of teas are taken differently. Some are best drunk black, and others with flavours like vanilla or milk.
One of the toughest tasks for the pair was to prepare a menu which took them seven months to come up with.
The Tea Spot aims to make tea- drinking coffee look chic as the coffee houses have done with the beverage. Unlike the latter, Blanco's team did not have a template to work on. Instead, they got KTDA tasters to help in developing the menu and came up with tea version of a cappuccino which they call teappuccino.
"They showed us what to tone down if something was too strong for the Kenyan palate," says Mr Mudachi, who added that they use tea machines and improvised on some coffee brewing machines, especially for teappuccinos, lattes and mochas. Surprisingly, the tea shot is too strong unlike the coffee one which is used to make two cups.
Mr Mudachi said the prices were fair and that they were targeting office workers and tourists. Being in high human traffic area, Tea Spot is expecting a lot of walk- in customers, he said. Tea Spot has a seating capacity for between 120 to 180 patrons.
"It is a good product at a fair price and there is value in what we offer," he says. The focus of the menu is tea and everything else in the glossy pages is supposed to support it. It has light meals and breakfast is served all day.
As a result, they have started using tea in cooking, including Green Tea Chocolate Chip cookie that smells and tastes like green tea. Mahamri and mbaazi are also on the menu?
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