tea

Lustleigh is a stunning village that you’ve likely never heard of – unless you live in South Devon, that is. The hidden gem is a perfect destination to visit this autumn

Lustleigh is a breathtaking village you’ve probably never come across – unless you happen to live in South Devon. This tucked-away treasure makes for an ideal autumn getaway, with its charming thatched cottages and meandering lanes creating the sensation of having travelled back through the centuries.

Nestled within Dartmoor National Park’s boundaries, Lustleigh radiates “timeless charm and natural beauty,” the Visit South Devon website states. It’s not difficult to understand why, given the village regularly features on countless lists celebrating Britain’s most picturesque settlements.

The surrounding area has been inhabited since prehistoric times, with historians and archaeologists unearthing stone hut circle remnants and evidence of Stone Age occupation.

Some historians suggest the settlement appeared under the name Suðeswyrðe in Alfred the Great’s will, where he bequeathed the town to his youngest son Æthelweard. It subsequently appeared in the Domesday Book as Sutreworde in 1086.

Nevertheless, others contend that Sutreworde wasn’t today’s Lustleigh, but rather existed at a neighbouring location. Regardless, the village’s heritage clearly extends far into the past, reports the Express.

During the 19th century, the neighbouring settlement of Wrayland merged with Lustleigh, and the magnificent Grade-II listed Wreyland Manor has stayed within the village’s boundaries ever since.

Those keen to explore Lustleigh’s heritage should head straight for the beautiful church of St. John the Baptist and the renowned Primrose Tea Rooms.

The tea rooms occupy one of the village’s historic thatched properties and have earned praise from TripAdvisor visitors.

One reviewer remarked: “Beautiful place to visit. Excellent food and service.

“Everything is to such a high standard and so delicious. I can’t wait to visit again. The afternoon tea is fantastic!”.

Another guest commented: “My first visit and I was very pleased with the outstanding service and the wonderful cream tea. The tea room was bright and airy with lovely decor.”

The establishment operates seasonally from spring through late autumn, so visitors are advised to confirm opening times before travelling.

Whilst the tearoom closes during winter months, the area remains an attractive destination year-round. Christmas visitors shouldn’t miss the beloved Boxing Day duck race at Lustleigh Park, which has become a cherished annual tradition.

Earlier in the calendar, the May Day festivities on the first Saturday in May offer another highlight. This time-honoured celebration features a village procession, traditional maypole dancing, and the ceremonial crowning of the May Queen.

Under blazing skies at a tea plantation in India’s northeastern state of Assam, worker Kamini Kurmi wears an umbrella fastened over her head to keep her hands free to pluck delicate leaves from the bushes.

“When it’s really hot, my head spins and my heart begins to beat very fast,” said Kurmi, one of the many women employed for their dextrous fingers, instead of machines that harvest most conventional crops within a matter of days.

Weather extremes are shrivelling harvests on India’s tea plantations, endangering the future of an industry renowned for beverages as refreshing as the state of Assam and the adjoining hill station of Darjeeling in West Bengal state, while reshaping a global trade estimated at more than $10bn a year.

“Shifts in temperature and rainfall patterns are no longer occasional anomalies; they are the new normal,” said Rupanjali Deb Baruah, a scientist at the Tea Research Association.

As changing patterns reduce yields and stall output, rising domestic consumption in India is expected to shrink exports from the world’s second-largest tea producer.

While output stagnates in other key producers such as Kenya and Sri Lanka, declining Indian exports, which made up 12 percent of global trade last year, could boost prices.

Tea prices at Indian auctions have grown by just 4.8 percent a year for three decades, far behind the 10 percent achieved by staples such as wheat and rice.

The mildly warm, humid conditions crucial for Assam’s tea-growing districts are increasingly being disrupted by lengthy dry spells and sudden, intense rains.

Such weather not only helps pests breed, but also forces estate owners to turn to the rarely used practice of irrigating plantations, said Mritunjay Jalan, the owner of an 82-year-old tea estate in Assam’s Tinsukia district.

Rainfall there has dropped by more than 250mm (10 inches) between 1921 and 2024, while minimum temperatures have risen by 1.2 degrees Celsius (2.2 degrees Fahrenheit), the Tea Research Association says.

The monsoon, Assam’s key source of rain, as summer and winter showers have nearly disappeared, brought rainfall this season that was 38 percent below average.

That has helped to shorten the peak output season to just a few months, narrowing the harvesting window, said senior tea planter Prabhat Bezboruah.

Patchy rains bring more frequent pest infestations, leaving tea leaves discoloured, blotched brown, and sometimes riddled with tiny holes.

These measures, in turn, add to costs, which are already rising at 8 to 9 percent a year, driven up by higher wages and prices of fertiliser, said Hemant Bangur, chairman of the leading industry body, the Indian Tea Association.

Planters say government incentives are insufficient to spur replanting, crucial in Assam, where many colonial-era tea bushes yield less and lose resilience to weather as they age beyond the usual productive span of 40 to 50 years.

India’s tea industry has flourished for nearly 200 years, but its share of global trade could fall below the 2024 figure of 12 percent, as the increasing prosperity of a growing population boosts demand at home.

Domestic consumption jumped 23 percent over the past decade to 1.2 million tonnes, far outpacing production growth of 6.3 percent, the Indian Tea Association says.

While exports of quality tea have shrunk in recent years, India’s imports have grown, nearly doubling in 2024 to a record 45,300 tonnes.

That adds expense for overseas buyers, said executives of India’s leading merchants, at a time when global competitors such as Kenya face similar problems.

DOES it feel like you’re constantly squirming against the waistband of your jeans? And does your tummy often feel uncomfortably swollen?

Bloating is all too common – especially after a long day or a large meal.

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But it doesn’t make it any less uncomfortable when your guts just won’t play ball.

Your first instinct might be to try and keep your stomach sucked in, or pop a Rennie to provide some relief.

According to pharmacist Dipa Kamdar, there are natural ways to support your gut health and bring down your bloat.

“For centuries, herbs and spices have been used in traditional medicine for their digestive benefits, and modern science is beginning to back up some of these age-old remedies,” the senior lecturer in pharmacy practice at Kingston University wrote in The Conversation.

She shared five cheap ingredients “linked to better digestion” – some of which you might already have in your kitchen.

These range from peppermint and chamomile tea to cumin seeds.

Dipa said: “Herbs and spices are not a replacement for medical treatment, but they can complement a balanced diet and offer gentle support for everyday digestive issues.

“In normal amounts they are generally safe to cook with, but anyone with underlying conditions or on medication should consult a healthcare professional first.

“For many, though, a cup of chamomile tea or a sprinkle of cumin may be a simple – and tasty – step toward better digestive health.”

Here are five ingredients to eat or drink to slim down your waist and ease stomach discomfort.

1. Peppermint tea

Dipa said: “Peppermint is one of the best-known herbs for easing digestive distress.

“Its active compound, menthol, relaxes the muscles of the gut, helping to reduce bloating, gas and abdominal pain.

“It may also reduce sensitivity to pain, fight harmful bacteria and calm inflammation.”

According to the pharmacist, clinical trials have shown that taking peppermint oil capsules can relieve irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms – from stomach cramps, to bloating and constipation.

But steer clear of peppermint oil if you have acid reflux, she warned.

The oil can relax the lower oesophageal sphincter – the muscle that stops stomach acid flowing back into the throat – which may trigger heartburn, especially if you haven’t eaten anything.

Sipping on peppermint tea will be gentler and may offer similar benefits, Dipa noted.

2. Chamomile tea

Do you like to sip on chamomile tea before bed?

It may do more that make you feel sleepy, according to Dipa, who said the flower “may also soothe the digestive system”.

“Chamomile tea is one of the world’s most popular herbal drinks and has long been used to ease indigestion, gas, stomach upset and gut irritation,” she wrote.

“Evidence is mostly traditional, but animal studies show chamomile extract can reduce stomach ulcers thanks to its antioxidant properties.”

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The popular tea may also help ease an upset tummy, Dipa added.

“Another trial found that children with mild diarrhoea recovered more quickly when treated with a chamomile mixture.”

She noted that the study combined chamomile with other herbs

Dipa also cautioned that some people may be allergic to chamomile.

3. Fennel seeds

Known for their sweet anise-like flavour, fennel seeds are frequently added to stews and curries – but they may also help gut discomfort and bloating.

“Fennel is traditionally chewed after meals in many cultures to freshen breath and aid digestion,” Dipa said.

“Its seeds are high in insoluble fibre, which helps prevent gas build-up and bloating.”

Eating more insoluble fibre can help with bloating in the long run.

The NHS recommends about 30g of fibre a day.

But make sure you gradually add fibre to your diet, as overdoing it can actually lead to more gas and bloating.

Dipa went on: “Anethole, fennel’s main active compound, is chemically similar to dopamine and relaxes gut muscles – a mechanism confirmed in lab studies.

“In a small trial in people with IBS, fennel reduced cramp-like abdominal pain, probably due to this muscle-relaxing effect.

“Human trials are limited, but fennel’s long history of safe use supports its traditional role in digestive care.”

4. Cumin

“Cumin has an equally long track record for easing digestive problems,” Dipa added.

“Modern studies suggest it boosts digestive enzyme activity, speeding the breakdown of food.

“It also encourages the release of bile from the liver, which helps digest fats and absorb nutrients.”

She cited one study conducted on rats, which found cumin shortened the time food spent in the digestive tract by about 25 per cent.

This is “likely due to these enzyme and bile effects”, the pharmacist said.

“In a clinical trial of 57 people with IBS, concentrated cumin significantly eased symptoms within two weeks,” she added.

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5. Carom seeds

Carom seeds, also known as Ajwain, are a spice with a strong, bitter, thyme-like flavour, and are a staple in Indian cuisine.

“They’ve been used for centuries to relieve gas and bloating, probably because of thymol, a compound that stimulates the stomach to produce more acid — sometimes up to four times more,” Dipa said.

Again, studies on the spice’s digestive effects tend to conducted in animals.

A study on rats found that carom seeds made food move through the digestive tract faster, boosted digestive enzyme activity and increased bile secretion, which helps break down fats in food.

But Dipa warned: “Pregnant or breastfeeding women should avoid large doses, as high intakes have been linked to miscarriages.”

On the Beach and Lancashire Tea unveiled a brand-new teabag that, in their own words, “will tackle the age-old gripe of why a holiday cuppa never quite tastes like one at home”

This summer a travel company and tea brand attempted to solve a problem that has been plaguing British holidaymakers for centuries.

After months of research, testing and more than a thousand cups of tea, On the Beach and Lancashire Tea unveiled a brand-new teabag that, in their own words, “will tackle the age-old gripe of why a holiday cuppa never quite tastes like one at home.”

It is one of life’s most recognisable issues. You arrive in a resort in Spain, France or Portugal, pop the kettle on and then discover the only tea bag on offer is a Lipton’s. Worse still, the milk provided is UHT. Despite your best efforts to persevere, the resultant cup is even less tasty than the sum of its parts.

Weaker holidaymakers have been driven straight to the all-inclusive bar.

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According to world-renowned tea expert Jane Pettigrew, it is not tribal brand loyalty that has blinded Brits to the pleasures of European tea. It is genuinely worse (or different at least). And for two main reasons.

The first is the type of tea.

According to Jane, the colonial history of European countries has left the Continent’s various populations with very different tastes in tea.

Brits “still choose to drink cheap black tea grown in India, Sri Lanka or East Africa, and blended to give a strong, coloury tea without much in the way of subtle and wonderful flavours,” explained Jane, who is an advocate of the more complex, subtler flavours delivered by loose-leaf teas from countries including China.

Broadly speaking, in Germany, Spain, Italy and Portugal tea is bought from Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam which has a “flavour profile blended (which) is gentler, thinner, less robust than British blends and therefore British tourists don’t like” it.

Another differentiating factor is milk.

“Most Brits still put milk in their tea (and still sometimes sugar, although I think the use of sugar has reduced a little). That style of tea is very British and is due to the fact that British colonies were in the regions of the world from which our tea comes (India, Sri Lanka, and East African countries such as Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, etc), which all started growing tea under British colonial rule,” Jane explained.

“France on the other hand (as well as some African colonies) had colonies in French Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos) where Chinese-style teas have been grown since the days of colonisation. So the sort of teas that the French drink tend to be lighter, more subtle, never with added milk or sweetener.”

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Jane, who has won many different tea-related awards during her long career and is the author of World of Tea, despairs at the sense of superiority that many Brits have when it comes to a cuppa.

“Brits are really picky about how they like their tea, and don’t want those other types of lighter blends or specialty teas that Europeans choose,” she told me.

“The fact that Brits see their chosen brands of cheap black tea in paper tea bags as superior is evidence that they actually know nothing about tea. In general, Brits expect their daily brew to be cheap, strong and robust. In fact, what they prefer to drink is actually without any real subtle flavour, and is cheap because the cost of the types of tea that go into our traditional blends has hardly increased since the 1950s.”

Whether indeed picky or suffering from an unfounded sense of superiority, many Brits are convinced the teabag is the source of the issue. More than two-thirds (66%) of tea-drinking Brits admit to taking their own teabags on holiday with them, according to an On the Beach poll.

Even if you are armed with a solid supply of Yorkshire Gold or Barry’s before heading onto the Continent, that doesn’t mean your cuppa will be as comforting or delicious as it is at home.

The other major problem with mainland European tea is the water.

“The worst enemies to brewing good tea are limescale, chlorine, and dissolved heavy metals. So I advise everyone, except perhaps in Japan where the water is almost too soft, to use Brita filter taps or jugs to remove most of the offending ingredients,” Jane explained.

If tea is brewed in hard water, as in London and most areas to the north and south of the English capital, it can completely change the colour, aroma, and flavour profile of the brew. Often, this can cause a filmy layer to form on the surface of the tea, making the liquor cloudy.

Jane has carried out taste tests of the same tea bag brewed in filtered and unfiltered water, and says the results are stark. “People don’t believe you that it’s the same tea used for both brews,” she said.

Odds on, the cup of tea that you like will be determined by what you’re used to. And, given this is based on both bag and water, this can be tricky to emulate. For example, in Spain, regions like Burgos and San Sebastián are known for having soft water, whereas cities like Valencia, Malaga, and Almeria have hard water, meaning the brews in each will vary considerably.

Jane’s top tip is to invest in a water filter and to go loose.

“I always take some good loose-leaf tea with me when I travel because once you arrive at your destination, you may not find anything you like that is readily available. And if hotels and restaurants where you are staying don’t have any tea that Brits prefer, it is easier to ask for just hot water and brew your own,” she said.

So in conclusion, continental European tea may well taste rubbish to the British tongue, but only because it’s different.

When it comes to the special On the Beach and Lancashire Tea brew, I gave it a whirl in Sicily this summer. While my mind has not been blown or my life changed, I can confirm it delivered a decent cuppa.

If you consume tea with any sort of interest, maybe you’ve been hearing about the worldwide matcha shortage of 2025?

Matcha, but much much more

In short: Viral posts featuring soothingly smooth, mint green matcha drinks on TikTok and other social media over the last few years have ignited a global craze. Coupled with a pandemic-era focus on matcha as an antioxidant-rich superfood that might help prevent cancer and perhaps even improve memory and reduce anxiety, its demand is booming. Industry analysts predict the market size to almost double to $6.5 billion internationally by 2030.

Supplies from tea farmers, and dwindled inventory from distributors, can’t keep pace — especially given labor shortages and a recent heatwave in Japan that decreased yields of tencha, the traditional variety of shade-grown tea which is powdered into matcha. Many companies, small and large, that sell matcha have attempted to stockpile their reserves. Wholesale prices this year have increased by a staggering 265%, according to the International Tea Co.

Walk with this knowledge into Kettl, a new Japanese tea cafe and shop in Loz Feliz, and the calmness of the two-story space feels all the more remarkable.

Leaves of Koju oolong, grown in Japan, before a tasting at Kettl in Los Feliz.

(Bill Addison / Los Angeles Times)

No sense of scarcity here. Order a matcha cortado to drink on premises and it arrives in a gorgeously coarse ceramic cup, the tea decorated with the requisite foam art. Choose from three matcha varieties for your latte: nutty and chocolaty, creamy and floral, or umami-intense. Ask for whisked matcha with options in a similar range of flavors. Grab a cooling matcha splashed with sparking water over ice to go.

Or, stick around for a tasting with schooled staffers who can guide you through wider nuances of matcha — and, even better, to a world of Japanese teas far greater than the current object of focus. This is why I’ve become a regular at Kettl.

Zach Mangan was a jazz drummer in his twenties in the 2000s when, on tour in Paris, he happened upon a store selling sincha, the prized tea made from the first spring harvest in Japan.

“The smell of the glossy, needlelike leaves was incredibly nostalgic, though I had never experience it before,” he writes in his 2022 book, “Stories of Japanese Tea.” “It reminded me of the lawn of my childhood home when freshly mowed. I brewed it and was captivated by how much flavor was packed inside my tiny cup of tea.”

Kettl founder Zach Mangan talks tea behind the counter of his new Los Feliz shop.

(Bill Addison / Los Angeles Times)

The experience led down one path after another: A job at a now-closed tea shop in New York called Ito En. A first monthlong trip to Japan in 2010, where he understood the degrees to which freshness can take green teas from pleasant to electric. A series of return visits in which he developed relationships with tea producers so he could become an importer.

His first client, from a cold call, was renowned chef David Bouley. Other chefs began buying. He and his wife, Minami Mangan, opened the first Kettl shop in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, in 2021.

Their Los Angeles location, delayed for several years by a familiar litany of permit and buildout hurdles, steeped their first teas for customers in February.

The state of L.A.’s sit-down tea scene

As a mid-level tea obsessive, I’d say the culture around drinking serious tea in public spaces in Southern California remains niche. No insult intended to matcha and boba shops: I’m talking about places for a face-to-face, sit-down shared experience between the tea brewer and the drinker. I’ve written plenty about Alhambra’s by-appointment-only Tea Habitat, my favorite place in the country for dan cong, the exceptionally fragrant oolongs from the Phoenix Mountain region in China’s Guangdong province.

A tasting at Tea Habitat in Alhambra.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Tomoko Imade Dyen, a Tokyo-born Angeleno who works as a PR consultant and television producer, holds occasional, enlightening Japanese tea tastings with seasonal foods. The Good Liver store in downtown L.A. also holds regular tastings and carries premium matcha that tends to sell fast.

Kettl and its serene, sunny rooms, in this context, feel extravagant. There are ticketed classes, held upstairs, which teach the basics of, say, making iced matcha in summertime, but I’m most drawn to the four-seat tasting bar to the right of the ordering counter. On weekends it’s wise to reserve seats, but I’ve had luck slipping in on weekday afternoons. A staffer will hand you a menu booklet outlining options: bowls of first-rate matcha that begin at $15; pots of other teas, which include multiple steepings, starting at $10; an in-depth tea omakase starting at $70 per person.

I’m happy whisking matcha for myself at home. Drinking in the shop, I’m curious about sencha, the broadest category of green teas produced in Japan. Mangan likens the diversity of styles made under the term to the wild differences between all red wines bottled across France, or whiskies distilled in Scotland.

When he was in town last month, he brewed two for me at the bar. Hachiju Hachiya from Yame — a city on Japan’s Kyushu island so famous for tea that green fields show up at the top of a Google search — was herbaceous but also tasted like popping edamame pods as a snack at a sushi bar.

Hatsutsumi, grown 20 miles away deep in the mountains of the Fukuoka prefecture, smelled like one of those March mornings in Los Angeles after the rain when the city’s terrain rushes into urgent bloom. The texture was almost buttery.

A steeping of gyokuro, a Japanese shade-grown green tea, at Kettl in Los Feliz.

(Bill Addison / Los Angeles Times)

Kettl receives weekly shipments from Japan, so the possibilities are always changing. This past week I drank a rare gyokuro (tea that undergoes a specific, laborious shaded process for three weeks before harvesting; it’s steeped with lots of leaves at unusually cool temperatures) with specific, sweet seashore aromas emblematic of its style.

“The tasting notes were so enthusiastic on this one, I knew Zach wrote them,” joked Ashley Ruiz, who was brewing that day. The taste reminded me, wonderfully, of crabmeat. And I’ve had very few Japanese loose-leaf oolongs; Ruiz suggested one that was light and expressive, with stone fruit flavors knocking about.

There is so much more to return for. It’s promising to witness the shop’s steady foot traffic, and the groups of people lingering in conversation over tea. Maybe it’s matcha mania … and maybe Kettl is nudging L.A.’s tea culture in magnetic new dimensions.

Kettl: 4677 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 407-6155, kettl.co

Early bird tickets

VIP tickets (allowing early entry) to The Times’ Food Bowl Night Market, presented by Square, are already sold out for the Saturday-night session taking place Oct. 11 at City Market Social House in downtown L.A. Friday-night VIP tickets are still available, but going fast. More than 40 restaurants are participating, including Holbox, Baroo, the Brothers Sushi, OyBar, Heritage Barbecue, Crudo e Nudo, Hummingbird Ceviche House, Rossoblu, Perilla LA, Evil Cooks, Villa’s Tacos, Holy Basil and Luv2Eat Thai Bistro. Check lafoodbowl.com for tickets and info.

Also …

A BLIND 99-year-old with her heart set on reaching one hundred, has died after being scolded by a cup of tea, an inquest hears.

Margaret Eluned Roberts suffered severe burns after the piping hot black tea spilled onto her at a nursing home in Anglesey, Wales.

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Today, an inquest into the elderly woman’s death heard the burn contributed to Mrs Roberts catching a chest infection.

She died roughly five weeks after the incident.

However, a senior coroner has concluded that the death was accidental.

The pensioner’s daughter has slammed Glan Rhos nursing home in a recent statement.

Linda Pritchard explained that she received a phone call soon after the incident occurred.

She said she asked “why did they give a blind lady hot black tea?”

Kate Robertson, senior coroner for north west Wales, found that Mrs Roberts died from pneumonia and cellulitis secondary to a burn.

Ms Robertson also found that old age, asthma and ischaemic heart disease were contributing factors.

Sarah Thomas, a healthcare assistant at Glan Rhos nursing home in Brynsiencyn, who handed Mrs Roberts the cup of black tea, said she knew she was registered blind.

She gave the tea to Mrs Roberts in a plastic, two-handed beaker on September 22 last year, insisting that the pensioner was very independent and “wanted to drink the cup of tea herself.”

The healthcare assistant went on to explain that she watched Mrs Roberts sip the drink through a straw in the spout then moved away.

The inquest heard, that moments later, she spilt the tea on herself at around 7pm.

Ms Thomas claims she didn’t hear a scream.

Jo Reavey, a nurse, said in a statement that she heard “Eluned shouting in an urgent tone.”

She explained that she found her “distraught with her arms raised” and the beaker “upside down” with “black tea on her trousers.”

The wound started blistering as staff frantically put cold towels on it.

An ambulance was called at 7.51pm and arrived at Glan Rhos nursing home at about 10pm.

Mrs Roberts was taken to Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor. 

The wound was initially eight per cent of her body weight but after reddening reduced it was classified as four per cent. 

At the hospital, the pensioner’s blisters were lanced and her wound was dressed before being discharged.

She later returned to the nursing home, however soon after, developed chest problems.

On October 7, Mrs Roberts daughter asked for her mother to be readmitted to Ysbyty Gwynedd. 

Doctor Abdul Azu, a consultant physician, told the inquest her condition was not improving.

She died there on October 28, about five weeks after the scalding.

Doctor Azu is confident that the burn contributed to the chest infection and her declining health.

The coroner Mrs Robertson, said Mrs Roberts died on October 28 ‘as a result of the medical conditions which were precipitated by the burn injury sustained on her leg.’

She said the spillage had been ‘unintended and accidental’ and gave the cause of death of Mrs Roberts as an accident.

Mrs Robertson told Mrs Pritchard: ‘Mam wanted to reach 100-years-old. It would have been such a significant milestone for her and for you.’

Former England captain Sir Alastair Cook, ex-India wicketkeeper Deep Dasgupta and TMS statistician Andy Zaltzman answer your questions from Old Trafford.

Do you have a question for the team? Or about another sport? Send them to us by visiting the ‘Ask Me Anything’ page on the BBC Sport website.

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A flight attendant has shared the unexpected hotel appliance you should always check before using it – and you’ll probably never look at it the same way again

Checking into a hotel room often brings the joy of unwinding, but a seasoned flight attendant has shared a word of caution about a common hotel item. Barbara Bacilieri, from Argentina, is no stranger to hotel stays thanks to her flying career, yet she confessed there’s one thing you might not consider when brewing up a cuppa in your room.

Revealing all to her TikTok followers, Barbara insists you should ALWAYS peek inside the kettle to confirm it’s clean before use. She warned: “Always take a look inside the coffee pot. Before boiling water for making tea or coffee, think it through.”

The Argentinian air hostess shocked viewers with claims that guests have used the kettle for bizarre purposes, from rinsing underwear and cooking sausages to cleaning menstrual cups!

So, the next time you settle into your travel abode, make it a point to boil the kettle once and give it a good rinse prior to enjoying your brew. Barbara added: “You weren’t expecting this one, right? Just imagine how many other things guests do and we don’t know.”

But that’s not all Barbara suggests scrutinising – she also points out the importance of inspecting the bed. While it may appear spotless, certainty is elusive. She advises: “Before getting into bed, lift the sheets. Check for bugs or socks that other guests may have left behind.”

The flight attendant expressed her astonishment at the lengths some guests go to pilfer items from hotel rooms, and we’re not just talking about the complimentary mini toiletries.

“Some people believe that everything in the room is up for grabs, or they feel entitled because they’ve paid a hefty sum,” she remarked.

“Items like the batteries from the remote control or even worse, the light bulbs.”

However, she clarified in the video that while tea, coffee and sugar are free to use and take, mugs and pillows certainly aren’t. “You wouldn’t believe how many guests nick the hotel pillows.”

And as for hotel towels?

“Loads of people have them at home.”

Barbara ended on a humorous note, suggesting you should always check the hotel safe – you might just get lucky if “the previous guest forgot their millions.”

Castle Combe in Wiltshire, England, is a popular tourist destination thanks to its stunning medieval stone cottages, winding streets and surrounding natural beauty

With summer upon us, many are planning their getaways, yet there’s no need to jet off abroad when the UK boasts some truly stunning destinations. Castle Combe in Wiltshire is often lauded as one of the prettiest villages not only in Britain but across the globe, making it an ideal spot for those exploring the Cotswolds.

Visitors to this picturesque village might feel as though they’ve wandered into a storybook, with its ancient stone cottages and charming, twisty lanes remaining untouched by modernity – a dream for anyone keen on sightseeing. But Castle Combe’s allure isn’t just architectural; it’s also cradled by the natural splendour of the Cotswolds.

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Travellers will find themselves amidst enchanting woodlands, undulating hills, and verdant countryside, all contributing to the village’s magical vibe.

Described by Country Living as having houses “so pretty they should be on a postcard” due to its “ancient, honey-hued” cottages, Castle Combe has also earned a spot on Condé Nast Traveller’s list of “most beautiful villages in the world“.

CN Traveller praised the village, saying: “Castle Combe is a quintessentially English village located in the southwest county of Wiltshire. No new houses have been built here since the 1600s, so the town is a well-preserved stretch of Cotswold stone cottages and old pubs and churches.”

This idyllic village is the ultimate destination for photography enthusiasts, with the historic village bridge crossing the River Bybrook being a particularly picturesque spot to capture.

History buffs will be drawn to Castle Combe for its plethora of medieval structures, including the stunning St Andrew’s church, established in the 13th century, reports the Express.

The church houses the tomb of Sir Walter de Dunstanville, Baron of Castle Combe and a crusader who passed away in 1270. It also boasts a quaint shop renowned for its charming postcards.

Film aficionados will find Castle Combe intriguing as it has served as the backdrop for numerous iconic films, from the 1960s Doctor Dolittle to the more recent Stardust in 2007 and Steven Spielberg’s War Horse in 2011.

Castle Combe offers a tranquil retreat for those seeking a leisurely holiday, providing opportunities for nature walks, historical exploration, and cosy evenings at the local pub.

For those embarking on a nature walk, the village’s famed Little Picnic Shop provides everything needed for a delightful summer picnic.

However, for an authentic English countryside experience, a visit to The Old Rectory Pop-up Tearoom is a must. Here, guests can indulge in a traditional afternoon tea complete with homemade cakes, sandwiches, and a cuppa served in fine china.

The Old Stables offers a more laid-back yet snug setting for a coffee shop in the village, where patrons can indulge in a bacon sarnie or their hot drink of choice.

Castle Combe’s residences often feature quaint stalls outside, vending local and homemade delights like jams, bakes, or sweets – ideal for picking up as you wander through the village.

Travel aficionado Jamie, the brains behind Explore with Ed, suggests that those keen on visiting Castle Combe should do so promptly, especially as the village is at its most charming in midsummer.

He commented: “The prettiness of Castle Combe is perhaps at its peak in the height of summer when the honey-coloured cottages are graced with colourful climbing plants and overflowing window baskets.”

At a minimalist matcha bar in Los Angeles, United States, powdered Japanese tea is prepared with precision, despite a global shortage driven by the bright green drink’s social media stardom.

Of the 25 types of matcha on the menu at Kettl Tea, which opened on Hollywood Boulevard this year, all but four were out of stock, according to the shop’s founder, Zach Mangan.

“One of the things we struggle with is telling customers that, unfortunately, we don’t have” what they want, he said.

With its deep grassy aroma, intense colour and pick-me-up effects, the popularity of matcha “has grown just exponentially over the last decade, but much more so in the last two to three years”, the 40-year-old explained.

It is now “a cultural touchpoint in the Western world” – found everywhere from ice-cream flavour boards to Starbucks.

This has caused matcha’s market to nearly double over a year, Mangan said.

“No matter what we try, there’s just not more to buy.”

In the Japanese city of Sayama, northwest of Tokyo, Masahiro Okutomi – the 15th generation to run his family’s tea production business – is overwhelmed by demand.

“I had to put on our website that we are not accepting any more matcha orders,” he said.

Producing the powder is an intensive process: the leaves, called “tencha”, are shaded for several weeks before harvest, to concentrate the taste and nutrients.

They are then carefully deveined by hand, dried and finely ground in a machine.

“It takes years of training” to make matcha properly, Okutomi said. “It’s a long-term endeavour requiring equipment, labour and investment.”

“I’m glad the world is taking an interest in our matcha … but in the short term, it’s almost a threat – we just can’t keep up,” he said.

The matcha boom has been propelled by online influencers like Andie Ella, who has more than 600,000 subscribers on YouTube and started her own brand of matcha products.

At the pastel-pink pop-up shop she opened in Tokyo’s hip Harajuku district, dozens of fans were excitedly waiting to take a photo with the 23-year-old Frenchwoman or buy her cans of strawberry or white chocolate-flavoured matcha.

“Matcha is visually very appealing,” said Ella.

To date, her matcha brand, produced in Japan’s rural Mie region, has sold 133,000 cans. Launched in November 2023, it now has eight employees.

“Demand has not stopped growing,” she said.

Last year, matcha accounted for more than half of the 8,798 tonnes of green tea exported from Japan, according to Japan’s Agriculture Ministry data – twice as much as 10 years ago.

Tokyo tea shop Jugetsudo, in the touristy former fish market area of Tsukiji, is trying to control its stock levels given the escalating demand.

“We don’t strictly impose purchase limits, but we sometimes refuse to sell large quantities to customers suspected of reselling,” said store manager Shigehito Nishikida.

“In the past two or three years, the craze has intensified. Customers now want to make matcha themselves, like they see on social media,” he added.

The global matcha market is estimated to be worth billions of dollars, but it could be hit by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Japanese products – currently 10 percent, with a rise to 24 percent in the cards.

Shortages and tariffs mean “we do have to raise prices. We don’t take it lightly”, said Mangan at Kettl Tea, though it has not dampened demand so far.

“Customers are saying, ‘I want matcha before it runs out’.”

Japan’s government is encouraging tea producers to farm on a larger scale to reduce costs.

But that risks sacrificing quality, and “in small rural areas, it’s almost impossible”, grower Okutomi said.

The number of tea plantations in Japan has fallen to a quarter of what it was 20 years ago, as farmers age and find it difficult to secure successors, he added.

“Training a new generation takes time… It can’t be improvised.”

Runswick Bay, just nine miles north of Whitby, has earned rave reviews from visitors, who have praised its “secluded” bay, “gorgeous” beach and “amazing views” – and it’s easy to see why

A picturesque North Yorkshire coast village has been named one of England’s best-kept secrets – and it’s no wonder why.

The delightful Runswick Bay, tucked away just nine miles from Whitby between Sandsend and Staithes, has captivated visitors with its “secluded” bay, “gorgeous” beach, and “amazing views,” as noted by York Press.

Perched on the brink of the North Sea, the quaint village scored an impressive 4.5 out of 5 stars on Tripadvisor and has now been highlighted by Millets as one of the nation’s hidden jewels in their latest travel recommendations.

Outdoor experts at Millets assembled their hidden treasures list using insights from Reddit, TikTok, and various travel features, before validating their selections with Tripadvisor ratings to showcase the cream of the crop.

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Millets’ blog writer and adventure aficionado Sam Chadwick remarked: “In recent years, more people have uncovered the joy of being outdoors, with favourites like Mam Tor and Scafell Pike becoming increasingly popular. We’ve curated a list of England’s hidden treasures for those seeking tranquil escapes amidst nature.”, reports the Express.

Runswick Bay absolutely lives up to this description.

Touted on its official website as “a picture postcard North Yorkshire coastal village, boasting a mile of secluded bay and gorgeous beach”, the spot is favoured by fossil hunters, ramblers, and even those hoping to glimpse a dolphin or seal amid the surf.

Its sandy shores sit along the Cleveland Way, a renowned walking route gracing the coastline. The bay is a haven for sandcastle architects and budding explorers eager to discover rockpools at low tide, while the jetty becomes a prime spot for crabbing during the high tide.

“Seals, dolphins and whales have all been spotted in the waters, which are excellent for fishing, especially cod and mackerel,” the travel site notes.

The spot has received over 400 effusive reviews on Tripadvisor, with many reviewers highlighting the “relaxing” ambiance of the beachfront café.

One happy visitor shared their experience: “We walked here from Staithes, lovely walk with amazing views (steep in places). Well worth the walk! Cafe at Runswick bay was lovely, great coffee and cakes, lovely place to sit and relax before walking back. We had our dog in tow and she was made welcome at the cafe.”

Another satisfied guest enthused: “Absolutely stunning! Well worth a walk along the beach and doing a bit of fossil hunting, glass spotting, shell collecting. Lovely ice cream.”

Commenting on their Easter weekend visit, another reviewer remarked: “We are here for easter weekend, we visited the lovely modern cafe just on the beachfront, delicious cakes and light bites and beverages. Lovely staff and plenty of seats although we imagine it will get busy. Will definitely be back as its perfectly positioned to sit eat a slice of yummy cakes and a cuppa tea while u admire the views. The beach was great so happy to see so many dogs enjoying themselves and not a poo bag in sight as mentioned previously. We found so lovely fossils so interesting.”

One visitor was so enchanted by the BBC’s ‘Villages by the Sea’ that they felt compelled to see Runswick Bay for themselves.

“Had to come here as Ben Robinson the archaeologist came here from his programmes ‘Villages by the Sea’ and he was not not wrong, beautiful houses, I found most of what he showed on his programme. Lovely walk and dog run along the beach. Fabulous, Thanks Ben.”

Wondering about parking at Runswick Bay?

“The car park closest to the beach is chargeable throughout spring and summer, but get in quick as there are only 80 spaces. Pop the postcode TS13 5HT into your satnav and you’re away. You’ll pay a minimum charge of £3.00 between the months of March and October.”

They also mention: “In busier periods, you’ll find a second car park at the top of the hill, a bit further away from the beach. With over 100 spaces and charged at £6 for 24 hours, it’s well worth the trek, even just for the breathtaking views along the way.”

Do bear in mind that car park charges are subject to change.

Holidaymakers Lee and Mandy Trivett were looking forward to relaxing on their ‘deluxe’ Ayia Napa balcony with a nice cup of tea. Instead, they were left staring out at the ‘view from hell’

A couple looking forward to a “peaceful, relaxing” holiday were left dismayed after realising they were staring out at the “view from hell”.

Lee and Mandy Trivett spent £2,215 on a holiday at Tasia Maris Hotel in Ayia Napa, Cyprus, wanting a break from daily life after the deaths of several friends.

Looking ahead to their a six-night stay with Jet2 last summer, Lee and Mandy, both 58, had hoped to spend their mornings sipping coffee on the ‘deluxe’ balcony, switching to a nice cup of tea and biscuits at night.

Unfortunately, their dreams were quickly punctured after they realised the view from their balcony was anything but serene. An alfresco cuppa would be completely out of the question.

Instead, the Trivetts allegedly found themselves looking out onto a noisy building site, complete with scaffolding, netting and forklifts rumbling all day long.

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Lee, from Hull, Yorkshire, recalled: “When we got to the hotel at about one o’clock in the morning we thought it looked beautiful. We were exhausted so we just dumped the cases, brushed our teeth and went to bed.

“In the morning, we got up and opened the curtains to go on the balcony. It was just looking over a building site. I was absolutely shocked.

“There were forklifts going up and down and there were workmen going in and a generator on all day and all night, which you could hear through the double glazing.”

The home support worker continued: “It got worse as by the end, there were more and more workmen coming on the site. We hadn’t been informed that this work was going on.

“We couldn’t even sit out on the balcony. The last thing you wanted to look at was that. When I was talking to people in the hotel, we were originally led to believe nobody worked on the building site through the summertime. But that wasn’t very accurate.”

Jet2 has claimed that guests were made to tick a box saying they “understood” building work was “taking place nearby” and so the Trevitts should have been aware of what was going. The company has also claimed that its team “made multiple attempts to contact Mr Trevitt” on the holiday but did not get a response.

However, the couple claim this only happened after they were already four days into their week-long holiday.

Lee and Mandy, who works as a seamstress, says they were left feeling as though they’d “wasted their money”. They’ve claimed that nobody had mentioned the building work to them prior to the trip being booked, and say the situation wasn’t made apparent by looking at photos online.

According to Lee: “Me and my wife had booked it relatively late as a couple of our friends had passed away early in the year so we felt like we needed to get away and have a relaxing holiday to wind down.

“We just wanted to sit on the balcony after a night out and have a cup of tea and a biscuit. We didn’t bother. Looking at scaffolding and netting and men walking about and security guards walking about making noise at two in the morning, was not our idea of being relaxed.

“My wife said, ‘I don’t want to look out at that’. The balcony was a waste of time and the upgrade was a complete waste of money. The room on the website was nice, it promised being larger with a better kitchen and balcony.”

He added: “It was all useless though as where you wanted to get up in the morning and sit on the balcony and have a coffee and get ready for the day and again at nighttime, it was a waste of money.

“We got up and left the room as we didn’t want to listen to the noise. On the photos on the website, you couldn’t see any of the building work. There was nothing.”

Although the couple did speak a Jet2 rep at the time, they say they were uninformed that their location was due to them getting an upgraded room. While they did manage to find another room, by this point, their holiday was already more than half way over.

Lee continued: “I mentioned to our Jet2 rep and she said, ‘they are the upgraded rooms, that’s where they’re based’. How is that an upgrade? Looking onto a building site and as far away from the pool and bar and restaurant [as possible].

“They’ve given me the view from hell. It took them a day to respond and then she told me there were no rooms available and then the following day she said we might have a room for you.

“To be honest, we were only there a week and we were four days in by then. If we’d have been informed beforehand that the upgraded rooms had that view then I’d have said ‘I don’t want an upgraded room’.

“We just weren’t told. We just wanted a nice peaceful holiday and we didn’t get that.”

A Jet2 spokesperson issued the following statement at the time: “We believe it is very important to provide all relevant information to customers ahead of their well-deserved holidays, and at the time of this booking we made it very clear to customers that building works were taking place nearby.

“Customers were required to tick a box showing that they had read and understood this, and the information was also highlighted in the booking documentation.

“However, once we were made aware of Mr Trevitt’s feedback when he was on holiday, we immediately liaised with the hotel to source an alternative room and we made multiple attempts to contact Mr Trevitt by mobile, text, and by leaving a letter in his room – but we did not hear anything back.

“As an award-winning company, we do everything we can to help customers in the rare event that everything isn’t perfect. However, we were unable to provide such support on this occasion as we did not hear back from the customer.”

Do you have a story to share? Email me at [email protected]

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Castle Combe in Wiltshire has been named one of the most beautiful villages in the UK, and anyone visiting the fairytale setting will see why it has received so many accolades

With summer upon us, Brits are eagerly scratching that holiday itch, and you don’t even need a passport for a slice of the extraordinary within our isles. Hailed as one of the most picturesque spots on the globe, let alone Britain, Castle Combe in Wiltshire is an essential stop for anyone venturing into the Cotswolds.

This storybook village, with its medieval stone cottages and timeless lanes, remains untouched by the march of time, offering sightseers an authentically charming experience. Encircled by the sublime Cotswold scenery, visitors to Castle Combe are treated to nearby woodlands, undulating hills, and verdant landscapes that accentuate the village’s alluring ambience.

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Described by Country Living as houses “so pretty they should be on a postcard” due to their “ancient, honey-hued” charm, it’s no wonder it’s counted among the world’s loveliest villages by travel experts.

CN Traveller said: “Castle Combe is a quintessentially English village located in the southwest county of Wiltshire. No new houses have been built here since the 1600s, so the town is a well-preserved stretch of Cotswold stone cottages and old pubs and churches.”

This idyllic village is a dream destination for photography enthusiasts, with the old bridge crossing the River Bybrook being the most iconic spot to capture due to its breathtaking location.

History buffs will be drawn to Castle Combe for its plethora of medieval structures, including the stunning St Andrew’s church, established in the 13th century, reports the Express.

The church houses the tomb of Sir Walter de Dunstanville, Baron of Castle Combe, a crusader who passed away in 1270, and also boasts a quaint shop renowned for its charming postcards.

Film aficionados will find it an exciting visit as Castle Combe has been featured in numerous iconic films such as the 1960s Doctor Dolittle, and more recently, the 2007 fantasy blockbuster Stardust and Steven Spielberg’s 2011 film War Horse.

Castle Combe is perfect for those seeking a leisurely holiday, offering opportunities for nature walks, historical site visits, and relaxing evenings at the local pub.

For those planning a nature walk, the village’s famous Little Picnic Shop provides everything needed for a delightful summer picnic.

However, for a quintessential English countryside experience, a visit to The Old Rectory Pop-up Tearoom is a must, where guests can enjoy afternoon tea complete with homemade cakes, sandwiches, and a cuppa served in traditional china.

The quaint village also boasts The Old Stables, a snug and informal coffee shop ideal for enjoying a bacon sarnie or your favourite hot drink.

As you wander through Castle Combe, you’ll find charming homes adorned with little stalls offering a delightful selection of local and homemade treats like jams, cakes, or sweets.

Travel aficionado Jamie, the mastermind behind ‘Explore with Ed,’ reckons now is the prime time to visit Castle Combe, citing mid-summer as the period when the village’s charm truly flourishes.

He commented: “The prettiness of Castle Combe is perhaps at its peak in the height of summer when the honey-coloured cottages are graced with colourful climbing plants and overflowing window baskets.”

A COASTAL town was treated to free chips with a twist – the chippy was powered by an electric car.

In the aptly named Kent town of Deal, National Fish and Chip Day was celebrated with 300 portions of chips given away, as well as a limited run of battered fish.

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But it wasn’t your ordinary chip shop, with the chippy being powered by two electric cars and fronted by TikTok’s ‘Chip Shop Diva’, Destiny Harold.

The Dacia Spring, which its makers say is the cheapest electric vehicle currently on the market, was the power behind the frying, in partnership with local chippy, The Blue Mermaid Fish Bar.

It comes after a poll of 2,000 adults found fish and chips is the most popular treat on a British holiday, as well as cream tea and hot doughnuts.

Others to feature in the top 20 list include Mr Whippy ice cream, Cornish pasties and mussels.

Quintessentially British foods, such as fish finger sandwiches, strawberries and cream and a pie and mash also featured in the ranking.

A spokesperson for car brand Dacia said: “It was fun treating passers-by today and showing the power of our electric car, Spring, using its vehicle to load technology, which allows you to power external devices off the car’s battery.

“It’s no surprise we have a national day dedicated to the iconic meal that is fish and chips and the study shows just how much we love it and associate it with holidays by the seaside.

“Playing on the phrase ‘cheap as chips’ in line with our affordable car and being in the appropriately named Deal, was a great way to celebrate National Fish and Chip Day.”

The research also found 41% of adults describe such foods as nostalgic, while 45% feel satisfied after eating them.

When ordering a classic fish and chips, cod (48%) and haddock (19%) were the most popular choices, but 69% simply order a portion of chips.

It also emerged 44% believe fish and chips is the ‘food of the people’ and 39% said class doesn’t impact how people eat it.

While 46% feel there is something nostalgic about eating the British staple with a wooden fork, which 33% typically do, although 38% opt to eat it by hand.

Food psychologist, James Cornish, said: “There are few things that unite the British public quite like fish and chips.

“Golden, salty, comforting, and steeped in history, this timeless dish is more than a meal – it’s a national treasure.

“Loved across generations, social classes, and regions, it’s one of those rare things that truly brings us together.

“There’s a certain kind of magic in fish and chips – a simple meal that somehow carries the weight of memory, comfort, and delight.

“Maybe it’s because we don’t expect too much from humble food, but our delight is excelled through the delivering of more than we expected.”

Teahouses built for spending extended time in, open until the wee hours of the night, are popping up all over the city. Some are elusive, hidden in plain sight or only accessible via a mysterious membership. Others have gone viral on TikTok and have cover charges and waitlists to attend. Some reference East Asian tea ceremony culture, others lean California cool and bohemian.

Jai Tea Loft owner Salanya Angel Inm prepares tea at her recently opened social gathering space in Koreatown.

(Dante Velasquez Jr. / For The Times)

Why the surge in places to drink tea? It might be because young people are consuming less alcohol (a 2023 study from Gallup found the number of people under 35 who drink has dropped 10% over the last two decades). Or maybe it’s due to the fact that the city has lost a sizable chunk of restaurants open past 10 p.m. — LAist reports nearly 100 since 2019 — leaving fewer places to sit and chat that aren’t bars or clubs. At the same time, activities centered on wellness and reflection, like gratitude groups, journaling or even reading silently in public, are being embraced by people of all ages looking for third spaces and activities outside of the standard dinner-and-a-movie.

Salanya Angel Inm was inspired to open Jai in Koreatown after years of feeling that Los Angeles lacked late-night spaces not oriented around alcohol. She wanted to create an alternative for her community of creatives, a place they could spend long hours loosening up outside of a bar environment. Lydia Lin, co-founder of Steep in Chinatown, which does serve alcohol along with plenty of tea, wanted a place that was open late but was peaceful enough that she could hear her friends while having a conversation.

Enter the rise of the teahouse. Despite their design and menu differences — some have a dozen herbal blends, others opt for dealer’s choice with a rotating set of three bespoke infusions; some are places to debut a trendy outfit, a few ask visitors to remove their shoes — they each come from a desire to challenge a typical consumer experience. These are spaces meant for lingering long after tea has been purchased, or even finished.

Below are four teahouses in different neighborhoods of Los Angeles.

Jai

Scenes from a Saturday night in May at Jai Tea Loft. (Dante Velasquez Jr. / For The Times)

Located above Thai Angel, known for its DJ sets and late-night noodles, newly minted teahouse Jai offers a quieter, more intimate space to spend weekend nights. The spot is owned and operated by Thai Chinese American model and breathwork and reiki practitioner Salanya Angel Inm, who co-owns Thai Angel with her mom and brother. She began tinkering with the idea of opening a teahouse in May 2022. In January 2024, construction began, with a soft opening following in March 2025.

Jai is housed in a one-room attic on top of Thai Angel. It’s cozy, with space for two dozen people at most. The room glows in yellow-orange light from a neon art piece fixed to the ceiling and is lined with brightly colored custom floor cushions made of fabric from Thailand. On a Saturday night in March, seven guests removed their shoes and sat for a storytelling event, ticketed at $10. This was the second installment of the event; Inm had selected the theme “Lucky to be alive.” Some guests recited poetry, while others freestyled between sips of tea. The group exchanged stories and lounged until 3 a.m.

Guests socialize on a Saturday night at Jai Tea Loft in Koreatown.

(Dante Velasquez Jr. / For The Times)

Jordan Collins bought a ticket for storytelling at Jai after hearing about it on Inm’s social media. Upon arrival, he ordered a herbal elixir featuring Asian botanicals from the brand Melati. It’s one of three premade nonalcoholic tonics (the other two are “Awake” and “Calm” by California-based brand Dromme) that Jai serves room temperature for $9. A fan of art shows and experimental music performances, Collins described himself as always on the lookout for new community spaces. “I think that was the first time I pulled up to anything completely solo with no expectations, with the full intention to yap for however long to a room with complete strangers,” he said, likening his experience to a night spent chatting with friends into the morning.

The tea selection at Jai Tea Loft.

(Dante Velasquez Jr. / For The Times)

The current menu at Jai consists of hot tea, sold by the glass or pot, along with the herbal elixirs — one invigorating, one calming and one berry. Tea drinkers can choose between more than a dozen herbs, from butterfly pea to white chrysanthemum, to create a custom blend prepared by Inm, starting at $15 per 25-ounce pot or $6 for a single serving. Behind the tea bar, she offers customers guidance based on their mood and needs.

She may expand the menu going forward but plans to keep costs low. “I really don’t like the idea that people can only access things that are good for them if they have a large amount of money to invest in themselves. I want people to feel like, ‘Yeah, I can swing that for this experience’ and it not be this obstacle,” said Inm.

Koreatown
149 N. Western Ave., Los Angeles, CA (upstairs)
Soft opening, see Instagram for hours

Tea at Shiloh

Patrons at Tea at Shiloh on a recent Saturday. (Yasara Gunawardena / For The Times)

Only 45 customers can enter Tea at Shiloh per evening, and those hoping to visit should plan ahead: Reservations, which are required, can be made through the website, and Tea at Shiloh fully books nearly every night.

As each attendee enters and takes off their shoes and adds them to the disorganized pile near the front of the door, a host asks them their intention for the evening. Patrons of the Arts District teahouse know what they’re getting into and answer the question with ease. The space attracts a metaphysically minded, wellness-oriented community. Some are there to journal, others to spend time with old friends. A few want to get out of their comfort zone; they come on dates, join with friends and arrive alone.

Guests socialize at Tea at Shiloh: A Teahouse.

(Yasara Gunawardena / For The Times)

The concept for Tea at Shiloh came to owner Shiloh Enoki (who goes by the mononym Shiloh) in 2019. Shiloh, who was born in Utah and is of South American descent, found herself unfulfilled working for a record label in Hollywood. She underwent a personal transformation that led to her quitting her job and legally changing her name. After a visit to a teahouse in San Francisco that closed in the afternoon, she couldn’t stop thinking how nice the experience would have been at night. She found herself looking for late-night teahouses back home in Los Angeles on Google Maps. To her surprise, she couldn’t find any. “I couldn’t believe that something that was in my brain didn’t exist on Google. I was like, ‘It has to be somewhere. It has to be somewhere in L.A.’ I live in one of the biggest cities in the world and nothing … I became obsessed,” she said. Shiloh began exploring herbalism and hosting friends and strangers at her home for tea, then decided to create a business that would provide what she’d been searching for. She opened the space in 2022.

Faith Bakar, Alexsys Hornsby and Rachel Angelica painting at Tea at Shiloh.

(Yasara Gunawardena / For The Times)

Tea at Shiloh is inside an industrial loft. Brick walls and exposed piping contrast with wooden furniture, white couches and floor cushions and the warm glow of Noguchi lampshades. Surfaces are covered in books, tarot cards, clay and other art supplies to make use of. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., laptops are welcome. For the evening shift, which goes from 7 to 10 or 11 p.m., the lights go down and laptops are banned (with an exception for Monday’s piano lounge events). Both time slots require prepaid reservations, which, day or night, start at $37 and include unlimited access to the only thing on the menu, a rotating selection of three custom tea blends by Shiloh’s herbalists.

On some nights, there’s live music; others feature workshops in journaling, ceramics and other mind-body activities and performances. “It’s not a singular experience. There’s something for everyone,” Enoki said. After discovering the space on TikTok, Cooper Andrews took his partner to “cosmic jazz” (an eclectic mix of saxophone, keys, and abstract vocal looping) night at Shiloh to celebrate her birthday. He was looking for something other than just another fancy dinner, and for him, the $47-per-person cover charge was well worth it. “I see the fee as a cover charge. It’s like going to a museum,” he said.

Arts District
2035 Bay St., Los Angeles, CA 90021
Reservation only

Steep LA

Steep LA in Chinatown.

(Solomon O. Smith / For The Times)

Friends Samuel Wang and Lydia Lin come from cultures that take tea seriously. Wang, an industrial designer, is Taiwanese, while Lin, a marketing MBA working in the legal field, is Cantonese. In 2019, they separately went on trips to Asia to visit their families and discovered how modernized traditional teahouses had become. “[In China] people our age were going to teahouses instead of bars or clubs. It was somewhere that wasn’t home to just hang out and be able to have a conversation,” said Lin. “Why didn’t this exist in L.A.?” the friends asked themselves.

Within six months, thanks to the help of their Chinatown community, Lin and Wang — who didn’t quit their day jobs — opened Steep in the fall of 2019. Opening night was the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, Lin remembers, an important and auspicious day.

The minimalist tea lounge hides in the back of a plaza in Chinatown. There’s space inside for a few dozen guests and a handful of outdoor tables for when weather permits. Inside, there’s a beautiful marble bar, wood tables, a cozy couch and long tables with tea leaves in jars to smell and discover.

By day, Steep serves 10 rotating teas, all sourced from China and Taiwan. Customers can order a glass of cold-brewed tea or fresh-brewed tea, but Lin encourages a tea ceremony, which comes with a pot and up to four cups. Baristas walk guests through the steps of brewing and pouring the tea, providing a timer for the perfect steep.

By night, Steep is the only business open in its plaza. Inside, soothing R&B plays. And, unlike the other teahouses that have popped up recently in Los Angeles, Steep serves alcohol. After 5 p.m., the space shifts from cozy teahouse to experimental mixology bar, serving boozy concoctions that all feature tea as an ingredient. Take the Yuanyang Martini, an espresso martini with black sesame and black tea or Red Robe, featuring cognac, bourbon, oolong tea and white miso. At 9 p.m. on a Thursday in March, nearly every seat was filled. Half of the guests enjoyed cocktails, while the rest shared pots of tea.

Chinatown
970 N. Broadway #112, Los Angeles, CA 90012
11 a.m.-11 p.m. daily; closed Tuesday

NEHIMA

There’s no information about NEHIMA online except for an email address. The invite-only, membership-based Japanese teahouse opened in Los Feliz in 2022. It’s more exclusive than any Soho House, San Vicente Bungalows or Bird Streets Club. So much so that its founders, Miho Ikeda and Richard Brewer, also co-owners of New High Mart, an equally exclusive Japanese home goods boutique, agreed only to speak about their latest venture via email.

“Serving tea to-go is to miss the entire point of tea. Tea is time. An excuse to enjoy a moment, a pause, a rest — either with oneself or the company of others,” said Brewer. The space has a strict no-technology policy. Even smartwatches are required to be checked in lockers along with phones.

At NEHIMA, all tea is served made-to-order, tableside, in pieces from the owner’s collection of Japanese ceramics. There are no matcha, lattes or novelty drinks on the menu, only loose-leaf tea sourced from Japan. NEHIMA is careful to distinguish that while the space and experience recall Japanese tradition, the club does not offer an official tea ceremony. “That term is thrown around too easily these days and should be reserved for describing the very specific event, ‘Cha-No-Yu,’” said Brewer.

The founders said the average visit is between three and six hours. Where most members clubs try to offer a luxurious experience for the wealthy through elevated design, upscale food and posh clientele, taking time to relax and enjoy a pot of tea is what NEHIMA sees as the ultimate luxury. “In this busy demanding world, time is the new flex, and real wealth is taking time to stare into a bowl of tea,” said Brewer.

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4650 Kingswell Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
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Tea is the most popular drink in the world other than water. It beats out coffee and beer, which hold second and third place.

May 21 is designated as International Tea Day by the United Nations, marking the significance and value of the drink globally, not just economically but culturally too.

Tea plays a meaningful role in many societies. From Tibetan po cha to a good old English breakfast brew, tea is considered a unifying and hospitable beverage.

While the exact origins of tea are unknown, it is believed to have originated in northeast India, northern Myanmar and southwest China, according to the UN. There is evidence that tea was consumed in China 5,000 years ago, making it one of the oldest beverages in the world.

How to say tea around the world

Across the globe, nearly all words for tea can be derived from the root words “cha” or “te”.

In many parts of South Asia, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe, the word for tea is derived from cha.

• In Mandarin: 茶 (chá)
• In Arabic: شاي (shāy)
• In Turkish: çay
• In Hindi: चाय (chāi)

In Western Europe, many countries use some derivative of te. For example, “tea” was introduced into the English language as a result of trade routes in the East. The word was taken from China, where it was pronounced “te” in the Hokkien dialect.

• In English: tea
• In French: thé
• In Spanish: té
• In German: tee

Who produces the most tea globally?

The tea plant is usually grown in tropical and subtropical climates where its cultivation and processing support the livelihoods of millions of people.

According to the latest data from the Tea and Coffee Trade Journal‘s Global Tea Report, China produces nearly half of the world’s tea (48 percent). India is the second largest producer, accounting for 20 percent of world production, followed by Kenya (8 percent), Turkiye (4 percent) and Sri Lanka (3 percent).

The rest of the world accounts for 17 percent of tea production globally.

How much tea is consumed daily worldwide?

According to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), world tea consumption reached 6.5 million tonnes in 2022, growing from previous years.

Consumption in China, the largest consumer of tea, reached 3 million tonnes in 2022, representing 46 percent of global consumption.

India, the second largest consumer, accounted for a share of nearly 18 percent at 1.16 million tonnes in 2022, followed by Turkiye with 250,000 tonnes, Pakistan with 247,000 tonnes and Russia with 133,000 tonnes.

According to the FAO, tea consumption expanded by 2 percent in 2022 compared with 2021 and further increased in 2023.

However, tea consumption in countries in Europe and North America has been declining due to increasing competition from other beverages while for Russia, tea imports have been negatively impacted by the war in Ukraine.

Five odd teas around the world

To mark this year’s International Tea Day, here are five somewhat unusual teas from around the world and how to make them:

Butter tea (po cha)

Found in: Tibet and other Himalayan regions

What’s odd?: It’s in the name. Made with yak butter, black tea and salt, butter tea is broth-like. Apparently, there is a tradition where the host will refill your cup with butter tea until you refuse or until they stop filling it, signalling it’s time for you to leave.

Kombucha – is it tea?

Found in: China, Japan and the Koreas

What’s odd?: Kombucha is considered a tea. It’s a fermented tea made using a jelly-like SCOBY (symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast). Kombucha fans often name their SCOBYs, treat them like pets and pass them to friends like family heirlooms.

Butterfly pea flower tea

Found in: Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam

What’s odd?: It is known as blue tea because of its colour, which then changes to purple when lemon juice is added. It’s caffeine free and made from a concoction of floral petals from the blue pea flower.

Baobab leaf tea

Found in: sub-Saharan Africa

What’s odd?: Baobab leaf tea is traditionally used in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa as a mild herbal remedy and nutritional drink.

Unlike most herbal teas, which are often floral or fruity, baobab leaf tea has a mildly earthy or even slightly bitter taste, a bit like spinach water.

Guava leaf tea

Found in: Philippines, Central America, Africa

What’s odd?: The tea is made from the leaves of the guava tree, which have an earthy flavour. In Philippine culture, it is said to have medicinal benefits for soothing stomach aches and bathing wounds.

May 14 (UPI) — Award-winning actress, comedian, television host and entrepreneur Whoopi Goldberg will headline the Cannabis Means Business event next month in New York City.

The Cannabis Means Business trade event is scheduled June 4-5 at the Javits Center, where Goldberg plans to launch her “Whoop-Tea” hemp-derived beverage.

Goldberg will join CNBC’s Tim Seymour at the CMB event’s opening day to hold an “exclusive conversation” in the special events area at the cannabis trade show.

The pair will discuss the rapidly growing cannabis beverage market and her Whoop-Tea product, which is being produced with the help of the Pure Genesis cannabis beverage brand.

“I wanted to create something that’s fun, relaxing and brings people together without the hangover,” Goldberg said in a news release.

“Whoop-Tea is exactly that,” she said. “It’s tea. It’s lemonade. It’s THC, and it’s all about unwinding and enjoying the moment.”

Goldberg said she is “excited” to “be a part of this incredible shift in wellness culture” and unveil her beverage during the cannabis industry event.

CMB organizers said the global cannabis beverage market was valued at $1.16 billion and is projected to top $3 billion in 2025.

Pure Genesis and Goldberg have partnered to produce Whoop-Tea, which is a non-alcoholic beverage that has THC and blends lemonade and iced tea.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Whoopi, a cultural icon who shares our passion for quality, community and breaking stigma,” Pure Genesis co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Faye Coleman said.

Pure Genesis co-founder Priscilla Wynn called the beverage a “testament to what’s possible when visionary women lead.”

Event attendees will have the opportunity to enjoy free samples.