Spot #28 Revisit:

Muir’s Tea Room

330 S Main Street Sebastopol, CA 95472

https://www.muirstearoomandcafe.com/

Before Pandemic, we would go on a small trip every spring break. I would always ask my husband or kids where they would want to go and what they would want to do. We love to do Reno or Sonoma. It had been waaay toooo long since I had been to Tea (this was before I restarted this Blog and current Tour), and I realized that after doing this for almost 10 years- we have never been to Tea together, the 4 of us!? So I chose this year. And instead of doing one big thing, we opted for enjoying lots of little things. After a week of eating out and mini outings, we ended with a bang and Mom took everyone to Tea. Not just any Tea, but my all-time favorite Tea Spot! (read my original review of Muir’s here) I wasn’t nervous to bring them…but maybe was a tiny bit apprehensive. I mean, we were using our spring break on something I liked. And I’m not usually one to insert my wants…I’m always asking everyone else!! But it was so cute. Before leaving for our hour and a half road trip, my husband yells through the house “What do I wear to Tea?!” Hahah. That softened my anxiety right up!

Another cool thing to mention: when I got back on Instagram, Muir’s followed us! I was such a fangirl about it too. The owner’s daughter takes care of their social media, and her + I have been chatting through DM. Sweet girl. They told me to let them know when I was coming back, so essentially the Blog was invited! 😉 She even went out of her way to share what was around the Tea Room, since she knew my kids would be coming with. And then let me know our puppy was very welcome, since we booked to be seated outside. For those who know me well- I love eating outside!! It’s my favorite. And look how cute:

Of course as per usual, we got a very big welcome. One of the servers came out with such great energy, and got our table ready. (we came early; see, excited I told you) She was so sweet to my dog. (see if you notice our Nova in any photos!) We pulled up a chair next to our table, and she sat nicely next to us the entire time.

First thing she took care of were our tea orders. Lots of delicious choices. About 3-4 from each tea base, which was nice. Let me mention that prior to coming, I tried not to read anything from my previous post about them. I wanted it to be as new of an experience again as possible, and didn’t want to rely on what I already knew about them. So- I was with my 16-year-old son, almost 12-year-old daughter, husband of 20 years, and 4-year-old shih tzu puppy. My son chose first. He was on it! He’s also very loyal. We had told the kids when they were little that it was the RULE that they weren’t allowed to have caffeine til they were 18. (They thought this was EVERY kids’ rule, haha!) They have a bunch of rooibos teas to choose from at home, if they want to have a cuppa. So it was no surprise that he went straight to the column of rooibos’s. He chose their Raspberry Vanilla. Our daughter on the other hand, will live on the edge when we allow her! After commending him for choosing caffeine-free, we said that we’d allow them a caffeinated choice for today. Without hesitation, my daughter decided on a black!! Hahaha. She wanted their Raspberry Chocolate Mint. The Huz went for their Yorkshire Gold. He said he wanted a black, and some of the flavors listed were interesting to him. I, loving maple flavors and nut teas, chose their Maple Walnut. (seriously not even remembering that we ordered this last time!)

Raspberry Vanilla – The raspberry in this was right up front. Not too much vanilla flavor. My son seemed to like it, cuz he didn’t wanna try any of ours!? When I asked him just now, he says “I liked it. It was warm.” Ay-yay-yay! (rolling my eyes)

Raspberry Chocolate Mint – The chocolate smell was very apparent. More mint scented, than flavored. It was kind of flat to me…which was good tho, cuz then it wasn’t as caffeinated for her hehe.

Yorkshire Gold – Very bold! He says ‘had a good clean taste and balance of flavors’.

Maple Walnut – Verrry fragrant! I could taste the green tea base. That maple hits you right away, and then the walnut is in the back. But a perfect blend for sure. It all came back to me at first sip! I remembered we ordered it last time!

Shortly after, the tallest plate of greens were brought to the table. Ben Weatherstaff’s Organic Seasonal Garden Salad – They were NOT stingy with that salad! I’ve never seen a dish packed so high and so stuffed to the brim!? For good reason too, as this salad (yes, just a salad!) was so so good. The owner explained that a local farmer came to have tea one day, and now is their official produce guy! These leaves were so delicate, you guys. I loved the occasional bitterness of some of them, you could totally tell it was organic + fresh. The vinaigrette was so light, my husband said it was “well dressed”. Those cherry tomatoes were so sweet, I felt like I was having tomato candy! As a matter of fact, my daughter + I were fighting over them! She says, “I never enjoyed a salad so much!” I will add that it was also piled high with green onions. My longtime readers know I can’t do a green onion! Haha. However, with that said, they were the most beautifulest green onions!! And, my family ate theirs all up. So I’m certain they were fabulous as well.

I knew the towers were coming and I had to save room, so I asked if I could pack up the rest of my salad. I only ate half. But you better believe I did not forget a single frond of lettuce! (yes, I packed the green onions too…my family loved theirs!) And again, Muir’s outdid themselves with this display. You guys, I couldn’t choose which angle to include so you’re getting all of them!!

So sweet, even after our server explained all the items of our tea service, the owner still came back with a fresh new menu for us to look at + keep. Which I’m using now, to make sure I get all the titles right! I watched my husband + kids as they took it all in. I was so happy to be there with them, and so thrilled for them to enjoy what I love. My 16yo son said “I’m just here for the music!” An eclectic musician (he plays the drums + electric guitar, all learned by ear; tho it helps that I married a drummer!) and old soul, he was lovin all the good music playing in the background!

Mrs. Medlock’s Scone with “cream” and a bottle of preserves – Ugh, you guyys! (sighing emoji face) (also, can you hear my whine?) They just do their scones so RIGHT. It’s like they made em especially for me!! Haha. “Oh she’s coming! Make the scones EXACTLY how she likes em!!” And I didn’t even mention (for my new Readers especially) that this is a plant-based/vegan Tea Spot yall! Okay, so back to these scones… I don’t even know how to write it down!? I make this sound to my family all the time, where I kind of chew and suck between my teeth, to explain my favorite food texture of aaaall-tiiiiiime. Think of the chewiest bread or like fresh mochi or a bouncy Portuguese cake… So this scone has surprise occasional bites of that!! Nice crispy edges and fluffy insides. And it’s plain! Nothing to fight with the cream or preserves, just how I like. And the cute little personal jelly jar is a really nice touch. (cuz I mean, who doesn’t like new cute tiny things?)

Martha’s Traditional Cucumber Finger Sandwich – I looked. (cuz I had to be reminded how it was last time, cuz I didn’t remember it this way…) And last time we came, it was one big thick slice of cucumber. This time! Boyyy! They really know how to work a mandoline. There were like 4 or 5 slices of the thinnest setting of cucumber. SO crunchy. And you know me with my textures- so good this way! Bread was soft, cream was good = winner! Oh yeah, and lined with all those chives!! The family agreed we coulda had a whole tray of these things- each!

Susan Sowerby’s Minted Pea & Radish Tea Sandwich – Whatever herbs were in this made it so intriguing.

Ayah’s Coronation Chickpea Tea Sandwich with Mango Chutney – There was like a thousand island sauce of some sort in this, that I was not mad at. Nice crunchy bits, nutty, bread had a good bite to it.

Colin’s Spring Asparagus with Lemon Pepper Sauce in Puff Pastry – How could you not like anything in puff pastry?! So chewy and flakey. The veg was cooked to perfection. Meaning you weren’t scraping strings of asparagus through your teeth and looking unattractive trying to break that thing apart… (yeah I said it! Haha) You bit down, and it broke off nicely. 100 points! I couldn’t get on board with the sauce, but the fam liked it a lot. I don’t know, it kinda reminded me of Chinese food (which I wasn’t expecting) so it just confused my tastebuds a little. I still ate it all tho!! Hahaha!

Yorkshire Pudding Tart with Onion Gravy – My daughter was laying it on thick with how much she loved this one. I think she was hinting at dibs, if I didn’t want/finish mine! Hehe. Spongey pastry, light mushroom flavor, squishy texture. I think I left her a nibble!

Dickon’s Crispy Choclate Bunny – This was just what I needed. A good thing to add to a tea service. I was almost full, and needed just a little something sweet. The dark chocolate was the right amount of bitter and sweet. And the rice krispies inside were a fun surprise! It wasn’t bound together, they were kind of free flowing in there…so you bit into it and cereal just pops in your mouth!? So fun!

Mistress Mary’s Caraway Shortbread – I couldn’t possibly eat another thing. Oh yeah, I don’t usually waste tummy space with the fruit that’s put on the tiers. But these were just calling out to me! And it was really refreshing to have watermelon, grapes, blueberries, and blackberries in between bites of my savories. My dog liked em too! (just the watermelon + blueberries) Okay, so this shortbread… I was full, but I HAD to take a bite. Honestly, this was a big reason why we were down here!! Since September of 2018, I had been raving to my husband about Muir’s shortbread! (he loves him some shortbread) And I never took him back to try any. So this was almost 5 years in the making, long-awaited. I didn’t read the menu and took a bite. What are these?! Caraway seeds?? Dood, caraway seeds? Who puts caraway seeds in shortbread? MUIR’S! And when I tell you it’s the most incredible flavor of shortbread!!?! Yall have to come try for yourself. Don’t wait 5 years!! Trust.

Misselthwaite Manor West Yorkshire Rhubarb Layer Cake – I didn’t taste this til I got home. Me, having it: “Hm, I don’t know if I like it…” [Puts it away] [Opens it back up] [Takes another bite] [Puts it away and tells the fam they can have it] [Comes back to it later to try it again] [Proceeds to finish it all by herself] (covering eyes monkey emoji here) My husband said it was moist + dense, and he wasn’t wrong! That’s exactly how I would describe it. It was such a chewy sticky piece of cake and you just kept wanting more to understand it!? Obviously, from my behavior above. Honestly, I wish I had more now! Hahaha!

The customer service here is unmatched. If you want a good time having afternoon tea, come here. The owner came out several times- asking how we were doing, showing an interest in who we were, even bringing Nova dog treats. Even her daughter did too! And she was busy making all of this tasty, gorgeous food in the back!! It’s not just a business to them. You can tell they really care about their consumers + patrons. It was a full house that day, and they were short-staffed as 2 of their employees were exposed to covid (thank you for keeping us safe, Muir’s!). Sitting outside by the door, we saw everyone going in and everyone going out. And EVERYONE was in a happy + relaxed mood! I know this Spot isn’t exactly “Bay Area”…but wherever you are, make the trip. I promise it will be worth your while!

All Muir’s Tea Room related posts:

Spot #28 :: Muir’s Tea Room

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