On another day of Stygian gloom I'm determined to be cheerful. So rather than tell you that the ferries are off again, or that the valley gutter between the nave and the chapel at the back of the church is dripping water onto the floor again, or that we were too fearful of the wet slippy wooden stairs to put the Magi back in their bubble-wrap-filled chest, or any of the other doom-laden snippets that make for your average January-in-the-west-of-Scotland blog post, I'm going to tell you all about the new tea room we discovered on our pleasant day out in Glasgow last week.
Brewhaha has opened in the lowest floor of Buchanan Galleries - tucked in at right angles to Costa Coffee at the foot of the escalators. There we had a pot of the wonderful Formosa Fine Oolong tea, described in their "teacher" menu as "light, smooth, and with a wonderful flowery fragrance ... a tea for moments of quiet contemplation and calm." And there we sat, on candy-striped seats surrounded by the pale pinks and greens which so contrasted with the dusk of blue-lit Buchanan Street, and contemplated calmly before tackling the evening rush hour.
As my nearest and dearest know, I am a complete tea snob. To find a tearoom which caters, it seems, for moi at my most demanding is a joy as unexpected as it is cheering. And to discover that this is a Scottish company, and that they also make delicious sandwiches, is even better. As for the tea? They sell 13 black teas, 3 varieties of Oolong, 4 green teas, 3 white teas, 7 "infusions" - peppermint et al - and 8 so-called "Super Teas", one of which is described as Anti-aging tea. It seems to consist largely of sea buckthorn berries, which to my certain knowledge smell horrid and are avoided by birds.
But maybe I should try some...
Well, hurrah for you, then! To remain cheerful in the midst of gloominess is definitely a noble pursuit! Tis very easy this time of year (and not just in Scotland, methinks!) to allow the "gloomies" to swallow us alive and get the best of us! Realize I am speaking for the masses, as I mulled in my own mind just the other day that I might be called the "Frost Queen" or some such thing, as this weather doesn't bother me like most, but actually makes me feel better than the heat and nasty humidity of summer....I am, though, trying to imagine a winter of "raininess" as opposed to "snowiness" and am not so sure I would remain cheerful at all!
ReplyDeleteOh, how I love your description of the tearoom. I closed my eyes and drank in the scene, allowing myself the luxury of daydreaming for a few minutes before coming back down to earth! The place sounds wonderful. Or maybe even wonder-filled. Of course, I am not a tea snob, and just enjoy company (or other customers!) probably as much as the refreshment itself!
you forgot to mention the clever little pots they give you alongside the cup so that you can remove the tea leaves when it gets to the desired strength... and the fun of watching people play 'what's this for?'.
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