Things to Do in Akron, OH: Lavender and Lace

Finally, podcast episode #2 has arrived! I've switched to being mostly on my Mac, and it took me a bit to figure out Garageband (much thanks to Big-O's Techno Fodder podcast for making it much easier). I also used Adobe's new sound editor Soundbooth CS3 to attempt some heavy-duty cleanup. I really like the program, and it did manage to make my noisy recorded-in-the-car podcast a little bit cleaner. It's still not great sound quality, but I tried!

Now, on to tea. There are many tea rooms in Ohio, and I hope to explore many of them, but my mom's favorite is Elizabeth's Lavender and Lace Tea Toom in Dover, OH which is about 45 miles outside of Akron. The tea room is housed inside an absolutely gorgeous 1876 Second Empire Victorian Home that retains the original mansard roof. I love places like this because the history is just palpable.

The interior is decked out in Victorian style. There are multiple tea rooms and plenty of hats, boas and stoles to play dress-up (you're never too old to play dress-up!). They specialize in afternoon tea parties for all ages, and it's a great place for birthday parties, bridal showers or just a casual get-together.

We enjoyed a four-course meal, and everything was very good. Our tea choices were the Winter White Earl Grey, which I found to be much lighter than the standard black, and a Raspberry Tea, which wasn't our favorite but would be good if you're looking for a fruitier, non-caffeinated choice. The color was beautiful. Our menu was as follows:

First Course: Lemon tea bread, Chicken noodle soup and a light salad.

Second Course: Chocolate chip scones with raspberry jam and whipped cream.

Third Course: Three varieties of tea sandwiches - cinnamon pineapple cream cheese, chicken salad and tuna salad.

Fourth Couse: A variety of desserts - raspberry tart, chocolate cake and key lime pie.

We had a great time and were absolutely stuffed upon leaving. We visited the gift shop before we there, where they sell a variety of tea. I purchased a sample of their pumpkin spice tea, which would be lovely in the fall.

We weren't able to record inside the tearoom itself, so we had a discussion about tea on the drive home. We talk about our experience at the Lavender and Lace tea room, as well as about the history of tea and it's renewed popularity here in the U.S.

Links of Interest

Stash Tea: A nice overview of the history of tea.

Harney & Sons: One of my favorite tea purveyors (I thought they were British, but apparently they're in Connecticut.)

Intelligentsia: Known for their coffee, but I had an intense to-go cup of Jasmine tea here. I could have worn it as perfume.

British Express: Browse and purchase a variety of British tea here.

How to Make a Perfect Cuppa: BBC Guide to a perfection in a tea cup.

Tea Post from Neil Gaiman: What my favorite Brit author has to say about teal.

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Click here to listen:
Bitespot 02: Lavender and Lace

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View photos of our Lavender and Lace visit on Flickr.