The Tea Centre @ Churchgate, Mumbai
Simmu, one of my dearest friends, lives and works in Bombay. She is quite the foodie albeit a vegetarian one. Her favourite repast is the evening tea. Mind you, she attaches great ceremony to it… a multi-hued, rooster shaped tea-cosy knitted by a favourite aunt included! It was no surprise therefore, when on a recent visit to her I was proudly introduced to The Tea Centre.
Close to her place of work, it soon became a rendezvous for us girls (Mahima, another friend from school had recently moved there and was promptly seduced by this treasure-trove of tea). Charming, old worldly and clubesque, it was an anachronism in this day and age of coffee bars. The one thing that strikes you about the place is the welcoming lack of piped music. Soft murmurs, clinking china and tableware, and the gentle tinkle of tiny bells to catch the waiter’s attention – the only sounds.
Enhancing the colonial flavour, a tad inconsistently, were their wafer-thin sandwiches, freshly baked muffins, and crumbly scones with jam and clotted cream.While eye-catching posters emblazoned wall spaces with humourous tea quotes. “Kissing is like drinking tea out of a strainer, you can never get enough of it”, said the cheeky one hanging in our preferred corner.