All those teas are lovely, don't get me wrong, but it's hard to appreciate what you're drinking when it's a sideline to mountains of delicious food. Song Fang Maison de thé is a unique place where non-Chinese speakers can go to learn about the art of drinking Chinese tea and take home all the necessary instruments for enjoying tea at home.
- Bright, airy and inviting - easy to stop in for a new supply of tea or stay for a few hours sipping
- Knowledgeable staff happy to showcase the teas and educate you how to drink them
- 27 types of the finest Chinese and 18 imported French teas to choose from (and more on the way)
- Gorgeous signature tea containers and porcelain - great gifts for home
- Free wireless - take your laptop and enjoy your tea in a non-smoking environment (hurray!)
- Wish they were open late into the evening, but we can't have everything, can we?
- Song Fang Maison de thé
- Address: 227 Yongjia Road near Shaanxi Nan Road
- Tel: 021-6433-8283
- Hours of operation: daily 10am-7pm.
The first floor retail space showcases the fine teas in signature canisters in the manner of a Chinese medicine shop. Behind a counter, friendly staff happily bring down canister after canister to let you sniff and indulge in the aromas that waft out of the tins. Stopping in, just to sniff, is worth the time! I've never smelled such rich and delicious Oolongs or seen tea as beautiful as the Earl Grey Blue that combines delicate tea leaves with bright blue forget-me-not flower petals. Aside from teas, every ware you might need to drink your tea is available from classic Chinese motif teapots to traditional Yixing ("ee-shing") clay pots to the owner's signature motif on Western style cups and saucers.
Upstairs on the 2nd and 3rd floors you'll find open windows onto the laneway and wicker chairs pulled up to bright white Chinese tables. Take note of the 2nd floor's bamboo-poled ceiling and bird-cage lights.
The menu of teas is astonishing and it can be hard to choose. Let staff help you decide from
- a selection of green Oolongs from Anxi, southern Fujian,
- dark Oolongs from Wuyi, northern Fujian,
- aromatic Oolongs,
- black teas including keemun ("kee muhn"), known as the champagne of teas,
- green teas including famous long jin from Hangzhou,
- Jasmine,
- White,
- and 16 imported French teas.
If you're feeling peckish, Song Fang also offers an array of sweet nibbles. Some of the sweets are exclusively made for the teahouse using teas as ingredients by Visage's Eric Perez.
Drinking tea is part of Chinese culture; do stop in to experience this delightful tradition.
