In Great Britain, the Royals like to enjoy tea and crumpets, but in Miami, we aren’t that stuffy. We like our tea with something better than dry cookies. How about tea and alcohol?
It’s tea time at Byblos on South Beach. Tea time with a twist.
Meli Reigle, Byblos: “In the Middle East, it’s traditional to welcome people into your home with a tea service, with some traditional tea and some noshes, and so we wanted to pay homage to the hospitality of the Middle East.”
Here you can get spiked teas.
Meli Reigle: “We use lemon verbena tea, we use black tea, we use hibiscus rose teas.
The tea is steeped, then they’re spiking these drinks with booze.
Meli Reigle: “We have a Habibi Margarita, which is tequila based, with strawberry and black tea.”
Vodka lovers, go for the Gypsy Queen’s High Tea. This one is fruity and floral, and it’s made with hibiscus-rose tea.
Meli Reigle: “We also have the Seven Celestials, and that’s for bourbon lovers. It’s a black tea based, and we use bourbon, and it has ginger and spices, and it really brings out all of the elements that a good barrel aging brings out in a good bourbon.”
The Edgeware Road is a nod to a street in London. The gin, lemon and black tea add to its British theme.
Meli Reigle: “It’s really well-balanced. You’re not going to really taste the alcohol element heavily, but it will be there. You’re not going to taste the tea heavily, either; it will be there.”
Since it is tea, it comes to your table in a steaming tea pot. Well, sort of.
Meli Reigle: “We have the traditional tea setup, and so we have the silver trays, and you have a teapot, and you have traditional Middle Eastern tea cups, that come with liquid nitrogen in it, which really is what really melds the flavors together. But it looks like it’s steaming. It looks hot.”
The teas are meant to be shared, so bring a friend.
Meli Reigle: “For two, it’s $35, and for four, it’s $70. You’re not going to find anything like this anywhere else.”
FOR MORE INFO:
Byblos Miami
1545 Collins Ave.
Miami Beach, FL 33139
786-864-2990
https://byblosmiami.com
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