Tea Zone / Camellia Lounge
510 NW 11th Ave
Portland, OR 97209
Hours:
Happy Hours:
Website: http://www.myspace.com/teazone
Tea Zone Camellia Lounge (TZ Camellia), tucked unassumingly in one of the Pearl’s concrete monoliths, is the perfect place to break up. It’s not that you should air your dirty laundry and relationship woes at this cute tea-infused bar–actually, I would appreciate if you kept that on day time TV– but the two-fold experience lends itself to Kit Katting a group into two.
Tea Zone is the façade and front half of the store, where the calming scents of tea intertwine in a low-key setting. It’s got the intimate wine bar feel, except tailored to the tea crowd. [SENTENCE HIGHLIGHTING TEA SPECIALTIES] There are a couple of chairs and small tables, perfect for those times you just need to read some Mother Jones by yourself with a cup of maté.
At the back of the tea bar, a doorway opens up into the Camellia Lounge where you’re greeted with a full-sized projector equipped with Wii. As if that’s not enough, Wednesday through Saturdays, there are local gigs ranging from jazz to local DJs and Tuesdays boast movie nights on the big screen. There is limited seating, so unless you plan on taking up the whole place, which can be tricky on popular nights (check their MySpace website for gig updates), I’d cap your group (or leave the rest in the front!) While the overarching tea vibe tones down at the front of the lounge, the flavors do not. Teas are cleverly infused into cocktails, such as the signature ‘marTEAni,’ and for the non-alcoholic types, they boast a wide range of bubble teas. During a barhop, Camellia is also the perfect time to replenish by sharing a panini or one of their other well-priced snacks.
Add TZ Camellia to your list when you’ve grown sick of over-sweetened pomegranite martinis and just want something that tastes less like lipstick and more like how an cocktail should taste: fresh, layered and with the slightest hint of Eastern spice.
–T.M.
GROUP SIZE: 3-5
DRESS: Casual
DATES: Not ideal, better for groups
UNIQUE FACTOR: Tea-infused cocktails
