Brighton’s opportunities to experience the joys of tea, on its own or combined with other pleasures, are numerous and eclectic. They echo the open-minded, friendly, quirky character of the city and its historic association with wellness and fun. You can enjoy tea in Brighton’s famous Royal Pavilion. The pavilion is an over-the-top, Georgian pleasure palace replete with whimsical “Eastern” turrets and domes. Or, you could have it on a traditional red double-decker Routemaster bus – while taking in the sights of the city. Alternatively, you could have tea in any number of Brighton’s many, many coffee (yes, coffee) shops, cafés and hotels – including the historic and imposing Grand Hotel. You can even enjoy a cup of tea while having a tarot card reading (this is Brighton after all). Or – for the purists among you – you can seek out the specialty tea sellers, many of which originated in Brighton. Having recently moved to the city, it was a delight to sample a few of these offerings and to give you a taste of what you can expect as a tea lover in Brighton.

 There must be something special in the air of Brighton for it to have been the birthplace – or nursery – of so many iconic and innovative brands. Anita Roddick started her natural, organic toiletries shop, The Body Shop, in Brighton. One of the very first Virgin Records stores – where, as a teenager, I would sit and listen to Nina Simone and Bob Dylan’s latest LPs- was under Brighton’s clock tower. And it has also been the spawning ground of some very special tea brands. These include Hoogly Tea, Bird and Blend, and MD Tea. 

MDTea

MD Tea’s tiny shop is tucked into a corner beneath the dome of Brighton’s breezy, cavernous Open Market.  It was founded by former sports physiotherapist Helen Taggart. Its blends carry names like The Devil is a Woman and Sweet Talulah, evoking classic 1930s movies. I sat in on one of the tea-tasting sessions Helen runs in the little shop. I was suffused in the tantalizing aromas from the floor-to-ceiling shelves of tea.  She talked us through the twists and turns of the tea trade’s dark history. She also explained the difference between white, green, oolong, and black teas. We could see, smell, touch, and taste each one so that each of our senses was engaged and intrigued. Then, she discussed the health benefits of tea, including its anti-oxidant polyphenols and L-theanine, which slows the release of caffeine. We also learned how tea gives you a gentle, lasting lift (as opposed to coffee’s sudden, crude buzz followed by a crash). MD Teas are available in numerous cafés and hotels in and around Brighton. You can also buy tea directly from their store, Unit 27 at the Brighton Open Market, or online.  

Bird and Blend

Bird and Blend’s cheerful blue and white painted shopfront opens out onto Gardner Street, one of the city’s vibrant, eclectic North Laines. Its neighbors are market stalls selling the likes of silver earrings from Nepal, Native American wood carvings, Moroccan rugs and tagines, all beneath the giant, red-and-white-striped legs kicking above the independent Komedia Cinema. When I visited the shop, it was thronged with customers sampling the huge variety of flavored teas on display. They were perusing the brightly colored shelves, discussing their taste preferences with the eternally helpful and enthusiastic staff, or simply jiggling to the music. The company’s mission is “to spread happiness & reimagine tea”. If the rave reviews on TripAdvisor are anything to go by, they are succeeding.

I sampled the Brighton Rock tea, named for the famous sticks of Brighton Rock Candy that have the name Brighton running miraculously through the whole length of the sweet. The peppermint flavor of the tea was remarkably close to the real thing. 

Hoogly Tea

Hoogly Tea is named after the Scandinavian concept of hyggelig – “a year-round feeling of warmth, well-being, and coziness” (not, as you might think, after the river that runs through Kolkata – the western arm of the Ganges on its way to the Bay of Bengal). Founded by Dane Tina Gloggengieser, the company prides itself on both the quality of its teas and creative blends. It also commits to using “100% compostable tea packaging”. For a short time, you could enjoy Hoogly Tea at their café near Preston Park. Unfortunately, it is no longer open.

But there are many other places you can get it, both in Brighton and across the country.  I enjoyed a cup of Hoogly’s fragrant and fruity Spiced Orange Tea at Rockwater in Hove (Brighton’s close neighbor and considered part of the same city), sitting in a big, comfy sofa, beside an open fire, looking out through the vast plate-glass window to the sea.  

Next door to Rockwater, there is a little wooden hut where you can buy snacks and drinks, including a mug of good, honest black tea with milk. It is one of the city’s numerous snack shacks along the seafront. However, this one bears the intriguing name “Hove Shacktually” – a complex play on words and ideas that could only happen in this city. It refers to the fact that people who live in the Hove part of Brighton and Hove get sick of people telling them they live in Brighton and wearily reply, “No, I live in Hove actually”. Then there’s the added playful reference to the star-studded 2003 film “Love Actually”. Throw a wooden shack into the mix and you end up with Hove Shacktually! 

Mowgli

While researching this article, I was super alert to Brighton’s tea offerings. So, I made sure to sample a Chai Rum Sling during my birthday dinner at Mowgli, a quirky Indian restaurant serving ‘street food’. The restaurant seats me amid tree branches wreathed in sparkling lights and swing seating hanging from the ceiling. The menu describes the tea-based cocktail as a “Soul-warming chai-infusion, white rum tangled with a sweet & sour mix of apricot liqueur, apple, mint, lime & sugar”. The result was delicious and refreshing. Mowgli sits in the smarter of Brighton’s famous lanes – THE Lanes (rather than North Laines with its cheeky extra ‘I’).

That Little Tea Shop

The Lanes is also the home of That Little Tea Shop in the Lanes that serves cream teas – that is, tea with scones that are freshly baked on the premises – or more elaborate afternoon tea (with cakes and sandwiches as well) along with an array of loose leaf tea served in proper tea pots. 

Tea and Tarot

For something a little more offbeat, you could try Fiona Coffey’s Tea and Tarot readings. She offers these in various venues, including Metro Deco in Brighton’s bohemian Kemp Town district. She also offers readings at her home, which is where I met her. Fiona opens the door with a beaming smile and welcomes you into her spacious, spotless open-plan kitchen-dining room. Here, she offers you a cup of tea and a cake from a little tiered cake stand on the kitchen island. The tea is actually not the main focus of the event.

Fiona explains that the reason she combines tea with tarot card readings is to draw people away from the perception of tarot as something “dark and witchy”. The idea emerged during lockdown, when she brought groups of friends together online to virtually share a cup of tea and read their cards together. They found both the session comforting and cathartic. 

And all over the city, there are homely little neighbourhood cafés – like my local, Joe’s Café that’s hosted by Julia – a friendly, caring Aunty figure who knows and cares about everyone who enters. It serves hearty breakfasts and brunches (always with tasty vegan options) and a hearty mug of Fairtrade Clipper tea for a fraction of the price that you would pay in the city centre – and even free on weekdays.

There are no doubt hundreds of other places where you can enjoy tea in Brighton (and Hove, actually). I hope this gives you a taste of the joyful spirit of this city and the many ways it offers you to enjoy tea by the sea.

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