Herbs & Tea

As the boys were away last week, my mom and I spent a day together - we visited a used book sale where I found some goodies on hospitality and womanhood, a candy shop for a few gummy treats for my nephew, a cannery where they sold all sorts of jarred delectables and an antique store that had lots of odds and ends of things - paper goods, linens, buttons and sewing notions and huge jars of gorgeous potpourri.

For lunch we fell over a tea shop - Ye Olde English Tea Room. We didn't have reservations, but they had a table on the porch which suited us just fine. Mom had a huge Maui Chicken Salad with Cinnamon Plum Iced Tea, and I enjoyed Broccoli-Tomato Quiche with a Side Salad and Apricot Iced Tea. It was all delicious, and we hope to come back sometime for their High Tea. The tea room specializes in British fare including Cream Cakes and Treacle Pudding. They also have a little gift shop in the front where they sell various candies and canned goods from England. A delightful place to visit -



And now for my favorite stop - King's Herb Nook. Oh. My. I could have moved right in. When you walk in the door, you are immediately hit with the amazing smell of a blending of herbs, teas and soap. Other than the computer on the desk, the experience was like walking back in time. Shelves of bulk goods, herbal supplements, and oils. Baskets of chunks of wonderfully-smelling homemade soap and herbal cosmetic products. Jars and jars of dried herbs and loose tea to buy by the ounce or pound. The front counter with a basket of fresh bouquets of basil and mint to buy. And baskets of fresh produce on the porch as well as herbs and periennials lined up outside for taking home to your garden. The whole experience was pure delight to the senses! I plan to visit this place again and again. (King's Herb Nook doesn't have a website, but they do have an e-mail address for questions - kingsherbs@emypeople.net.)