A Great Tea Shop
On my last trip to Paris, walking from one appointment to another, I passed by a gorgeous little tea store. Unable to stop then, I went back later that evening to check out the store properly, and because I knew that my wife would really appreciate the gift of some really high quality tea.
I had originally planned to head over to Mariage Freres, in the Marais. When my wife and I were last in Paris together, we stayed a short walk away from this institution. However, upon stepping inside the Betjeman and Barton shop on the Boulevard Malesherbes, I quickly decided that the teas coming home with me were going to come from here.
The shop is small, but beautiful, and filled with a symphony of aromas rising up from the dozens of teas available. To be honest though, what caught my attention first was not the delicious smells or the obvious high quality of the teas, but the gorgeous tins on display all over the shop. I’ll admit freely, I love good design. These metal caddies, available in a whole range of colors, including fun shades like orange, pearl, red, chocolate, green, and violet, and in a variety of finishes, won me over instantly.
I decided to buy three different kinds of teas—an Earl Grey (one of her favourites), a Darjeeling (which I knew she wanted), and one flavoured tea for me. With the help of a very sweet saleswoman who didn’t make fun of my rather garbled French, I chose some “Earl Grey Finest”, some Jungpana Darjeeling and a blend called “Un gentleman a Deauville” which has a wonderful floral but also chocolate aroma. These went into, as you can see from the pictures, a matt red, glossy orange, and glossy chocolate colored caddy.
I should also say that the tea is wonderful, and I scored some major points for bringing these home. Here’s the shop address, but if you aren’t going to Paris anytime soon, the company does do international mail order via their website.
Alix checking out the teas
Betjeman and Barton
23 Boulevard Malesherbes
75008 Paris
Tel: 01 42 65 86 17
About Aun Koh
Aun has always loved food and travel, passions passed down to him from his parents. This foundation, plus a background in media, pushed him to start Chubby Hubby in 2005. He loves that this site allows him to write about the things he adores--food, style, travel, his wife and his three kids!
