This review is a long time coming! I came here 3 times between Oct 2022 and April 2023, bringing friends (some new and some repeats) for tea tastings. You can try 5 teas per tasting with 5 steepings per tea (for time's sake and not because of flavor dissipation). There is such a wide and ever-changing selection of teas so there's always more to try than you could possibly ever drink!Tea habitat specializes in Chinese teas, but since that's already a lot of area to cover, you'll find something for everyone's tastes. The owner is hilarious, and we all enjoyed interacting not only with the tea and each other, but also with her. We definitely leave tea drunk :)I usually put some tasting notes for the teas in my reviews, but notes for 15 teas is a bit excessive so I'll just share a couple of my favorites.The 2022 Tai Ping Hou Kui Wild Grown 1st pick is almost matcha-like, velvety soft with a slight nuttiness. The flavor mellows over the steepings into a clean mouthfeel with subtle floral bouquet.The 2022 Xiao Ye Tu Cha Wild Native (white) Varietal Small Leaf was super interesting! It started with a sweet aroma and reminded me inexplicably of soy milk (a mix of slight creaminess and nuttiness, maybe), but with juicy mouth feel. The creamy berry sweetness really predominates in the second steeping, and there is a subtle almost umami tendency in the third steeping.I also bought a Chao Zhou red clay teapot to brew Phoenix Dan Cong teas at home!To buy to bring home, the prices of the tea leaves really range, with (of course) the really high quality teas being pricier (but oh are they good!). This is not my go-to place to stock up tea for every day drinking (can't quite afford that and some personal preferences), but it's a great treat for tea lovers to be able to access and experiment with a variety of Chinese teas. Definitely a fun experience, especially with friends!
Johnny W.
Summary:High quality tea tastings, by appointment onlyDetails:My girlfriend and I have found tea tastings to be a nice way to try out a variety of teas we might not normally think to try, or easily have access to. The Bay Area is flush with tea shops that offer tastings, so we're always on the lookout for similar when traveling. SoCal, rather surprisingly, is lacking in this area, and Tea Habitat was one of these few places that popped up on our radar after a bit of research.$45pp gets you multiple steepings of five teas of choice over the course of a couple hours, from an extensive variety of Chinese teas, with some of the more premium options (largely puerh) running an additional per person cost. Depending on your timing and what you're drinking, you may get a lot more than the five steepings as well: we actually finished our tasting with one of the first pick puerhs that ran an extra $60pp, and probably got close to ten steepings, only stopping because we hit our caffeine and liquid intake limits and just simply could not continue.Because these are all by appointment only, your party and the owner, Imen, will be the only ones in the shop, which makes for a pretty chill tea tasting experience compared to the others we've been to in the Bay, which are usually held in loud, packed shops full of other customers. Fortunately, Imen is a great conversationalist, so you're not awkwardly sitting there for hours drinking tea in silence, though I'm sure she'd accommodate that too if you so wished.Getting to the shop can be a little difficult, being tucked away on the bottom floor of a mixed commercial/residential complex. Access is either through a gate that's usually open on S 5th St, or through a door in the back of the garage complex whose entrance is on the same street. If you get lost, just give the shop a ring.Accessibility:The shop is pretty small, but the tasting area, at the very least, is fairly accessible. I never checked out the restroom since we were headed back to the hotel immediately after, but since the shop is supposed to be coded for access, I would not be surprised if the restroom was accessible as well.
maryanne c.
After visiting Tea Habitat, I can honestly say I felt more proud of my roots! My favorite tea is Phoenix shit, Milky duck shit is a must try not only for the laughs but for taste. If you are looking for an authentic Tea spot please check it out. They also sell mini tea pots and were on LA times, LA magazine and Eater.
Adam C.
Tea Habitat is just the best place for rare tea, as well as authenticity, overall quality and care. I would recommend if you're visiting LA area to visit this shop.
Rob Connell
Thank you for a truly memorable experience! I have had the fortune to do tea tastings in many countries across three continents and I can say that Imen offered the best experience by far. The breadth of the menu is matched by the breadth of Imen’s knowledge, and getting to sit with an expert as we drank multiple cups of fine Chinese tea was a priceless experience indeed. Not only would I highly recommend a tasting but, given my experience, I would not hesitate to order anything from her online store that caught my fancy.
Claire Russell
We LOVED tasting with Imen a few months ago! She taught us so much about teas and how to drink them properly -- she also offered great conversation and a wonderful atmosphere. If you are at all interested in tea, its definitely worth making a trip out to Tea Habitat!
Chelsea C.
Here for Phoenix Sh*t!! Don't worry that is just the name of the tea. It's a very good tasting tea at that! Tea Habitat prepare their tea tasting gong-fu style. Appointment only. For $45, we tried 5 teas with 4 steepings each. We tried White Peony White Tea, Fried Green, Orchid Aroma, Hundreds Flower Valley Ancient Tree, and Phoenix Sh*t. My favorite was the Phoenix tea. Tea Habitat is hidden inside an apartment complex, so it can be hard to find at first. Apparently, the complex was designed to be commercial and residential, but it was weirdly designed. There is a parking lot next to it and there is street parking (watch out for street sweeping). The owner had been doing this for many years. We had a good conversation with her. Although, I wished there are more tea education during the tasting. I'll recommend Tea habitat for tea connoisseurs as this is definitely a hidden gem. It's literally hidden and hard to find. There's no food or snacks here, just tea.
Britney H.
There's no food at this place! Just tea! There's only one person holding down the shop so the service is great! The ambiance is really quiet and I definitely recommend it for tea enthusiasts!
Barbara S
My experience at Tea Habitat was truly wonderful. Imen walked our group through all the incredible teas she has to offer and helped us pick a delightful mix to try at our tea tasting. I'm a life-long tea drinker, and I was astounded by what we had. I highly recommend spending an afternoon drinking tea at Tea Habitat; I hope to visit again in the future!
Ruthie Odom
Best tea in L.A. Maybe even USA. If you are into authentic Chinese tea this is the place to go! You will not be disappointed.
Tea at TeaHabitat was excellent beyond describe! I cannot recommend both the tea and the tea tasting enough, if you are even a little excited by tea: make time to stop by - I look forward to visiting again next time I’m in LA!
Ioana O
Beautiful, thoughtfully selected tea ware, and a wonderfully curated tea selection. It’s clear the owner has immense love, passion and knowledge of this art, that fortunately for her customers translate into incredible teas of the highest quality. Happy drinking! ;)
ka fai Wong
operates out someone home in a mix-use building in Alhambra. So just the owner and one table. She set 5 tea chats with us for 3 hour. Really different experience
Kylie Phillips
Thank you Imen, my visit at Tea Habitat was wonderful and I am happy to return soon and try more tea again. Everyone should come here at least once to try her variety of amazing teas and look at the beautiful teaware she supplies. I promise you will want to come again, Imen is such a genuine person and you can’t help but fall in love with this place
Michael A.
I've been to Tea Habitat a small handful of times at this point and I feel strongly that this is (by far) the best place to go tea tasting in all of Los Angeles. To be clear, I'm not talking about boba. Tea Habitat offers top-tier oolong tea, black tea, green tea, white tea, and more. If you are interested in sampling some of the best and rarest teas in the world, I highly recommend making a reservation here (the tasting room is usually open by appointment only). The selection is unrivaled. Although you may be intimidated by the level of quality and connoisseurship, I can assure you that the owner is extremely welcoming and friendly. Service is impeccable, and the experience is truly world-class. While we first discovered them after being featured in Los Angeles Times 101 Best Restaurants in Los Angeles (2019), this place has also been featured by LA Weekly, LA Magazine, and Eater. Their reputation is spotless for good reason. It's simply the best.
This review is a long time coming! I came here 3 times between Oct 2022 and April 2023, bringing friends (some new and some repeats) for tea tastings. You can try 5 teas per tasting with 5 steepings per tea (for time's sake and not because of flavor dissipation). There is such a wide and ever-changing selection of teas so there's always more to try than you could possibly ever drink!Tea habitat specializes in Chinese teas, but since that's already a lot of area to cover, you'll find something for everyone's tastes. The owner is hilarious, and we all enjoyed interacting not only with the tea and each other, but also with her. We definitely leave tea drunk :)I usually put some tasting notes for the teas in my reviews, but notes for 15 teas is a bit excessive so I'll just share a couple of my favorites.The 2022 Tai Ping Hou Kui Wild Grown 1st pick is almost matcha-like, velvety soft with a slight nuttiness. The flavor mellows over the steepings into a clean mouthfeel with subtle floral bouquet.The 2022 Xiao Ye Tu Cha Wild Native (white) Varietal Small Leaf was super interesting! It started with a sweet aroma and reminded me inexplicably of soy milk (a mix of slight creaminess and nuttiness, maybe), but with juicy mouth feel. The creamy berry sweetness really predominates in the second steeping, and there is a subtle almost umami tendency in the third steeping.I also bought a Chao Zhou red clay teapot to brew Phoenix Dan Cong teas at home!To buy to bring home, the prices of the tea leaves really range, with (of course) the really high quality teas being pricier (but oh are they good!). This is not my go-to place to stock up tea for every day drinking (can't quite afford that and some personal preferences), but it's a great treat for tea lovers to be able to access and experiment with a variety of Chinese teas. Definitely a fun experience, especially with friends!
Summary:High quality tea tastings, by appointment onlyDetails:My girlfriend and I have found tea tastings to be a nice way to try out a variety of teas we might not normally think to try, or easily have access to. The Bay Area is flush with tea shops that offer tastings, so we're always on the lookout for similar when traveling. SoCal, rather surprisingly, is lacking in this area, and Tea Habitat was one of these few places that popped up on our radar after a bit of research.$45pp gets you multiple steepings of five teas of choice over the course of a couple hours, from an extensive variety of Chinese teas, with some of the more premium options (largely puerh) running an additional per person cost. Depending on your timing and what you're drinking, you may get a lot more than the five steepings as well: we actually finished our tasting with one of the first pick puerhs that ran an extra $60pp, and probably got close to ten steepings, only stopping because we hit our caffeine and liquid intake limits and just simply could not continue.Because these are all by appointment only, your party and the owner, Imen, will be the only ones in the shop, which makes for a pretty chill tea tasting experience compared to the others we've been to in the Bay, which are usually held in loud, packed shops full of other customers. Fortunately, Imen is a great conversationalist, so you're not awkwardly sitting there for hours drinking tea in silence, though I'm sure she'd accommodate that too if you so wished.Getting to the shop can be a little difficult, being tucked away on the bottom floor of a mixed commercial/residential complex. Access is either through a gate that's usually open on S 5th St, or through a door in the back of the garage complex whose entrance is on the same street. If you get lost, just give the shop a ring.Accessibility:The shop is pretty small, but the tasting area, at the very least, is fairly accessible. I never checked out the restroom since we were headed back to the hotel immediately after, but since the shop is supposed to be coded for access, I would not be surprised if the restroom was accessible as well.
After visiting Tea Habitat, I can honestly say I felt more proud of my roots! My favorite tea is Phoenix shit, Milky duck shit is a must try not only for the laughs but for taste. If you are looking for an authentic Tea spot please check it out. They also sell mini tea pots and were on LA times, LA magazine and Eater.
Tea Habitat is just the best place for rare tea, as well as authenticity, overall quality and care. I would recommend if you're visiting LA area to visit this shop.
Thank you for a truly memorable experience! I have had the fortune to do tea tastings in many countries across three continents and I can say that Imen offered the best experience by far. The breadth of the menu is matched by the breadth of Imen’s knowledge, and getting to sit with an expert as we drank multiple cups of fine Chinese tea was a priceless experience indeed. Not only would I highly recommend a tasting but, given my experience, I would not hesitate to order anything from her online store that caught my fancy.
We LOVED tasting with Imen a few months ago! She taught us so much about teas and how to drink them properly -- she also offered great conversation and a wonderful atmosphere. If you are at all interested in tea, its definitely worth making a trip out to Tea Habitat!
Here for Phoenix Sh*t!! Don't worry that is just the name of the tea. It's a very good tasting tea at that! Tea Habitat prepare their tea tasting gong-fu style. Appointment only. For $45, we tried 5 teas with 4 steepings each. We tried White Peony White Tea, Fried Green, Orchid Aroma, Hundreds Flower Valley Ancient Tree, and Phoenix Sh*t. My favorite was the Phoenix tea. Tea Habitat is hidden inside an apartment complex, so it can be hard to find at first. Apparently, the complex was designed to be commercial and residential, but it was weirdly designed. There is a parking lot next to it and there is street parking (watch out for street sweeping). The owner had been doing this for many years. We had a good conversation with her. Although, I wished there are more tea education during the tasting. I'll recommend Tea habitat for tea connoisseurs as this is definitely a hidden gem. It's literally hidden and hard to find. There's no food or snacks here, just tea.
There's no food at this place! Just tea! There's only one person holding down the shop so the service is great! The ambiance is really quiet and I definitely recommend it for tea enthusiasts!
My experience at Tea Habitat was truly wonderful. Imen walked our group through all the incredible teas she has to offer and helped us pick a delightful mix to try at our tea tasting. I'm a life-long tea drinker, and I was astounded by what we had. I highly recommend spending an afternoon drinking tea at Tea Habitat; I hope to visit again in the future!
Best tea in L.A. Maybe even USA. If you are into authentic Chinese tea this is the place to go! You will not be disappointed.
Restaurantji Recommends
Tea at TeaHabitat was excellent beyond describe! I cannot recommend both the tea and the tea tasting enough, if you are even a little excited by tea: make time to stop by - I look forward to visiting again next time I’m in LA!
Beautiful, thoughtfully selected tea ware, and a wonderfully curated tea selection. It’s clear the owner has immense love, passion and knowledge of this art, that fortunately for her customers translate into incredible teas of the highest quality. Happy drinking! ;)
operates out someone home in a mix-use building in Alhambra. So just the owner and one table. She set 5 tea chats with us for 3 hour. Really different experience
Thank you Imen, my visit at Tea Habitat was wonderful and I am happy to return soon and try more tea again. Everyone should come here at least once to try her variety of amazing teas and look at the beautiful teaware she supplies. I promise you will want to come again, Imen is such a genuine person and you can’t help but fall in love with this place
I've been to Tea Habitat a small handful of times at this point and I feel strongly that this is (by far) the best place to go tea tasting in all of Los Angeles. To be clear, I'm not talking about boba. Tea Habitat offers top-tier oolong tea, black tea, green tea, white tea, and more. If you are interested in sampling some of the best and rarest teas in the world, I highly recommend making a reservation here (the tasting room is usually open by appointment only). The selection is unrivaled. Although you may be intimidated by the level of quality and connoisseurship, I can assure you that the owner is extremely welcoming and friendly. Service is impeccable, and the experience is truly world-class. While we first discovered them after being featured in Los Angeles Times 101 Best Restaurants in Los Angeles (2019), this place has also been featured by LA Weekly, LA Magazine, and Eater. Their reputation is spotless for good reason. It's simply the best.