CaryTown Teas

We stopped here once but will certainly be back!
Based off of what I saw online I wasn’t sure if this was a tea shop that just sold loose tea or if it was a place to get a cup of tea or an afternoon tea service. Its mostly a shop that sells loose leaf teas and tea blends. But the staff will also make you a cup of tea which is especially helpful if you are not sure which one you want to buy. They do not have an afternoon tea service to my knowledge. I really liked the list of teas and blends that I saw. I have been hunting for a good mint black tea and found it here. I didn’t see my favorite (Lady Londonderry) but other than that they really have everything else. I also liked that on the list of teas they sell, there are some steeping guidelines for each as different teas require different temperatures.

If you are a tea person, this shop is nirvana. If you’re not a tea person, put down your Lipton tea bag and go check this place out. You will never drink Lipton again. They have some beautiful blends and they are so friendly and willing to help you find something you’ll love. If you’re lazy and don’t want to go to Carytown, Kroger carries some of their popular teas. That said, you should stop by the Carytown store because their selection is amazing.
They have a small area where you can drink your tea in the shop, and they do stock tea supplies, but this is really a place to discover lovely teas and take them home to enjoy them there.

I love CaryTown Teas! It’s more than just a place to buy tea. It’s the place to go to get a tea education! They help you discover new things and really find a tea you’ll love!
I also joined their tea of the month club and I have been so so happy every time I open my mailbox! They include tasting notes, origin, and steeping recommendations.
I have yet to be disappointed!

I discovered the tea shop from a coworker who lives in the area who purchased tea as a Christmas gift for another colleague. The samples I received from my colleague were incredible. I immediate went home to purchase my own and I must admit, I am in tea heaven. The teas are vibrant, fresh, and the blends were perfect. I am a big fan of the ice wine tea and since I can’t drink wine at work, this is a great substitute. Since I am not in the area (reside in the DMV), I can’t attest to the shop. I can say that the customer service online has been impeccable, including sending me a sample of a wonderful tea with my order to make up for the delay in being not able to ship the one I selected. The lovely note that accompanied my order was a great touch. That is a company going above and beyond! I am hoping to stop by and visit this summer on my way to NC. In the meantime, I am very happy to keep up my tea orders online.

Their hours are not as advertised on their door or website. Very inconvenient and irritating to show up an hour prior to their advertised closing and have nobody there. Wish I could actually review their teas!

I had finally had enough with Teavana. Their boring and overpriced teas were not cutting it for me. Luckily, I found this gem of a tea shop! I was most impressed with the sheer amount of truly unique teas! The blends were so different than any other teas I have tried before and they were reasonably priced as far as loose leaf teas are concerned. I have been two times so far and I will definitely be coming back. I was also pleased with the pleasant and very helpful customer service! The lady (I’m assuming was the owner) working the tea counter was very glad to answer any question I had. If you plan on going to pick up some tea I would suggest that you try the turmeric ginger tea, it was truly an amazing herbal tea!

I love Carytown Teas! I’m not going to lie, during my first visit I experienced a bit of sticker shock. The tea is VERY expensive, and if you thought buying «fancy» yogi tea at the grocery store prepared you for your visit here, I promise you will be surprised like me. BUT, you get what you pay for. The tea here is delicious! And above all, the service is fantastic. I am still relatively new to the world of tea, and the staff has been so incredibly helpful pointing me in the right direction, letting me smell different kinds, and instructing me how to best make use of the tea I buy. Unfortunately, I simply cannot afford to go here as much as I would like, so every once in a while I have to cheat on my favorite shop. But when I do have the money, or I want the higher quality, this is the first place I stop! I recently convinced my husband to buy the tea of the month club for me, so I can’t wait for my first delivery. Plus, with the Group On it as much more affordable. Definitely one of my favorite places in Carytown!

Amazing tea selection and very helpful and knowledgeable staff when it comes to tea!!! Their hangover helper tea is a lifesaver!

I haven’t experienced the same problems as far as customer service that others have stated. The only problems I’ve had with this place was that it wasn’t easy to try new teas because they’re a bit expensive. But what I have had was nothing short of amazing. The Mosala Chai was incredible. It’s my all time favorite.

A wonderful selection of unique teas. From fabulous exotics blends to herbal cures. Workers are very knowledgeable about the products.

I normally like to support local but this place is just not worth it. I love loose leaf tea and wanted to check this place out and see what it had to offer. We decided to buy a few teas to sample. They were all bland and completely overpriced. I hate to admit it but Teavana’s teas are better quality, have more flavor, and priced better. This will be one of the few times that corporate wins.

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. I’ve had days I went in and got kiiiinda ignored while the woman behind the counter talked at length with other customers. I had one thoroughly enjoyable day where I and a friend got into a lengthy discussion with her ourselves [about zombie plans– is yours finalized?]. The tea is always good and high-​quality which is, admittedly, reflected in the price… but anyone who drinks good tea knows it’s not five dollars a pound or something crazy.
Ultimately my one real complaint about the place? There’s no bloody milk to put in my tea when I buy a cuppa… and when I asked, I was duly informed that putting milk in tea ruined the health benefits. So… I buy bulk tea hither, thither and yon and drink my tea at home.
With milk.

The service at this place is HORRIBLE. I went twice and have not been back in months. Each time, the staff has been either incredibly rude or inattentive. One woman who works here makes you feel bad for even asking a question about the teas. By far some of the worst retail attitudes in Carytown. I’ve since moved my tea transactions to Umami in Northside.

Sorry. I won’t be going there again… The service is a joke. For some odd reason, if you aren’t a handsome man, you get ignored. I must have waited a minimum of 20 minutes while the counter girl flirted and chatted up some dude. Anywho, No biggie, as there are other places to go to get really Great teas in Richmond. The funny thing is, though, as I mentioned this to another friend of mine, and she told me of a similar experience she had there.

Carytown Teas is a gem of a shop befitting a grander city than Richmond (sorry, Richmond). The selection of teas, all of which are organic and fair trade, is vast. The two employees that I’ve encountered, Patricia (the owner) and Mistie, are both absolutely delightful and extremely helpful. They are passionate about good quality teas, and it shows. I drink a lot of tea, and I won’t buy it anywhere else. Although the prices are steep, the products are well worth it. They also carry a large variety of tea implements such as tea pots, cups, travel mugs, steepers/​infusers/​bags/​balls, tea sets, whisks (for Japanese-​style matcha, or green tea), and much more.
The only way this place could be any better is if they served little appetizers to go with their delicious brews. I haven’t actually enjoyed a cuppa at the store, but apparently that is also an option, as the place advertises itself as a salon as well as a shop. If you love tea, you’ll be swept away by Carytown Teas. And if you ever move away from Richmond, or know someone outside the city who loves tea, they offer a mail order service, as well as a nifty tea of the month club, which would make a fabulous gift. As a testiment to their fine tea blends, they won second place in the North American Tea Championship in 2010, which is proudly advertised on the ceramic to-​go mugs they sell.
Here are some of my favorite blends, which Patricia lovingly creates by hand:
— Masala Chai
— Hot Cinnamon Spice (the perfect sweet winter tea; it warms the soul)
— Russian Earl Grey (my favorite tea in the whole world; it’s traditional Earl Gray with beautiful cornflower blossoms and orange peels, and it transcends description)
— Moroccan Mint (makes a great iced tea in the summer)
I also like many of the medicinal blends; they all have a pleasant flavor, though I cannot vouch for their scientific effects on my body. I figure they certainly can’t hurt, and I do know that plenty of the ingredients (valerian, ginkgo, ginseng, etc.) in various blends have been shown in legitimate scientific studies to have health effects.
There is a helpful list of all the tea blends and their ingredients at the counter for you to peruse, and Patricia or Mistie will happily pull down the canister of any tea you are interested in and offer it to you to smell, to see if it suits your fancy. Once, after chatting with Patricia for a while about what kind of teas I most enjoy, she offered me a small sample for free along with my purchase, which was a lovely surprise.
In conclusion, if you’re a tea lover in the Richmond area, you must go to Carytown Teas and experience it for yourself. You won’t be disappointed.

This is a cute tea shop tucked next to Carytown Burgers & Fries. You could pass right by it if you didn’t know what you were looking for.
Owner Patricia Adams has a passion for tea, and you can see this when you shop her store. Just tell her what you like and she’ll pull out varieties of different blends for you to smell. She’s got a great selection of just about any kind of tea you could want: rooibos, green, white, red, black, and even those pretty Asian tea bulbs that blossom into a flower when you soak them in hot water. I went to get a small gift for a stressed-​out friend, and she helped me choose a few different teas that offered a good range.
Her shop also has tea accessories like big and small pots, strainers, tea cups, loose-​leaf tea holders and more.
Again, making it a great place to stop for gifts. The only thing that could make this shop better would be a tea room where you can sample some of the different varieties.

This place is absolutely amazing, and full of great teas! Whether you are a connoisseur of teas or like to use medicinal teas, it is the place to go to! Its hard for me to go back to traditional tea I find in the super market! When I move away from Richmond, I’ll definately be shipping tea to wherever I will live.