Halcyon Tea

For all you Halcyon lovers, it seems that James has moved shop northbound:
cheers!

A++

I live in Del Mar, but came down here specifically to go to this shop, and I am so happy I did! I was on the hunt for some loose tea, and even though I had no idea what I was looking for, the employees were very helpful and patient while I smelled and asked about various teas.
I ended up buy 5 different teas. I’ve tried 2 so far, and they were both great! I am so excited I found this place, and will definitely return.
Thanks Unilocal for helping me find this fantastic place!

If you’re a loose leaf tea addict; this is the place for you! Wish Sacramento had a loose leaf tea spot. Since I was in the area (Thanks to Ana A. for showing us this awesome place) I stocked up!!! Gun powder, White Tea Silver Tip, and Jasmine :) I really appreciate the fact that you can order online or give them a call so they can ship whatever you want :)

Cute little tea shop with awesome, friendly employees! Well there’s at least one awesome, friendly employee. She was the only one working so for all I know the rest could be absolutely wretched people who torture puppies in their free time — but I doubt it.
The girl at the counter was very helpful and did a great job suggesting and allowing us to smell a few different teas until we were able to find just what we were in the mood for.
They even do mail order!
(I’ll be patiently awaiting all the angry messages about the puppy joke)

I was in need of Japanese green tea for my brother-​in-​law for Christmas, so what better place to go then the mall tea place, right? RIGHT?! Wrong. Even I, a non-​tea drinker, quickly figured out that Teavana is NOT the place to go for tea. They were more excited about selling their tins then they were their product.
So I set out on my quest to find great tea and a great store in San Diego, that WASN’T Teavana. Thanks to Unilocal,I found Halcyon. I waited till as close to Christmas as possible and embarked on my journey to purchase. Got there, was greeted by a sweet girl, and we chit chatted briefly about what I wanted. I was made to feel welcome, regardless of not knowing a darn thing about tea.
She notified me that they were out of bags, and could I come back later. This was a bit of an inconvenience to me, but they more than made up for it, by offering 15% off the total bill (which was extremely generous). I gladly took them up on their kind offer, purchased 2 oz. each of three different kinds of tea.
This place makes me want to start drinking quality tea. I will recommend this to anyone and everyone. Thank you, Halcyon, for being you.

Halcyon Tea is a delightful little tea haven in the already delightful haven of Brooklynish South Park.
It’s not a proper tea house or tea salon, but there are opportunities to sample any tea that you’re interested in. The décor is simple, clean and minimalist and the service is great. The people that work there are extremely knowledgeable about the teas they offer and where they are sourced.
Impressive is the selection of organic teas. My favorite is peppermint, which I usually find mixed with green tea at other tea stores. It makes me feel clean and refreshed.
The store also features clean and classy tea pots and tea wares. A great source for buying gifts for your tea loving family and friends.
Come in and sample some great quality tea prepared for you by the experts. Halcyon isn’t the cheapest place to purchase tea, but life is too short to drink crappy tea, isn’t it?

Adorable tea shop in South Park. I dropped by after a tipster in University Heights told me about this hidden gem. The shop is quaint and clean. Very well executed styling and simple. I was in search of the flowering tea blossoms. My «Tea Sommelier» knew just what I was looking for… we had a nice discussion about different teas. steeping… pots and cups… This place is everything a tea boutique should be… the prices are more than reasonable… Make it a point to stop by!!!
Oh and on Friday nights they do a Tea tasting night… get into tea!!!

This place is exceptionally good!
Upon entering this shop I was delighted with the atmosphere. It is minimalist yet decadent, and very calming.
Jessica was working and she gave me a great introductory education on tea. She was extremely knowledgeable and she spoke of tea preparation as if it was a fine art (and it very well may be).
I had a sample cup of a black tea from Kenya that was very good. They have so many different kinds of tea that it can be overwhelming, but Jessica asked me some great probing questions to find a fitting tea for me to sample.
I will certainly be returning to this shop.

A friend took me here by sort of dragging me (just wasn’t in the mood). But I was really impressed by the atmosphere and selection and the whole place all together. I helped me change my mood and feel much better by the time I was out.
Will definitely go back.

I have been back to Halcyon more half a dozen times now and I’m still impressed with the selection and knowledgeable staff. Twice I’ve been there when James wasn’t, but both times the people there (different both times) were great! I’m a definite fan!!!
Oh– and remember to stop in during South Park’s walkabout!!!

Two confessions:
1) I’m a coffee addict. And a purist, at that. Black and strong– the muddier the better. I’ve never drank a cup of tea and sat back saying «woah– that’s a strong cup of tea!»
2) I know zilch about tea.
Spending an hour at Halcyon I may have to retract both of those statements. Did you know that all tea comes from the same plant? Or that green-​oolong-​black is really the spectrum of preparing tea? Apparently the oxidation process that creates black tea leaves you with half the caffeine as a strong cup of joe.
Sold. The shop’s environment is relaxing and Christina was professional and knowledgeable. It’s nice to take a time-​out from life and drop in for a cup. Or three. Will definitely be back!

Just moved to Golden Hill/​South Park and am pleased to have found this little gem! I walked into the shop to hear a customer and employee talking in depth about green tea and was immediately impressed!
The shop and display is beautifully designed with a good mix of modern and vintage. There are an array of teas and teapots, the menu was very informative, and the prices were what I expected. Additionally, Jessica was very pleasant and open to chit chat. She also told me about the store’s Friday night tea tastings from 5 – 7.
I think I will be a regular here!

Lovely, everything here is lovely and beautiful. The fragrance, the soothing warmth of tea brewing for a taste and the welcoming and embracive host, James.
Well done, I wish you success.
ps: do map out the location on Google before visiting, it’s a little trickey to find.

Wow, this place is awesome. I’m more of a tea drinker than a coffee drinker. They have various types of tea lined up on the walls as you can see from the picture. There are just a few seats and tables for people to drink, so it’s more of a tea store than a café, but for the lucky few who get a seat there is a treat.
I went here for the first time with a friend and we sat at the bar and saw the process of pouring the tea, they transfer the tea into a different cup to cool down so it’s not too hot when you drink it. They are careful and deliberate about the tea-​brewing process, which I can appreciate having been to Japan and Taiwan. I had the genmaicha when I went last time, and I’m looking forward trying more of their Japanese teas next time I go.

Halcyon Tea is one of our city’s (sort of) hidden treasures. I have to admit the first time I came here, it was not all that I expected. It is not a tea «house»…it’s a tea «shop». There’s only one small table inside where you can have a spot of tea… no cream, no pastries or other sugar high inducing goodies. There is no food at all. Sound boring, maybe? No way…
This place is so special!!! The owner, James, has created an old-​fashioned mercantile store offering good ol’ day service. Canisters of loose tea line the back wall and he’ll give you an education along with an amazing tea of your choice. Herbal, white, green, black, and puehr (like drinking dirt… and, enjoying it).
Every Friday night from 5 – 7 pm, there is a free tea tasting. I can come here alone and not be hounded by dudes trying to make a score. Instead I can totally enjoy the company of other cool tea types.
James is officially my new tea dealer…

Halcyon Tea — and the owner, James — have won me over. This is the only place I ever want to go to buy my tea. I have given up ordering tea by mail from other tea shops, and buying it from my doctor who has a little tea thing going on on the the side. Now I’m Halcyon all the way.
Right now I’m loving the Tikuanyin Competition Reserve. Holy heck, it was so good.

The rave reviews of this South Park gem are well-​deserved. Halcyon aims to both educate the public and distribute exquisite tea and they knock it out of the park on both counts.
James is incredibly knowledgeable about his product. He (and all who work there) brings a certain something to the counter which makes a visit to Halcyon a euphoric experience and not just a shopping trip. James is passionate about tea — the kind of pure, unpretentious passion that we need more of in this world of ours. Even if you aren’t into tea, you’ll be magnetically pulled in by his enthusiasm and likely leave a tea convert. And if you’re into tea? Oh my…
The selection is top shelf quality but still financially accessible. I have a leaky memory so while I don’t always retain the incredible information which is cheerfully dispensed with the tea packets, my taste buds do the cha-​cha-​cha whenever they get a cuppa. If you’re sensitive to caffeine, Halcyon has a great selection of teasans as well (woo woo — usin’ the vocab!).
Halycon periodically hosts events as well — intimate lectures, tastings, etc.
Unsurpassed selection and superb customer service — what else can you ask for?

I wandered into Halcyon Tea during the Old House Fair to stock up on some tasty tea. I chose the ginger peach black tea and a vanilla black tea. The ginger peach makes excellent iced tea and the vanilla black is great hot. Both are vastly superior to what I bought them to replace, which is Republic of Tea ginger peach and vanilla almond teas. Halcyon’s ginger peach blows Republic of Tea’s out of the water.
It is a nice space, however, it’s a bit of a confusing store. It sort of appears to be a café – chairs, a table, bar stools – but in fact, doesn’t really serve tea by the glass or pot, except for samples. I hope they convert to also being a tea-​only café. I like sitting in tea shops reading.
I also found the pricing difficult to understand. Telling me the cost per ounce of tea doesn’t really help, as there’s a lot of variation in how much you use per glass and I tend to think of tea in volume, not weight. It ranges enormously in density. It would be helpful to also give an approximate per-​glass price. The tea I picked sounded more expensive than it actually turned out to be per serving, which can’t be good for business. I do, however, like that they tell you brewing temperature and time on the packaging. I find it silly when high end places don’t tell you that.

Yay, they opened!
Astrid and I have been following the planning, remodeling and opening of Halcyon Tea on their blog
for a couple of months. We’ve been waiting for a really great tea company to open around San Diego and Halcyon Tea is it!
We went in today to go and check it out. The shop is beautiful! Sustainable beech wood counters and shelving, polished concrete floors, stainless steel tea containers and lots of tea drinking accessories including cups, kettles, tea pots and books. We met one of the owners, Paul, who filled us in on where they source their tea from and then led us through a scent-​filled journey around the world.
So, to be totally honest, I am just getting into tea drinking. Here’s a little conversation Astrid and I had about tea while waiting for our order:
Astrid: You see, most people around here in South Park can’t appreciate tea because they are philistines.
Anthony: What’s a philistine?
Astrid: It’s someone who doesn’t care about tea and books and interesting films and things. Your father is also a philistine.
Anthony: Then I’m a philistine.
Astrid: No, you’re interested in books and things.
Anthony: [pause] No, I’m a philistine.
We picked up two tea mugs and three awesome teas including a Lapsang Souchong, an Oolong called, most awesomely I might add, Iron Goddess of Mercy and an Organic Orange Spice tea for a friend.
I’m so excited about this place! I hope they do well. They’re not serving by the pot or cup yet, but they hope to be able to do that soon. Go there today and support your local businesses and be less of a philistine!