Vital Tea Leaf

Kenny calls himself the ‘Tea Nazi’. And that he is. If you are really looking for a true tea experience, come here and be prepared to learn and for some funny banter. Kenny is really just a sweet kitten with a lioness passion for tea.

I came here to buy tea and I had questions about the tea. I was hoping to sample some of them before buying. He responded in an insulting manner and turned to others with a forced laugh as if he was trying to get them to laugh along with him while he was being a jerk. He seemed to have an argumentative tone like he was looking to pick a fight for his own amusement. I asked for a tea with a floral or spice aroma hoping to try something different with a flavor of bergamot, rose, or cardamom. He gave me the worst cup of over extracted jasmine pearl tea I have ever tasted! It was disgusting! I had a mouthful of bitter tannins and couldn’t even enjoy the delicate jasmine flavor! I watched as he insulted numerous customers after they left. Instead of paying a premium for bitter tea at this fancy tea room I opted to go two doors down to buy tea at a tea and herb shop. I saw other customers who had been at Vital tea there. They were friendly and seemed very knowledgeable about the product they were selling. I will never go back to this location of Vital Tea again!

I love this tea shop!!! It was an amazing experience to sit and have tea with very entertaining people. The atmosphere is very relaxed and the variety of gong fu tea sets is amazing. I was very happy with the prices and they even beat some of the online prices I was seeing. My favorite tea there is an oolong called blue people, I highly recommend it!!! Very earthy taste with a sweet after taste from ginseng. Ken and May are very knowledgeable and a riot! Would come back just to drink tea with them.
Thank you Ken and May for a wonderful tea experience.

Great tea testing experience. It’s free. and you get educated about benefits of tea. Kenny served us tea and it was pure entertainment! Almost like a wine testing, but without alcohol.

This was the best tea room experience I’ve ever had. We were greeted by May. May took us through the different tea samples, and we tried at least 10 different tea. From green, yellow, white, red, and black tea. They got a tea for every medical condition… if only they got one for relationship issues. Haha. We got the Golden Horse, Ginseng Oolong, and a complimentary Lichee Black. Thank you!

This is my email to Groupon, pasting it here:
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I got SWINDLE, yes swindle! I bought two Groupons to Vital Tea Leaf, $ 17.50 for $ 40 worth; total should be $ 80 worth of tea. The expiration date was fast approaching, so I had my sister picked up some teas for me. Recently some of my in-​laws wanted some of the tea, so I went to weigh it on the sale to portioned it out. First bag is 3 oz and the other is 3.5oz, and according to their site it’s only $ 18 for 4oz (
). For my 6.5oz it should be $ 29.25. They also gave my sister a 1oz sample of this
, which is only $ 7.50 an ounce. So I only got $ 36.75 worth of tea and they took both my groupons which is worth $ 80? WTF?!? How can I get my money back?

I love tea and learned so much while tasting tea here with my husband. Could sit here for hours. Welcoming and knowledgeable staff, tons of different tea, and great atmosphere. We will be back!

My friend wanted to get tea. I wasn’t sure if she meant a «to-​go» tea or what not, but we ended up here because the gentleman behind the counter was a character last time we passed by. As we’re both caffeine-​free, we sat down for a free tasting of several herbal teas and got the full stories on each one. I ended up with one that supposedly has calming qualities, and a fancy tea press. Not a cheap spontaneous tea fix, but worth it for the show.

On a chilly day, it’s a great experience and will warm you up too.

What a great place! Uncle and Kenny made us feel right at home and introduced us to some fantastic tea and a nice, calming afternoon of tea.

I have never gone tea tasting, so we decided it would be a fun adventure to try it out here! There were several in Chinatown, so we randomly picked this Vital Tea Leaf.
We sat at the tea bar and were served different tea samples. The lady was very informative and not toooo pushy about the tea we wanted to buy. She seemed a little judgy when we wanted to buy mango green tea, but honey… the heart wants what the heart wants! I really enjoy my Blue People Ginseng Oolong tea. It has this creamy aftertaste that hooked me (don’t be hamsup) so we got that as well.
I swear she said it was for natural energy and focus, but I drink it at work and get so relaxed that I pass out HAM when I get home. I usually have sleep problems, but on days that I drink this I have no issues! Perhaps she actually said it was NOT for energy and I wasn’t paying attention.
Check out Vital Tea Leaf for some tea tasting. It’s fun and informative!

Come for a tea tasting and pick what you like, the tea just keeps coming. Very funny, if somewhat offensive, tea master talks about tea as you drink. Wide array of teas. Best if you’re looking for loose leaf tea and want to learn. They are way more liberal with samples than other tea shops in Chinatown.

I’ve been coming here for two years now, and have never been disappointed. I usually get the blue people oolong which seems to be one of their best sellers. My wife like white tea so she usually gets the silver needle. I asked for a recommendation for my mother who needed to lower her blood sugar, I was given one leaf bitter and angel green. She hasn’t tried the angel green yet but the one leaf bitter significantly lowered her numbers, even her doctor was surprised! I come her to re-​stock every time im in town now, thanks guys!

Came here shopping for some teas. There’s a long bar for free tastings. The man behind the counter was very friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. He was able to answer my questions about the different teas and was able to talk me through the differences between them all. They have a variety of loose leaves in containers on the wall and you can try a tasting of any of them.
Not sure if their prices are on the high side or not, but I was happy to pay for the tea, their education, and their service.

Wow what an amazing experience! I came with 4 – 5 friends after experiencing my very first Chinese New Year Celebration in the city. Wow was that ever crazy. I guess the Chinese did invent fireworks, and let me tell you boy do they know how to use them!
So after watching the parade, then hearing (and feeling) people blow stuff up on the streets randomly we decided to get some relaxation into our systems.
I pushed through the crowds and into the oasis that is Vital Leaf Tea. It was so fun with the free samples. Learned a ton about tea, and got to try at least 15 teas for me and all my friends. The lady there even took our picture for us. I just felt so bad that I was the only one into tea, and the only one that bought something. Everyone else in my group was either was not a tea fan or was from out of country and worried about packing space and going though the border. I however got an excellent Lychee Green tea and will be back for more for sure.
If your visiting the city no stop to China Town is complete without this place and the Golden Gate Bakery for Dan Tats (an egg tart).

I’ve been to this location twice and I really enjoyed both trips to try a variety of teas. It wasn’t busy both times so we spent some time sitting and sipping tea without being in a rush. The woman working was very knowledgeable about the teas and shared which teas were good to drink for various health conditions. She mentioned one would have to drink about 3 cups for a month to really benefit from the tea and improve health. That’s not much for someone who enjoys and drinks tea.
I bought tea and they sealed it in packaging that made it easy to travel with. Even after a few years, the tea stills tastes fine after steeping. I don’t know if the price is expensive but the leaves can be steeped to make a few cups so it lasts a long time for the price I paid. Definitely will visit again when I’m in San Francisco next.

My Chinatown tour guide stopped in here for a free tea tasting. The large assortment and exotic names such as blue dragon are quite intimidating so just tell your hostess what you usually like. They have osmanthus flower tea, which brings back fond memories of my visit to Guilin, China.
Beware of the prices. I bought a grassy green tea and when she brought the half pound bag it came with a $ 70 price tag. We ended up bargaining for a little less tea by weight at $ 40. I shall savor this tea, it is definitely much fresher and brighter than the average green tea.

Such a fun experience!
Pros
–free tea-​tasting
–very educational
–managed by extremely likable and entertaining vendor
–laid back and casual
–delicious blue people ginseng oolong
–got a free tea strainer and cup with purchase
–got to meet other travellers
Cons
–may not be able to get individualized attention if they’re more crowded
–head that a tourist group comes in, which would fill up the entire tea toom
–some of the teas can be pricier ($ 50/​half pound)

I LOVED this place and the free tea tasting! It was a long granite sit down bar (seated about 15 people?). Our tea person/​sales man was SUPER good at his job. He was a younger guy (sorry forgot his name) but he was engaging and knowledgeable and was slanging that tea across the board like body’s business. He sold my 10 cousins and I on the products. I’ve never experienced a tea tasting before and like my family, we learned a lot about the dos and don’ts of tea brewing and drinking. Like, you never drink the first batch, coz that’s the «wash». You don’t let tea seep longer than 30 – 60 seconds, you don’t use boiling hot water for brewing and like wine, tea also has it’s uses/​varieties that could garner $ 4,000/lbs! We tasted about 7 different teas.
At any rate, I bought the Angel green tea (for daily drinking and detox), the Oolong tea (for post meals to aid in digestion and cholesterol) and the Ginseng tea (for focus). And a really cool tea dispenser thingy that you just press a button and your brewed tea is dispensed.
What’s nice is that I can re-​order online =) Sold!

Lovely teas served by a lovely lady.
This is the largest collection of teas I have ever seen. It’s a beautiful, clean space that is manned by very patient, knowledgeable tea «sommelier».
You are welcomed by steaming tiny cups of teas for tasting purposes. She will let you know what tea you are having, and what notes to expect, as well as the «purpose» for each tea.
(What I really needed was one to boost memory since there were so many kinds to try and it became difficult after a bit to remember what I had just tried!)
There are also a huge variety of tea accessories — infusers, kettles and all manner of tea steepers.
Don’t expect the inexpensive teas though. I paid $ 30 for a quarter pound of loose leaf Blue People Ginseng Oolong. Intriguing isn’t it?
Other favorites that I tried: Angel and Siberian Rose (made from actual rosebuds).
By the way, this is Downtown Chinatown, so please take a good walk around to enjoy the best it has to offer by way of food and history.

After my poor experience at one of the other Vital Tea Leaf locations last year, I decided to give it another try shortly after I moved here. I’m obsessed with tea, so how can I pass up a place advertising free tea tastings? I figured going to another location would solve the bad service problem I had last year.
Wrong.
This place was even worse. The pony-​tailed man I approached to ask what kinds of loose leaf jasmine tea he had was smug, condescending and rude. He tried to tell me over and over again (in an arrogant and patronizing tone of voice) that jasmine was not a green tea. ARE YOU FREAKIN’ KIDDING ME? How the hell do you work in a tea shop and not know that jasmine is (most often) a green tea? That’s Tea 101, the kind of stuff even a tea-​hater would know. Oh, and this just in: Coffee is made from beans!
I found myself having to practically argue with him about this, not because I wanted to prove a point (I couldn’t have cared less), but because he refused to show me what types of jasmine tea they had until he/​we had determined if it was green tea or not. (For the record, I know that jasmine tea can sometimes have other tea bases, but I was specifically looking for green tea and stated this.)
Eventually, he broke off mid-​sentence, switched gears, and decided to full-​on attack me instead: «If you know so much about tea, how do you not have jasmine already? Isn’t that the kind of tea everyone has?» Seriously, dude? I didn’t have any tea because I had just moved across the country and my tea stock was non-​existent. However, rather than waste my breath explaining this to someone I couldn’t care less about, I turned around, gathered my (shocked and horrified) friends, and marched out of the store.
The bar has been set for appalling customer service. Congratulations, Vital Tea Leaf.