Teaism

Teaism used to be sooooo delish then they changed their menu and the number of unusual and delish items reduced substantially. The other day we dropped into this one hoping it would be the same as the one in penn quarter that i usually go to and ordered their usually amazingly delicious chicken curry. What i received was a bowl of relatively thin chicken broth, chicken and rice with a skewer of barely warmed bitter vegetables — read way too al dente. No more awesome think green curry with green beans that i crave regularly — i would not call this stuff curry at all and certainly won’t be craving it. Everyone else were similarly unimpressed with their meals and we have now struck teaism from our lunch options. Cookies and udon were still great but bento boxes were plain in half the options and soaked in vinegar on the others. Burgers crumbled and were tasteless. So bummed!

I’d never been to this Teaism location before, though I often stop at the one off Dupont Circle when I’m in the neighborhood. Their chai is perfectly spiced and only a tad sweet, ideal for this chilly grey day. The ginger scone was delicious, and I was pleasantly surprised that a single order of the scones actually comes with two scones. They were fresh, not too sweet or dense, and yummy with the apricot jam they were served with.

BUBBLE TEA! I think a lot of people forget that you can get bubble tea (called «Zhenzhou Pearls» on the menu, it’s pretty much exactly the original milk tea bubble tea) here… at Lafayette Park across the street from the White House and within walking distance of Farragut West/​McPherson Square, this is great for a lunch break if you work downtown. Service is fast and friendly and I like that they have the LevelUp app. (Only thing is that they don’t have rewards with the LevelUp app like many other places, but eh…)
The inside is a little bit crowded with square tables that are kind of small and it can be kind of loud at lunchtime, but that’s ok if you know that going in. There are also a lot of patio tables outside if it’s a nice day. It’s definitely a casual lunchtime cafeteria feel (instead of a classy dinner restaurant feel), although the inside décor is very well done. Try the Salty Oat Cookies too. Prices are decently cheap for quality Asian food, would definitely recommend.

This is a great place to enjoy lunch or have some tea. I very much enjoy their chicken curry. When the weather is nice, it is a wonderful place to sit outside and chat. It can be a bit crowded during the lunch hour, but come after 2pm and it’s relatively empty.

Delicious food. Very busy, not a lot of places to sit — but great when you get one. Great outdoor seating on a nice day.

Visiting from NYC with my Mom. I told her Teaism was must brunch place because the food is amazing. I was starving and hadn’t eaten all day. I got the Cilantro Eggs, Chicken Sausage and flat bread toasted.
3 hours later I was «DOG» sick for the remainder of out day. My mother had the exact same thing but no chicken sausage but instead a waffle. She was fine! So it had to be the chicken sausage that made ill. We were trying to enjoy our visit but I couldn’t. I had to go back to the hotel. So that place is a never again!!!

I always get the Zhengzhou Pearl Milk Tea. Service is quick and friendly. However, the tapioca balls are mushy and too soft for my liking. It is the taste and quality of their milk tea brings me back, though!

Interesting to know that a chain like this exists. Now I wish I had something like this in my area. It’s like a Starbucks specializing in tea, which means it’s kinda pricey for what they’re serving. The iced Moroccan Mint that I ordered was very refreshing. The salty oat cookie was decent-​sized and pretty good. I mean, I spend at Starbucks so I would definitely spend here if I could.

I only ever give below three stars if it was money not well spent, and that’s how I felt about teaism. The hype was great about this place, and I went on a Sunday evening and ordered the Mint Moroccan Tea and Chicken Bento.
The Tea was good, no complaints there, like any good mint tea I’ve ever had, and I loved that it was chilled. That was the only good part.
I got the Chicken Bento, and the sauce that came with it was curdled. It smelled off and I’m certain it’d spoiled. The fact that it was pre-​packaged and sat outside (dairy product) made it even more dubious. That sort of put me off the entire thing.
The upkeep of the store itself isn’t wonderful. Dirty bathrooms, generally not kept up dining area.
I mean, basically, I would never go here again. Not worth the price.

I have been a frequent Teaism customer for two years. About 4 weeks ago they changed the menu and removed the chicken salad and other favorites plus the prices went up on the remaining bento boxes. There is zero on the new menu that appeals to me. I had lunch there today, because of social pressure, and ordered the Udon vegetable noodle soup for $ 12. It was awful. Under cooked whole Brussel sprouts, hard cauliflower, one large piece of practically raw eggplant and dishwater broth
Beware old time Teaism customers, the new menu is the dregs plus more expensive
Teaism, why did you do this?

Great stop in for lunch… we were looking for something different in the area for a Vegan and a Paleo to have lunch together. It was pretty busy/​full with the lunch crowd, but tables turned over quickly and no issue getting a seat.
I had the grass-​fed burger (no bun) w/​a side of the kale chips. I definitely recommend both!
Will come back here again!

Hands down a great place to hang out get a bite or just do the tea thing. You really can hang for awhile and even get work done. Great tea and the Hungarian tea biscuits are fantastic.

I really love teasim. It’s one of a handful of places in the city that offers a wide array of vegan items. But I really dislike how different each location is. For example, the Alexandria location has a great naan sandwich (but it’s only available there). I recently went to the Dupont location and had their vegan dark hot chocolate. It was AMAZING. Filled with anise and cinnamon, made with rice milk, it was a really indulgent treat.
Today at work I was cold and craving something sweet so I decided to walk to the Lafayette Park location to get my new favorite hot chocolate. I order. As I’m waiting I see that the server is behind the counter breaking up pieces of dark chocolate. Then he fills up the cup with hot water and hands it to me. I wanted to believe I just hadn’t been looking the whole time or missed something. I start sipping as I’m walking back and notice it doesn’t taste anything like the one I had in Dupont. The hot chocolate I was looking forward to tastes essentially like instant hot cocoa. No cinnamon. No anise. No creamy texture. A complete waste of $ 4. I don’t think I’ll be going back to this location again soon. Franchises please get your act together and serve consistent products!

I love Teaism. I’m so fortunate that this location is only a couple of blocks from my work place and I am able to eat here at least once a week.
I always have Salmon Ochazuke. It is basically rice, salmon, seaweed and vegetables. You get a tea pot with green tea, which you use as brooth. You can pour your own tea so you can make it as soupy or dry as you like. I was told by my Japanese friend that this is known as a hangover cure in some parts of Japan. Hangover or not, this ochazuke dish is the best! :-)

This place is quite pricey for the amount of food, but the quality of good makes up for it a little. In the words of my parents, «nothing was amazing, but it was much better than expected so I’m satisfied».
Best deal here are the 3 – 5 $ pots of tea! You get free refill of waters so I recommend sharing them between two people. I got the Anxi oolong tea and loved it :) not too bitter and not too sweet

I came here with a group of 6 people and ordered the Moroccan mint iced tea and the soba noodles. I really enjoyed that the soba noodles that came with lots of vegetables and decent amount of broth which filled me up!
The tea wasn’t as refreshing and delicious as I had imagined. would have wanted more mint and it was a little water-​y. More like water with some mint not as much of the tea.
They had a really varied menu including palak paneer (Indian food which looked good), oatmeal, and a variety of Japanese dishes all of which sounded good. Plenty of vegetarian options with tofu which I loved!
It’s great location right by the mall and it only got busy around 1pm. If you are looking for a quick place to order food and sit down next to some koi fish, a pleasant place!
Prices were $ 10 – 12 range per item.

LOVE the Chicken Bento from Teaism. Ever since I ordered that I haven’t ordered anything else from the place. LOL. It’s a less sinful version of fried chicken but very satisfying and filling at the same time. I’ve also had the Bahn Mi here and it was a total disappointment. Maybe I was wrong to expect it to taste like the real Vietnamese Banh Mi. It was also pricey for the amount of food you get. Stick with the bento boxes! They are worth it. :)
The drinks are a little overpriced in my opinion but I’m definitely a fan of their bento boxes.

I visited this Teaism location almost 2 years ago and gave it just 2 stars. I had had a bad experience and did not enjoy the food during that visit. However, nearly two years later, I visited again and have to say that I was quite satisfied with my meal. Perhaps it was the difference between taking my food to go (as I did last time) and eating at the restaurant itself (as I did recently). The portions are much larger when you dine in, as I had suspected the last time I visited this Teaism location 2 years ago.
I ordered the salmon bento box again and loved the combination of the chilled salmon, pickled cucumbers, broccoli, seaweed, and brown rice. I still think $ 10.95 is still a bit pricey, but it’s a healthy, tasty, and filling enough meal. And this time, there were actually places to sit for lunch around noon! This Teaism location certainly has «redeemed» itself!

One star for their teas. Although since they serve only one size, the price is kinda like paying for a Starbucks latte. But then again its DC…
Love that they have brown rice which I always take out to eat with my homemade lunch curries. They have good soups too but the sucky part is the special soup of the day are not on the menu so I can never guess when they are serving my fave, the Indian Mulligatawny. I used to call every day at one point but then I felt stalkerish and gave up :-D

Perhaps I should have had the tea. Then they might have earned another star.
The woman who took our orders obviously wasn’t listening. Neither my friend, nor I ordered our meals to go, yet my friend’s was in a to go box. And they ran out of rice for the bento boxes. During the lunch rush. Maybe they should try planning ahead.
I asked for no side salad because my acupuncturist has me completely off raw foods right now, & I didn’t want to waste food. So, of course, they gave me a side salad. And my tempeh sandwich was basically a slab of store-​bought tempeh on focaccia bread. It DID taste good (especially the bread), though, which is more than I can say for the curry lentil soup – so flavorless that even adding a little salt didn’t help.
Three stars because my friend liked her cookie. And because even though their vegan items were unimpressive, at least they were clearly marked.
I’d go here again… for the tea. Not the food.