We wanna take you now to a beautiful spot in Grand Rapids, High Tea Grand Rapids is proud to present their version of afternoon tea in an elegant setting, following the English tradition.

It makes you feel a bit like royalty.

So come and join me now for a spot of tea as I visit and explore their beautiful, welcoming space.

(instrumental music) We are so excited to be here today at High Tea with tea owner, Melissa Langley, thanks so much for joining us and allowing us into your beautiful space here.

- [Melissa] Thank you so much.

- I have always been enamored by high tea.

I love the custom.

I've done high tea across, you know, in different places.

You have brought that British experience right here in Grand Rapids.

What has it been like and has it been pretty receptive?

- With any new experience, when you come to town, you don't really know how it's going to be received.

And we've been very lucky in that people have really been open to the new experience.

They don't always understand it, but they enjoy being here and trying something new.

And I think Grand Rapids has really grown in that way.

- What made you embark upon this journey though?

I know when we had a conversation prior, you said, "I love all things British."

And so was that part of it?

- I do love all things British.

It has to do with my international background and spending a lot of time in England and Europe.

Everything in London, they're just so warm and they're so welcoming.

And I just love the tradition and history.

There's just history everywhere.

- So what do you think is so infectious about high tea?

- I think it's the experience.

It's welcoming and inviting because of what it stands for, what it is, which is very simply enjoying good food and tea and conversation and company.

And I think that that's what people miss a lot in their everyday lives.

And especially in the States, we're not very good at slowing down and taking time.

So this space really becomes an intentional space to cultivate relationships and to just slow down and enjoy those connections.

- And that's one of the things that I read as I was looking at differences of tea and the different types and that sort of thing.

But one of the key components was conversation.

The ability to sit down for a minute, like you said, and take that minute and get to know someone or revisit with family and friends.

- Yes, yes, absolutely.

If you look around, you will notice that people are in conversation.

They're not on their phones, they're not distracted, they're sitting across from someone catching up about the day or the week.

And just having that time is so valuable.

- I think it's really fun that we now in West Michigan have this to offer because I really have never been to anything like this in West Michigan.

And I think it's authentic.

The China sets to the taste of the tea, the little sandwiches, the coordination chicken, everything.

- Scones.

- The scones.

Yeah, it's fun to live a afternoon in England.

- There is a difference between high tea and afternoon tea, correct?

- Yes, absolutely.

Afternoon tea is what we have as far as the finger sandwiches and on the trays.

High tea is more of the working class dinner, traditionally afternoon tea, the sandwiches are mostly savory.

And then we have the scone, which is very important to the British tradition.

We've been told by the British community, our scone is actually quite authentic.

I am very pleased with that because that was my mission, just to make everything as authentic as possible.

- Wonderful.

And everything's made here?

- Everything is made here, yes.

The clotted cream I bring in from Deventer and then the teas I bring in from England.

But for the most part, everything is made here.

There are four or five different restaurants that I watch in England to see what their menus are doing.

So I try to keep very authentic to the experience.

(instrumental music) So take your tea strainer, put it on top here.

And then what we're gonna do, and this is a China rose petal tea.

This is kind of what I consider the signature tea for high tea.

So we'll just pour it like that and then the leaves will catch into the strainer.

I am gonna hand that to you.

- Thank you.

Beautiful.

Do a lot of people use sugar in their tea?

I mean, if they're going for the full authentic experience?

- They will put sugar in their tea.

But what they don't understand is how important it is to have like a sugar cube.

So you know that saying like one lump or two?

This is where that comes from.

- Oh.

Well, cheers.

- Yeah.

- Thank you.

- Thank you for being here.

- I like the ambience, I like having choices of new teas that I haven't tried before.

So I like the China rose petal tea.

That was really good.

I always wanted to try a cucumber sandwich so I had that experience.

That was good.

- When you come into the door into your space, there's a beautiful collection of authentic China that you have collected over time.

How did you start that and what's the significance of that to you 'cause I know you take it very personally.

- Oh, I have a lot of pride in my China collection.

Again, it comes back to the British tradition.

It was a marker of special occasions and I really think they're beautiful.

I love the tradition of afternoon tea and tea time.

So I have, I've started collecting and I'm learning about China as I go and I'm learning about brands and I'm learning about patterns and it's just, it's a fun hobby.

So this is a passion, it's my fun, it's my passion and I love connections and relationships.

It's a combination of the two things that I love the most, which is the tradition of afternoon tea, everything British, but then also preserving relationships and maintaining those connections.

(lively instrumental music) (cups clinking) (bright music) - Celebrating vibrant people, captivating places, and remarkable things.

This is "Living West Michigan."

(bright music)