New York Gongfu

The Tea Gallery

Their website isnt much yet but I can personally vouch for the proprietors (Michael & Winnie) knowledge and dedication to tea.

Mike

Their website is a shuck and jive, in fact. If you didn't know them personally, you'd be dissing it as a bogus webfront, Mike! :-)

XXXXX

Shuck and jive? Excuse me? That's pungent, if possibly dated, language, but I'm not sure what you're referring to.

Disclosure: Winnie and Michael are friends of mine, and I buy tea from them, but that's it. I don't even get discounts that I'm aware of.

/Lew

Thanks for the information. I'm not sure about "shuck and jive" either, but I notice their links don't seem to work for me. Given that I generally prejudge based on websites, it is useful to know that this criteria may not be applicable here. In any case, can I walk in, sit down and drink tea here or is it primarily a store that sells tea to take home? (I am looking to do the former, though may still visit if the store is just for the latter).

Charles

Charles,

The links work, it's just that they are all links to the main page. Except for "contact us". Anyway, I presume this is just an initial cut at a web site and that it will be fleshed out later.

Alan

It's primarily the latter, but they'll certainly let you taste before you buy. Also, they arrange tasting sessions where buying isn't the focus. Either way, make sure you call in advance, for this month their hours are irregular.

/Lew

Hi Charles,

Lew and I discovered the Tea Gallery together one afternoon some years ago, and I join him in stating that Winnie and Michael are friends of mine, that I buy tea from them with fair regularity, and that I do not get discounts. Let me add a few things: In my experience, their teas are among the best I've drunk. They buy small quantities and have not yet entered into market for bulkier, albeit lesser, teas. Finally, and clearly, they are new to internet marketing, having preferred to enjoy tea and people face to face and cup to cup. I suspect they will improve the links. You can indeed walk in and drink tea, although it is, as you say, primarily a store that sells tea to take home. Highly recommended.

Michael

Thanks, everyone, for your advice. I indeed went to Tea Gallery and found it to be as great as everyone said. In fact, it was exactly what I was looking for. I ended up spending two hours drinking a bunch of mostly great oolongs and talking about tea with Michael. It was an experience more akin to stopping by a friend's house than stopping by a business. I also learned a lot about tea in the process, and ended up spending a lot more money than I had planned. In some ways, my only regret was that I didn't take the opportunity to talk more about pu- er, as it seems hard to find tea shops (or tea drinkers for that matter) that actually know anything about it. Oh well, there is only so much you can accomplish in a day I guess.

Thanks again! Charles