Frequently Asked Questions

We love visitors! Check our visit page to find our exact location and business hours.

We're delighted to have you! We don't take reservations for the tearoom at this time.

Great question! We serve all of our teas in the tearoom and brewed for takeaway. You can browse them all here, or get a recommendation by taking our tea quiz.

Our signature Pineapple Linzers are also served in the tearoom along with an assortment of small snacks to accompany your tea. We pride ourselves on using fresh and seasonal ingredients as much as possible, so the snacks and other items change seasonally and, occasionally, on the whims of the chef. Cooking is a creative art, after all!

Take a look at a typical menu at the tearoom here.

We rarely run out of the Pineapple Linzers and we bake plenty each day to ensure they are always well stocked. With that said, if you want to be extra sure your cravings are satisfied when you arrive, you can always order through our website and schedule a pickup.

Absolutely! In fact, it's the best way to have everything ready for you to pick up.

You can order online and choose pickup as your shipping option. If you have any questions, we're more than happy to help! You can contact us at hello@tecompanytea.com and we'll respond as quickly as possible.

Storing tea couldn't be any simpler. There are five elements that impact the freshness of your tea: OXYGEN, HEAT, LIGHT, MOISTURE and ODORS. We recommend keeping your tea in a dry, cool place, away from light and heat in its original packaging or an airtight container.

Although storing tea in the refrigerator or freezer can be an option, it can also accelerate its deterioration if the tea is not defrosted appropriately.

For a more complete guide on how to store your tea, please check our blog post on how to store tea.

Great question! We know you have plenty of options to choose from for tea and it means a lot that you're browsing with us. We offer the most complete list of Taiwanese oolongs of any tea company. Taiwan is known for making some of the highest quality teas in the world since the 1860s. We personally source and select all the tea that we carry, which means that we visit every farm and work directly with every teamaker on our menu–without any middleman. Specializing in Taiwanese tea also helps us focus all our efforts with all our resources.

Our founder is a Taiwanese native, which means that she understands the culture and heritage of the island, and of the tea we carry. That knowledge also helps us balance our tea menu by giving us access to smaller batches of tea and varieties that aren't widely available.

How does this matter to your experience? You will drink tea like an expert insider, enjoying a wide spectrum of selection from historical styles to modern interpretations. You will also be enjoying the same–if not better–quality tea than the locals.

The tea farmers we work with care deeply about the sustainability of the tea plant. When meeting potential farmers and teamakers, it's always our goal to find producers that make quality tea without toxic chemicals. We don't sell anything that we wouldn't drink ourselves.

Certifying every batch of tea organic for international markets is a heavy financial burden that only a few well-resourced teamakers have the luxury of achieving. Most prefer to place their time and effort on making more sustainable and delicious tea instead. Though there is increasing willingness for certification as the global demand for organic teas rises.

We are currently working with two producers who make fully organic teas. The teas within the Naturally Farmed section are teas that have been certified organic by the strictest certification agency in Taiwan, TOAF.

We wholesale our teas in retail ready packages for gourmet grocers and lifestyle retail shops. Our tea sachet, loose leaf teas and select tea treats are also available in bulk for hospitality tea service. If you are interested in offering our products or have any questions regarding wholesale, please reach out to us at wholesale@tecompanytea.com.

Steeping loose-leaf tea for the first time can seem intimidating, but it doesn't have to be! We're here to help: check out our tea brewing guides for step-by-step help with a variety of brewing methods. You can also take a look at our blog post on how to brew tea for extra tips.

We are also an email away and would be happy to provide suggestions and answer any questions you might have.

This is a confusing one, so bear with us! Oolong tea is commonly referred to as semi-oxidized tea or wu-long tea. But tea is kind of like wine: it all comes from the same Camellia Sinensis plant, and the categories of tea–black, green, oolong, white–are differentiated by their processing methods.

The main factor in processing is oxidation. It's the same chemical process that makes your apples and avocados go brown, and it's also what defines the big categories of tea.

Green tea is 0% oxidized and black tea is 100% oxidized. Oolong tea is partially oxidized, which covers everything in between green and black teas. It's a lot! But it's also the reason oolongs cover such a wide range of flavor variations.

Lightly oxidized oolongs tend to be similar to green tea, more vegetal and grassy but with hints of white flowers. Heavier oxidized oolongs tend to carry richer floral notes with maltier aroma and more similar to black teas.

We wrote a more in-depth blog post on the subject here if you are interested in reading further.

Small batch teas are delicious because they are often handmade with a lot of care. For most of our offerings, we try to ensure there is a steady supply in the same quality level. There are times when that is difficult to achieve though, either due to weather patterns or even a teamaker's retirement, for example.

You can always take our tea quiz or send us an email with your flavor preferences, and we can help you choose your next favorite.

Of course! All the teas in our Herbal Collection are completely caffeine-free, so you a few options to choose from. We enjoy the Hibiscus tea as a refreshing cold beverage and the Wild Chrysanthemum for a calm afternoon or evening.

The Maqaw berries make for a delicious tea, but they can also be used as a cooking ingredient for the home cooks out there. The NY Times suggested adding it as a spice to a fish dish due to its refreshing scent of lemongrass and citron.

All of our cookies are made to order, which means they are freshly baked just before we ship them. They are delicious for three to four weeks and can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two months.

Our top priority is to pack our products in a manner that that preserves optimal freshness. On top of this, we feature eco-friendly materials and designs for a joyous unboxing experience.

Learn more about our packaging here.

We ship via UPS and USPS with a variety of transit time options. Please keep in mind the transit time estimates are accounted in business days and exclude weekend days.

Our shipping rate is dynamic and it changes based on the weight and dimensions of your order content. We offer complimentary shipping service on order within the US over $100.

If you prefer a different shipping courier for your order, please send us an email.

Thank you for considering an order with us! We're a small team that packs all online orders ourselves, so it usually takes between 1-3 business days to process and fulfill orders. Please note that this timeline starts from the first business day after the order was placed.

We suggest selecting UPS 3-day (business days) or faster delivery services for orders containing any perishable tea snacks especially the mooncakes.

You'll receive an email confirmation after you place your order. Typically within 2-3 business days, you should receive another email with shipping confirmation when your order is picked up by the carrier. Your order can be tracked using the tracking number included in the shipping confirmation email.

If you do not receive a confirmation email, please check your junk folder. If you run into any problems, please contact us at hello@tecompanytea.com. We will get back to you within 1-2 business days.

Tea

If there was an error with your order, please contact us at hello@tecompanytea.com within 30 days of your purchase. If you were not satisfied with your tea please reach out to us so we can help you find the right tea for you.

Tea Snacks

Given the perishable nature of our tea snacks, we do not accept returns or offer exchanges. All of our snacks are made to order. If you need to cancel your order, please do so before it is shipped. Note that we are not accountable for shipping issues once the package leaves our facility. If you have an issue with your order, please email us at hello@tecompanytea.com.

Don't worry! Just reply to your order confirmation email or email us at hello@tecompanytea.com and let us know what is happening. We will do our best to offer a solution.

We trust that our sourcing team is working with some of the best tea makers in Taiwan and therefore we don't send out samples or solicit reviews. If you would like to try our product and you are in NYC, we would love to host you here. For press inquires, please contact us at hello@tecompanytea.com

Check out our blog post for all our favorite places in Taiwan.

We love answering questions! Drop us an email or use our contact form and we will get back to you within 1-2 business days.