What do you want from a teashop?

[littleteapotandcake]

I'm at the very early stages of looking at taking over a teashop in a small seaside town. I would interested in finding out what you like or don't like when you visit or any advice from anyone who has done/is running a teashop now. TIA

It's why I think the place I know that has gone for gluten-free everything is genius. Their stuff is nice enough that friends who have no problem with gluten don't object to going there, but those who do, can relax knowing they are safe. Any new tea shop / cafe opening in an area with established businesses needs a unique selling point - they picked a winner.

It's why I think the place I know that has gone for gluten-free everything is genius.

Having spent a miserable year gluten-free, I wouldn't dream of choosing a café that only served gf food!

Playing devils advocate only around 1 in 100 have coeliac disease as opposed to 6 in 100 who are diabetic . You could argue there is a much bigger market for low carb cakes . However they are expensive to make , do not have a long shelf life and since nut flour is a major component of most a nightmare for nut allergy folks.
You cannot be all things to everyone and catering to restricted diets means you have to have a big enough potential customer base to possibly make a living .

Filtered water at the correct temperature not from an instant hot tap that makes the water exposed to too much oxygen. It taints the tea leaves.

I know quite a few places that do real-chocolate hot chocolate. They all just use hot (steamed) milk and a whisk. No cooker required.

As said upthread, choice of fruit or not fruit scones. No Gagia type coffee machine, way too noisy.

Don't stint on the butter for scones, tea cakes, toast etc!

Proper mugs for tea not those wide coffee cups they are useless for tea as it goes cold in them faster than you can drink it !

My go to coffee shop-

Range of coffees, including flavours
Speciality teas
Homemade cakes rotated for variety
Reasonable prices and portions- visited somewhere today where a piece (normal sized) of rocky road was £3.55!! Not value for money.
Cream must be clotted
Good service- friendly
And I cannot stress this enough- CLEAN!!!

Try pump street

Oh definitely this! I hate getting a large toasted teacake with two tiny foil wrapped packets of butter. My friend hates butter and only has jam on hers so I get her butter but if I'm not with her, it's horrible eating dry toasted teacake.

Have to mention that I love butter and like my teacake well buttered to enjoy.😁

@Coastalcreeksider I agree and see teacakes, crumpets and other such items as merely vehicles for butter.

Is that a coffee shop, a street, a brand of chocolate, a hot chocolate maker ...?

If serving scones (yes please) provide a proper portion of nice jam (along with the clotted cream), not the tiny sachets you get in mass catering. I don't expect a choice of flavours.

@BinturongsSmellOfPopcorn I was replying directly to the person who was talking about hot chocolate. It's hot choc

Exactly! I love a bit of teacake, crumpet or scone with my butter, and butter it has to be. None of this Flora, spready plastic looking gunk on my food.

Same with cream, no squirty stuff ever on a scone. Did get this once a long time ago. That's one place I never went back to.

Open until 6. There is a real dearth of places to drink / eat between 4-6.

Exactly. Afternoon tea is supposed to be at 4 pm, so it makes sense for a teashop to stay open ling enough for customers to sit and enjoy it.

Oh yes.
It does amaze me the number of places that open early (who is going for tea at 9am ? ) and then shut at 2.30 or 3pm or even 4pm (so stop serving at about 3.15).

Loads of people go for coffee before work, I stopped at 7.45 today to pick up a coffee, lots of tables taken, dog-walkers outside, people inside reading and lots coming in for a takeaway coffee and croissant. This was a coffee not a teashop but maybe the same applies. The thread a few weeks ago had many cafe owners explaining why it simply isn't viable to stay open past about 3.30 pm, the trade just isn't there and you have to pay a second shift of staff. Especially if you have been up since before dawn baking handmade cakes etc. There are plenty of pubs where you can get a hot drink later in the afternoon. I can't imagine many want to eat cakes etc after about 3 as it would put them off their dinner.

Crumpets, tea cakes, cafetiere coffee.

I think it depends on where the cafe is. A seaside town is different to a city centre where people get a drink on their way to work.

My local greggs is full of school children buying sausage rolls on their way home between 3pm and 4pm.

I don't want to sit on a pub drinking a coffee for a variety of reasons. Firstly, as a lone woman I don't always feel comfortable in pubs. Also, the atmosphere is different & I have to contend with drunks and loud people. It's not relaxing sitting in a pub with a cuppa and a book like it is in a teashop.

Those saying there's no trade in the afternoon, there is where I live.

Not to be a crèche full of mums, babies and buggies 😣