Things at work have been super hectic lately as we’ve been running around trying to get things in order for our big event tomorrow. When things start to get really stressful and I can feel myself heaving heavy sighs more than I’m taking in air, I try to focus on my breath like they tell us to do in yoga. And when that doesn’t work because my shoulders are so close to my ears I can almost hear the skin on the top of them whispering things to me, I think about the thing I think about when I want to feel calm and relaxed. Which is a chilled glass of iced tea. I don’t know why that works so well for me except maybe because people often drink iced tea in the summer and summers are, for the most part, quite enjoyable and relaxing. So today, when I had 10 things to do at once, I thought about the recent tea adventure I had in the City.

We went to Samovar’s located in the Yerba Buena Gardens.

It was one of my first times going to a sit down tea. The menu consisted of at least 4 pages of different teas! It was like reading a wine menu — were you aware that teas came in so many different notes and blends and colors and textures?

It was the rare hot day in San Francisco so we all decided to try the iced teas. We had the Thai iced tea (so-so) and the Jasmine Lemonade (mm-mmm, refreshing!!)

We nibbled on small plates, like this grilled duck rice bowl with beautifully poached eggs.

My friend Sashee and me. It was a very scenic location.

Nat and D — see how we were all prepared for the cold in our sweaters? At least we remembered our sunglasses!