Editor Pick
Zen Zoo Tea
- May 22, 2007
- Rated 5 of 5 by
tigressa from alameda, California
This is a peaceful, lovely oasis of a teahouse in the middle of Brentwood, an area of LA I usually find a bit upscale and pretentious for my taste. Yet, in the midst of the shop- gucci-till-you-drop atmosphere, here is tranquil Zen Zoo (also there's another newer location in Hollywood that I haven't seen yet).
The interior is appealingly serene with blonde wood and colorful cut-out fabric lanterns. The tea selection is vast, although I find I keep gravitating to the most delicious herbal chai they make with soy milk. No caffeine, but with all the uplifting qualities of chai anyway. Anything made with their roobios, a high-vitamin C tea originally from Africa, is divine.
The array of dim sum (Chinese dumplings mostly wrapped in rice flour) is excellent. They are freshly made, filled with either diced mushrooms or vegetables, or chicken or shrimp. The har gaw filled with shrimp were well-spiced and not a bit mushy as dim sum can be. The dipping sauces were complex and delicious.
Just know that a serving comes with three dumplings and is actually quite tiny. Two of us split four plates of dim sum and found it was not quite enough food. So we each added a crisp, tasty salad with tangy lemon tahini sauce and a bowl of delicious miso soup brimming with vegetables and glass noodles. This is not the usual delicate mineral-rich soup you may know from Japanese restaurants. Here it's thicker, hardier, and wonderful in its own way.
The location in Brentwood is below Maha Yoga, one other reason for me to weather the neighborhood. You can take a kick-ass, sweaty, rockin' yoga class with fabulous music upstairs and then relax afterwards with the peaceful beauty, delicious food, and sweet helpful service of Zen Zoo.
From journal The Perfect Healthy Spa Trip to Los Angeles