Photo by Carolyn V on Unsplash
Okay, so the name is a bit misleading, but cheese tea is here and it’s not that weird.
STEAP Tea Bar in Chinatown serves Tony’s Tea, an iced green and lemon tea with a “cheese top” – mascarpone, heavy cream, sugar, salt. The fluffy top can be added to any tea on the menu.
First popular in Asia, it’s usually served with powdered cream cheese. But STEAP owner Emil DeFrancesco says he focuses on setting their drink apart with an Italian influence and locally sourced ingredients.
The tea bar doesn’t stop there. You can also order the hemp-infused drink, DeFrancesco tells SF Gate, “will make you feel like you just got embraced with a ‘warm blanket.'” Dubbed the Green Queen, it also comes with a cheese top over matcha, mint, lemon, and the CBD-infused honey.