When I heard that Toronto based Nohohon Tea Room had opened a location in NYC I just had to check it out. Oddly enough, I found out about them through a YouTube video from +Off the Great Wall that popped up on my feed. It took me a few weeks to get over to that part of town but it was definitely worth the extra trip. Unlike a lot of the chain stores that are common around the city each cup of matcha bubble tea is whisked by hand. My fellow matcha heads will all agree, there’s nothing like having someone whip up a bowl of matcha for you.
St. Mark’s Place is always a busy place and I had trouble spotting them at first. Eventually I realized that they were right next door to Sing Sing, an iconic dive of a karaoke bar. It’s just a short walk from Astor Place and several subway stations so the location is pretty easy to get to. I definitely forsee dragging my my non-tea friends here when we are nearby
The space was tiny but felt cozy and inviting. Although there’s a small bench I’d consider them to be more of a “to go” place. One of the first things that I caught my eye right away was the kama and bamboo ladle that were set up on their tea prep counter. How cool is that? The girl who was working was friendly and ready to answer any questions that I might have had.
I am not a fan of boba so I was a bit unsure about ordering at first. To my relief each drink is handmade and a wide range of customizations are available. Tapioca and red bean topping is available as well as both soy and almond milk. It was a relatively warm day so I opted for a “Matcha on the Rock”. A shot of matcha on ice topped with organic coconut water sounded like just the thing. I’m happy to report that it was delicious and refreshing. My subway ride home was much better for having it.
I must confess that part of my motivation for stopping by was to see if it was possible to grab an adorable Tenugui tea towel that I had seen on their Instagram. Cats making matcha trumps all! I really have no idea what I’m going to use it for but I couldn’t resist. Apparently the designs change monthly so I felt lucky for there to still be some available. There was also a shelf of teaware, including several beautiful chawans, but I decided to not even inquire about the prices for the sake of my tea budget.
You can find out more about Nohohon Tea Room here.