Ku Day Ta -- Milpitas' newest tea lounge

our private tea table
Ku Day Ta Tea Lounge - Milpitas
447 Great Mall Drive, #124, Milpitas, CA 95035
(408) 935-9107
Hours:
Monday - Wednesday: 10am - 9pm
Thursday: 10am - 10pm
Friday & Saturday: 10am - 11pm
Sunday: 11am - 9pm

Said to be a play on words (from the French coup d’etat), Ku Day Ta’s unusual name is not the only thing that sets this little tea lounge apart from the others. I set up a private tea tasting there, in March 2009, for the South Bay Ladies’ Tea Guild, and we received top-notch service, tea, and “tea snacks” for $25 per person.

The tea lounge is located, surprisingly, at the Great Mall in Milpitas, right by Dave & Buster’s arcade and grill, and Coldstone Creamery ice cream booth. Accessible from outside the mall, as well as inside, the lounge has a stylish, yet calm ambiance, and the staff is helpful and knowledgeable. The owner, Bee-Bee, was in the store every time I went there to check it out, and she presented our tea tasting. We found her to be interesting and well-informed, with a pleasant soft-spoken manner. She corresponded with me personally when setting up the tea tasting, and gave careful advice when I asked about the teas and the tea snacks. Some of the tea guild members have dietary restrictions, and Bee-Bee and her staff treated our concerns with respect and seriousness, finding appropriate foods for us, which enabled us to relax and enjoy our time at Ku Day Ta.

Our tea tasting was a general overview of the main varieties of tea, and included Chinese Silver Needle white tea, Chinese Dragon Well and Japanese Sencha green teas, Taiwanese Formosa oolong tea, and Chinese Keemun black tea. In addition, she brewed some Chinese Jasmine Silver Needle white tea and Chinese Pu-Erh, which is an aged black tea, for us, gratis. The teas were all carefully prepared, and we enjoyed every one. The “tea snacks” served were candied ginger, cassava chips, and the apparently famous Alice’s Stick cookies, which we found deliciously addictive! Bee-Bee and her staff obviously put a lot of time and effort into preparing and presenting their products, and in educating themselves about their teas. We will definitely be returning to Ku Day Ta in the future!