Let me preface this true story by saying that I am no tea snob. I was drinking hot tea way before my first visit to the U.K. - sugar, no sugar, milky or not, lemon/honey whatever and I absolutely adore both sweet & unsweetened iced tea. My family are big on the tea.
Most of the British people I've talked with think iced tea is crazy, CRAZY I TELL YOU!! Which is cool (ha, pun) I know it's very different for them.
While in England our family decided to go to dinner and a movie (Harry Potter). Dinner was T.G.I. Friday's because it is close to the cinema and has pretty good food. For those who may not know, it's an American restaurant which means things like free refills (Yes! Finally!) and American fare. I'd been before on trips, but this was the first time I noticed Iced Tea on the drinks menu.
I'd been about two weeks without iced tea and was interested to see what it would be like in England. When our waitress came to the table I asked her if they made the iced tea fresh. I only asked because I hate iced tea made from a powder - sacrilege!! So horrible and so not tea. The waitress gave me a quizzical look and said yes, they would make it fresh for me. I was really excited!
Out came our drinks and ...
I'm fairly certain that they made a cup of hot English tea (I think it was probably English Breakfast, the taste was very similar) added milk, then poured it over ice! A sort of iced coffee but with tea. And most definitely not as good! It wasn't terrible - I drank it all over the course of the meal - I didn't want to make her feel bad! Let's just say I won't be changing my iced tea making ways to be like theirs!
And wouldn't you know? It was the one time I didn't take my camera with me somewhere the whole trip!
I'm thinking I might do a step by step photo tutorial on how to make iced tea - and fast! It's very simple and really refreshing...
*Obviously not all of them (I don't think!)
Kath's Guide to Making Iced Tea
