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Stick with Tea at the Tea Pavilion

When planning a recent trip to the Japanese Friendship Garden, I had my mind set on lunch at the Tea Pavilion to round out a pleasant afternoon in Balboa Park. I’d never been, but I had visions of a serene, delicious lunch in the company of waterfalls and songbirds. Unfortunately, my imagination got the best of me.

At $7.50, the Teriyaki Rice Bowl cost $2.00 more than I normally pay for this simple dish, and for that reason alone, I expected it to taste comparable, if not better. It did not. The sauce was oversweet, the carrots had no crunch, and four of the six pieces of beef on my skewers were tough.

When I asked the young guy behind the counter to give me their most popular tea, he brought out the Japanese Cherry Sakura, defined on the menu as “green tea flavored with the essence of cherries.” I liked it just fine, though it tasted less green, more fruity. I’m more of an English Breakfast girl, so I probably won’t get it again. They do have plenty of flavors to choose from.

Though I wasn’t head over heels in love with the tea, I did enjoy sipping it at an outdoor table in the sun. Serene Japanese music played overhead and made me long for what I’d hoped I’d find here but didn’t.

As much as I wanted to love my lunch experience, I didn’t. Perhaps if I’d gone prepared for an expensive-for-what-you-get, pre-made lunch, I’d have left satisfied. Even the outdoor tables and the wide selection of teas don’t take this place any more than one step above a food cart. And, honestly, I probably would have walked away much more satisfied had I, in fact, eaten from a food cart and stopped at the Tea Pavilion only for my beverage.

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When planning a recent trip to the Japanese Friendship Garden, I had my mind set on lunch at the Tea Pavilion to round out a pleasant afternoon in Balboa Park. I’d never been, but I had visions of a serene, delicious lunch in the company of waterfalls and songbirds. Unfortunately, my imagination got the best of me.

At $7.50, the Teriyaki Rice Bowl cost $2.00 more than I normally pay for this simple dish, and for that reason alone, I expected it to taste comparable, if not better. It did not. The sauce was oversweet, the carrots had no crunch, and four of the six pieces of beef on my skewers were tough.

When I asked the young guy behind the counter to give me their most popular tea, he brought out the Japanese Cherry Sakura, defined on the menu as “green tea flavored with the essence of cherries.” I liked it just fine, though it tasted less green, more fruity. I’m more of an English Breakfast girl, so I probably won’t get it again. They do have plenty of flavors to choose from.

Though I wasn’t head over heels in love with the tea, I did enjoy sipping it at an outdoor table in the sun. Serene Japanese music played overhead and made me long for what I’d hoped I’d find here but didn’t.

As much as I wanted to love my lunch experience, I didn’t. Perhaps if I’d gone prepared for an expensive-for-what-you-get, pre-made lunch, I’d have left satisfied. Even the outdoor tables and the wide selection of teas don’t take this place any more than one step above a food cart. And, honestly, I probably would have walked away much more satisfied had I, in fact, eaten from a food cart and stopped at the Tea Pavilion only for my beverage.

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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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