Page 156 - South Mississippi Living - September, 2023

DINING GARDENIA TEA ROOM BY
Tea Pour.
Owner Michelle Nichols with her daughters, Sydney and Milan.
ADDRESS
314 Hwy 90, Ste. 104 Waveland
CONTACT
228.332.2334
WEBSITE
www.gardeniatearoom.com
SOCIAL
Facebook @GardeniaTeaRoomby
AlmostHome
HOURS
Thursday-Saturday Seatings at 1 and 3 p.m.
Sunday
Seatings at 2 p.m.
story and photos by Kimberly C. Rasmussen
156 | September 2023
www.smliving.net | SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living
There is something absolutely magical about tea. I don’t mean sweet tea (although sweet tea still merits praise and adoration). I mean freshly prepared hot tea. It’s warm. It’s comforting. It is steeped in tradition and can cure almost anything.
As a child, I loved playing with tea sets. Pretending to pour out pots of tea while handing out tiny imaginary cakes for eager guests of stuffed animals and dolls was a staple playroom activity. While
it wasn’t Kensington Palace, I reckon I thought I was somebody. With its 19th century British origins, afternoon tea parties are often associated with the upper class sophistication of fancy hats, lace gloves, and idle chatter about everything and everyone. While afternoon tea is more accessible and widespread today, it is still an event to behold and definitely one that should be enjoyed regularly and by anyone who wants to take the time.
Michelle Nichols, founder of Almost Home Catering in Waveland, agrees.
With 15 years of catering feathers under her cap, Nichols wanted to bring a new element of fun and sophistication to the Gulf Coast. She wanted people to enjoy her food in a warm atmosphere that combined the opportunities of relaxation and decompression with a sense of being pampered. Having always loved tea, Nichols knew just what was needed and in January 2023, Gardenia Tea Room poured its first Earl Grey.
Gardenia Tea Room offers a full afternoon tea service complete with everything you need to make sure your tea experience is lovely and fit for a royal. Presented in true order, tiny sandwiches followed by scones and finally desserts are paraded out, dish after dish – a marvel for the eyes as much as anything else. The tea room also offers an assortment