Conscious Choice: Nada Tea: Serenity Now

September 2007 | Conscious Dining

Nada Tea: Serenity Now

By Tanya Fritz

If you aren’t a fan of certain popular coffee houses (to be left unnamed), which offer little else than bitter and burnt coffee, loud music and dirty couches, I have a peaceful retreat to share with you. Nada Tea & Coffee on the west side of Lincoln Park is an oasis for tea and coffee lovers looking for a serene environment to work, read or spend time daydreaming.

Nada Owner, Yumiko Kiyokawa says she dreamed of owning a tea house when she was growing up in bucolic Kobe, Japan. She explained, “It is a custom in Japan to have tea everyday. The tea houses are a gathering place and it’s always been a goal of mine to own one.” Kiyokawa is warm and welcoming and greets every guest with a bright smile, lilting hello and nod. Relaxation begins immediately upon entrance.

Nada is a place in Japan known for its pure spring water. This is reflected in my favorite drink at the tea house, the Herbal Blend tea. This elixir tastes as if it came straight from a clear spring and is an aromatic combination of: chamomile, rosehips, raspberry, papaya, peppermint, spearmint, strawberry leaf, vanilla passion flower, red clover, star anise and wild cherry bark. It tastes like a mixture of sweet fresh honey, light mint and flowers. Another fantastic drink is the matcha latte which is a green tea latte made with matcha powder — a strong powder of crushed green tea leaves — which Kiyokawa imports directly from Japan. “I can’t find the same quality of tea leaves here, so I order it from Kyoto,” she explained. This tea may be too earthy for some (my friend described it as a liquid salad) but I enjoyed the taste and especially appreciated the healthy attributes that matcha is known to contain, including trace minerals and vitamins (A, B-complex, C, E, and K) and is also high in catechin polyphenols, which are compounds with high levels of antioxidants.

Nada serves three kinds of green tea. Sencha is a common tea in Japan made of pure green tea leaves and often enjoyed with sweets. Genmaicha is similar to sencha but includes brown rice in the tea mixture which not only gives it a deeper taste, but offers vitamins as well. Hojicha is a roasted green tea which is traditionally had after a meal.

Nada was designed by Douglas Garafolo, Professor of Architecture at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Architecture and is also winner of the 2003 Mills Corporation competition for the planning, design and visioning for Block 37 in downtown Chicago. Natural light bamboo is the dominant design theme at Nada where the ceiling, coffee bar, floor and banquets made from the wood offer a thematic similarity to traditional Japanese tea houses. The teahouse is accented with grey walls, cream-colored chairs and black tables and cushions. Along one side of the café runs a wall lighted in a way which gives patrons the feeling that they are looking out onto the horizon at sunrise or sunset. The accent lights throughout and the clear-glass wall at the entrance give the small room warm light during the daytime. One of the best parts of this zen hut is the relaxing classical music that Kiyokawa chooses to play because, “well, it is pleasing to everyone,” she laughs. In addition, the free wi-fi makes Nada a great place for studying or working.

On the same wall as the luminescent horizon hang prints from one of Japan’s most famous schools for learning the culture of the tea ceremony, Urasenke Konnichan. The tea ceremony, or “Chado,” which means the Way of Tea, is what the school’s website calls a “comprehensive cultural practice that embraces the arts, religion, philosophy, and social life… . The ideals underlying the Way of Tea are known in Japanese as Wa, Kei, Sei, Jaku. In English, these are Harmony, Respect, Purity and Tranquility.” The school’s leaders strive to gain attainment of “genuine World Peace and Happiness, the mutual goal of all humanity,” through Chado. With the peacefulness that this zen retreat in Chicago brings to its patrons, Nada is well on the way to contributing to happiness through tea.

Nada Tea & Coffee, 1552 W. Fullerton Ave. (at Ashland), Chicago; 773-529-2239.

Tanya Fritz is a professionally trained chef, oenophile, slow-food fanatic and yoga enthusiast.

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