Tea & Other Things

Coming from a tea-​drinking culture in Central Asia, I was soooooo happy to find an amazing tea shop in Cochrane. I tell you, it’s very hard to find good tea anywhere in Canada. But ‘Tea and Other Things’ shop is a perfect place to shop for tea, a real gem for me. Wide selection of all kinds of tea. My tastes in tea are rather specific, by I find there just what I need. Most importantly, the tea is fresh. Extremely friendly owner and staff. Also, there are other things you can buy there, like teapots, cups and other interesting items, as well as you can have a nice cup of tea and cookies right there. The shop is decorated beautifully, has a wonderful atmosphere. You select the kind (s) of tea you’d like, and they weigh and carefully package them for you. You can also get ornamented tin cans for tea there. It’s not the tasteless tea in tea bags, which I consider a knock-​off, but real leafed tea full of flavour! Prices per gram are cheaper than what you get in a grocery store, but the quality and freshness are of course way higher, so you get great value for your money. So, all in all, I highly recommend this shop.

From previous experience working in tea shops, I always knew that somewhere in Cochrane, some mystical tea shop existed. I would always hear about «the tea lady in Cochrane,» but no one ever told me the name of the shop.
Fast forward to this summer. I was just returning from a wilderness survival retreat in a bus full of other University students, both talkative and irritating. Everyone seemed to be stoked to return to civilization except for me. I personally dislike Cochrane. I find it really to just be a stuffy extension of Calgary, but with more novelty shops and small town locals who stare. Therefore, being the only vegan dragged to the Ice Cream store, I separated from my group.
A little down the road, I heard music, I followed it, and stumbled into an adorable little shop. I looked up at the sign, «Tea & Other Things!» I had just stepped into a legend! This store is stocked full of cute teaware, which appeals both to my tea nerd self, as well as the 80 year old woman side of me that calls everybody «dear». Remember when I complained about the pricing of Steeps’ tea? Well, Tea & Other Things sells tea of an equal calibre, but actually sells it by weight, meaning it is priced much more reasonably. There is also a huge selection.
The owner was incredibly friendly, and the music inside was actually being played by some of her friends, it seems. I picked up the «Yoga» blend, full of cardamon, peppercorns, cinnamon, licorice root, ginger, a really nice herbal blend. I exchanged some small talk with the owner, and when I brought my mum out a few weeks later, she actually seemed to remember.
Apparently, they also serve tea in house, which I am looking forward to coming in and trying next sometime. I would definitely recommend this little shop.