The Story of Leaf Tea Bar

By Emily Hessney Lynch

Published April 8, 2018.

Have you been to Leaf Tea Bar yet? Whether or not you consider yourself a tea person, the experience you’ll have in this serene space on South Ave can be both calming and educational. We sat down with owner and founder of Happy Earth Tea, Niraj Lama, to learn more about his background and what makes Leaf such a unique feature of the Rochester landscape.

Niraj himself is from Darjeeling, India. According to Niraj, “It’s a small town by Indian standards, located very high up in the Himalayas. Darjeeling is known around the world mainly for its tea. It’s a tourist destination because of its views of the mountains--you can even see Mt. Everest from there!” You may be wondering how a man who grew up in the mountains in India wound up in our own beloved Rochester, NY. And as you may have guessed, there’s actually a love story hiding there!

“I met a tourist from the U.S. and we fell head over heels in love. It’s easy to do there because the mountains are so steep!” Niraj quips. He and his wife lived together in India together for about eight years and had two kids there, but as time went by, his wife grew homesick and yearned to be closer to her family. Lucky for us here in Roc, Niraj’s mother-in-law lived in Medina, NY, a mere hour west of here! The family settled in to Upstate NY life. “When I first came to Rochester, I had a lot of misgivings. I wasn’t sure how things would work out,” Niraj remarks. “I don’t think we could have made a better choice, though!” Why? “There’s a social cohesiveness here. The warmth of the people carries us through the cold of Rochester winters.”

So why open a tea shop in Upstate NY? Niraj had run an online tea shop while living in India and thought continuing it would be a great way to keep in touch with his roots. What sets Leaf apart is the stories behind the teas. Niraj worked as a journalist in India, often covering the tea industry, so he has an abundance of knowledge that he shares with his customers.

Photo by Gerry Szymanski

If you were visiting the Public Market back in 2011, you may have run into Niraj in the earliest days of running his business here in Rochester. “My first event was Holidays at the Market, and I sold my first packet of tea in the middle of a blizzard.” The business kept evolving over the years, moving from pop-ups at farmers’ markets to the eventual creation of a “tea studio” in the Hungerford Building, where he offered tea classes. By September 2016, the popularity of Happy Earth Tea had grown so much that he was able to open up a physical storefront/tea bar in the well-loved South Wedge neighborhood!

You can certainly drink a cup of tea at many of our local coffee shops, but the experience of drinking tea at Leaf is truly special. “We try to present tea as authentically as possible by preparing it in traditional ways, like how Chinese, Japanese, matcha, and Chai are made in homes in India...We try to foster the tradition and philosophy aspects of tea--balance and wholesomeness, life and day. Our teas speak to that and our shop is a peaceful place to spend time. Tea has a nice, positive impact on your mind. You can come here to our shop and center yourself.”

When you come into Leaf for the first time, you’ll find an abundance of options to choose from. Fortunately, Niraj and his savvy staff can offer great recommendations. If you want to come prepared, a few crowd pleasers: “Our oolongs are very popular. People also love our tray service, which we call gong fu style. Our chais are popular as well--we make them on the stovetop with individual ingredients, there’s nothing prepackaged about it. The matcha is very popular too.” You really can’t go wrong!

If you want to try one of Niraj’s own favorites, check out any of the Darjeeling options. “All of the layers of emotional connection I have to that place make it my favorite,” Niraj says. It’s different from the flavored teas some folks prefer, but complex and delicious in its own ways.

An added bonus to drinking Happy Earth Tea? They’re committed to doing social good too. “We are members of 1% for the Planet,” Niraj explains. “1% of our profits are donated to the Finger Lakes Land Trust in Ithaca. They buy land and put it in trusts for the public to enjoy.” And that’s not all! They also donate 10% of their Nepal tea sales to underprivileged kids in Nepal through the Ama Foundation.

A few years back, Leaf organized “a fundraiser for the Nepal earthquake in collaboration with the Rochester Brainery. There was a tremendous outpouring of support from the community and we raised thousands of dollars. So many businesses came forward to show their support. We really felt we needed to do something in this instance and it felt very satisfying to spearhead that effort.”

With so much good stuff going on for the folks at Happy Earth Tea/Leaf Tea Bar, what’s on the horizon? Well, as you may have heard, they recently opened a location at Eastview Mall! They opened their doors in January 2018 in the old Teavana space. “We’re reaching different people than we do here on South Ave,” Niraj remarks. At the Eastview location, “we offer samples and teas to go, and are working on getting seating placed outside our store in the mall.” It’s a peaceful oasis in the middle of a hectic mall. Next time you’re out shopping, pop in for some tasty tea to go, or bring a bag home. Stop by the Eastview location and mention I Heart ROC, and you’ll get 10% off your first purchase!

Stay tuned to all things Leaf on social media and beyond--Niraj has great ideas in store for the future. Think: bottled teas, tea tours around the world, and more. But those are long-term projects. First, the focus will be on the Eastview location.

Have we piqued your curiosity about tea? Some tips on getting into it:

• Try as many teas as possible! Go by different regions and different seasons. Every region has different tastes and flavors--there are distinct characteristics to each region. Just because two teas are from the same region doesn’t mean they taste the same!
• Get started at home by purchasing a simple one cup infuser and a stovetop kettle; you’ll be good to go.
• Take a tea class at Leaf! You can learn more about tea through their classes and on their website.

Cheers! Perhaps we’ll run into you soon at one of the Leaf locations over a mug of tea.