Taking Tea in “The Valley of The Sun”

English Rose Tea Room

201 Easy Street, Suite 103 • Carefree, AZ 85377

480-488-4812 • carefreetea.com

It was only a matter of time before there was a tearoom in the town of Carefree, Arizona, to play into the peaceful nature of its name. And what could be more carefree than an afternoon spent sipping soothing cups of tea and nibbling petite treats? The tearoom in the quaint town isn’t your average haunt to check a box and occupy space, but rather, the English Rose Tea Room is an exceptional oasis for both those who call the desert their home and those who seek outstanding destinations for tea.

The tearoom, which is regularly voted “Best Place for Afternoon Tea” by Phoenix magazine, was opened in 2002 by English native Jo Gemmill. Jo grew up surrounded by Twinings tea and an Anglophile’s favorite condiment, clot- ted cream, as well as having a grandfather that was a royal guardsman at Buckingham Palace. It is safe to say that all things British were truly in her blood, including her affinity for tea and her desire to open a tearoom someday, which she accomplished when she moved to Arizona.

For two decades, the English Rose Tea Room has stood apart from the rest as a must-visit locale for tea fanatics from across the country. With a mesmerizing recently renovated interior that is unapologetically feminine in florals, frills, and fascinator sightings, this venue affords a trip across the pond without having to renew your passport and at a fraction of the cost. Seemingly endless rows of roses decorate the walls and ceilings and transport the senses to the serenity of an English garden. Customers of the tearoom can choose from a variety of tea services—a Formal Afternoon Tea, with an irresistible three-tiered selection of sandwiches, scones, and petit fours accompanied by a small pot of tea; a kid-friendly Nursery Tea; a Cream Tea, consisting of a pot of tea and two scones served with strawberry jam or lemon curd and Devon cream; and a Just Desserts tea for the person with an intense sweet tooth, offering a pot of tea with two scones and petit fours. To fill your teapot, a selection of more than 50 loose-leaf teas is available to suit any tea lover’s palette. Prices for the services range from $14 per person to $36, and reservations are strongly recommended and can be made by phone.