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Autumn is here and what better way to keep warm than to cozy up in a nice café with a hot, tasty Chai? This classic Indian tea comes in a wide variety of flavors like vanilla, masala and rooibos. It’s always a favorite during the cold season. CitySaheli spent the weekend going from one Chai place to the other indulging in the delicious drink. Here are our favorites:
T Salon is Chelsea Market’s very own tea store and lounge. Its spacious seating area is neatly decorated with plush chairs, wooden low tables and Asian inspired paintings. For $3 you can enjoy a piping hot Chai in this fabulous setting. Add as much or as little milk and sweetener as you please at the milk bar, and just sit down and relax while listening to some cool jazz. Out of all the places we tried, T Salon had the largest Chai selection. Chelsea Chai was an instant favorite for its special ingredients, almond and chocolate. But T Salon also offers berry Chai, Chai spice, mandarin Chai with a touch of orange, spicy Chai, green Chai with Japanese Sencha, and a green mate Chai with a South American twist.
459 15th Street
New York, NY
(212) 243 0432
The low-key lighting and low ceilings at Sanctuary T in Soho offer a posher Chai experience. The staff recommends tasting one of their Chais without milk, and it works! Choose a $6 rooibos, masala or Soho Chai, wait for the hourglass to run out, dip the sugar stick in the glass cup and enjoy! CitySaheli highly recommends the chocolate Chai.
337B West Broadway
New York, NY
(212) 941 7832
This Indian café, with locations on the Upper West Side and in Soho, is known for its delicious Dosas but their Chai takes us back to India! Hampton Chutney Co. only serves one type of Chai with milk and sugar but that’s all we need! For $3 a cup, you can sit by the bar and enjoy your hot treat while listening to some soothing meditation music and looking at the photos of gurus on the wall, or leave a coin by the Ganesh statue for good fortune and take your Chai to go.
464 Amsterdam Avenue
New York, NY
(212) 362 5050
68 Prince Street
New York, NY
(212) 226 9996
When it gets too cold to go outside, you can always make your own Chai, courtesy of Julie Sahni’s Indian Cooking School:
Masala Chai (6 servings):
3 cups of water
6 whole grain cardamom pods
2-3 whole cloves
1 ½ inch piece cassia cinnamon stick
1 star anis petal
½ inch piece fresh ginger
1 tablespoon of Indian Assam tea
2 tablespoons of jaggery or light brown sugar
½ cup whole or low fat milk
Bring the water to boil in a saucepan. While the water is heating, crush to a coarse powder, using mortar or pestle, cardamom, clove, cinnamon, and star anis. Add ginger and continue grinding until the ginger is thoroughly crushed.
Add the crushed spices to the gently boiling water and let the spices cook for 3 minutes. Add the tealeaves and continue boiling for another minute. Stir in the jaggery and the milk, and continue cooking until the jaggery is fully dissolved and the chai is thoroughly heated.
Turn off the heat, strain the chai into a teapot and serve. For cold chai, cool completely, refrigerate until thoroughly chilled and serve in tall glasses.
© Julie Sahni’s Indian Cooking School
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