EATS & DRINKS
By Tricia Moore | Photos by Meredith Mashburn
Steeping Nostalgia: A New Rhythm at Fayetteville Tea House
While the establishment is new, it’s the feeling of nostalgia that makes the place special. A hutch behind the counter gives a choice of cups, and the three different sitting rooms offer distinctive seating areas with different “vibes,” as one customer noted, to meet your mood on that day.
Every corner of Northwest Arkansas is experiencing brisk change and burgeoning growth. Tucked inside a reimagined historical home, just a short walk from the square in downtown Fayetteville, is a newly opened space that offers a different rhythm.
Fayetteville Tea House serves as a nostalgic nod to a simpler past, where the persistent ping of notifications fades into the ambience as you step in the door. Co-owners Avalon Gurel and Alyssa Stockland steep tea behind an old-time shop’s mint-green display case, surrounded by old tea sets, mismatched retro mugs and a large collection of teapots. Online reviewers frequently highlight the whimsical décor or mention the establishment’s “Victorian-inspired” atmosphere.
Unlike at other traditional tea shops, “Anytime is teatime,” Gurel said. And, in addition to the wide variety of loose-leaf tea blends available by the cup or by the pot, the shop also has its own proprietary coffee source — Bolder Coffee’s aptly named Brewed Again. Its beverage offerings range from hot to cold, and customers can now enjoy treats sourced from rotating local bakeries as well. Additionally, for customers who buy the loose-leaf tea to take home, there’s a 10% discount if they bring their own container.
Fayetteville Tea House is a true local success story. “We were able to secure a loan for the lease with a Kiva Loan,” Stockland said. “We met our goal very quickly.”
Kiva is a nonprofit organization that coordinates crowdfunding to provide microloans to small businesses.
Securing the historical home for the Fayetteville Tea House location was like a new chapter in an old story for the two owners, who had met while working together over a decade ago in another tea house. Once they cleared the house as the location through city permitting, the inside needed paneling and painting, all of which was cosmetic. They felt the entire process of setting up the business had open doors and serendipity in all other aspects.
Visitors to the tea house have ranged from newborns to nonagenarians. “That is why we had the ramp installed,” Gurel said, “because we knew our clientele would need accessibility, from strollers to walkers, and we wanted everyone to enjoy easy access.”
Gurel said the shop also serves plenty of customers who you might not expect in a tea house. She smiled when recounting how Fayetteville Tea House is getting its share of local fraternity members visiting, perhaps looking for the comfort of a brewing ritual.
Fayetteville Tea House can be found on Instagram, Facebook and its website. But the co-owners did note that a popular TikTok helped drive some business. They also get inquiries about renting the space for special events, which they do on occasion. Stockland emphasized that the “community loves what we are doing as much as we do.”
The business is a steward of the home’s history rather than just a tenant, and it offers the one luxury that modern life has forgotten: the permission to be still while enjoying a good cup of tea.
