I’m a coffee drinker. Latte’s are my java juice of choice. But, I’ve been know to step out with a cup of tea every now and again. But, Matcha. Notcha. Well, not me. I had matcha for the first time on my honeymoon in Argentina. We’d just hiked in the Andes with 3 other couples and our guide made matcha for us on the trip back down the mountain. I was tired and the matcha was cold, bitter and the straw had been sucked on by a bunch of folks I did not know.
Somehow I stumbled upon Cha Cha Matcha’s insta feed and was immediately taken by their branding. Yes, I’m that girl. I’m a sucker for beautiful branding and a well done insta feed. I was taken by their branding, but I’d been reading up on the health benefits of matcha and decided it was worth the fifteen minute walk to see what the hype was all about.
The line was almost out of the door when we arrived late afternoon. In New York this means one of two things: the place is really good OR it’s a tourist trap/flash-in-the-pan. I was skeptical. They had matcha everything: tea, ice cream, all kinds of coffee like drinks, lemonade and the list goes on. Plus, the shop was just pretty and there were pretty people in there.
While I stood in line, I tried to be patient and positive. I ordered a matcha latte with coconut milk. I’ve never had coconut milk in a coffee drink before, but my trainer was pushing me to try nut milk so I thought what the heck! My name was called and my drink was ready. It was soooo pretty – all green and white in a pretty clear tumbler with pink writing. I took a picture first before my drink got ugly. Then I tasted it. It was delicious! Ayesha, my college intern, was along for the ride. She’s not a coffee drinker so she got the lemonade. She said it was delish. What a pleasant surprise.
Imagine, two well-traveled NYU grads armed with a dream and business degrees applied what they learned in school to Japanese Ceremonial Matcha. They spent some time in Uji, Japan and were inspired by the people, passion and warmth of Uji, Matthew and Conrad returned to Manhattan with a plan to open their own matcha shop that embodied both their New York sensibility and the stateliness of Eastern tea practices. Armed with inspiration and tea leaves straight from Uji, they started developing quirky recipes to showcase the flavor of authentic Japanese Ceremonial Matcha. And thus, Cha Cha Matcha was born.
Oh, and the super cute name, Cha Cha Matcha, is derived from the word “Ocha,” which translates to “tea” in Japanese.
