Hi, I'm Joanne's son...thought that I would add some comments about
our experience.

I have been to a number of tea shops in New York City, New Jersey, and
elsewhere.

I was surprised by our experience at "The Tea Gallary".

First, it was a very very hot day. We stopped by around 1pm, and it
looked like he was just opening the store. So we were hot and tired.

The store was not air conditioned well. We were not offered anything
to drink. We asked to have a cup of tea. We were told that they
don't serve cups of tea.

Then we were told that we could do a tasting for $24. It was a little
bit strange. He wasn't very enthusiastic about serving us.

I wandered around the store for a little bit, it was cute, but
disorganized. I had trouble figuring out what tea was for sale.

I think there might have been a little bit of a cultural barrier. He
didn't seem to understand why we were annoyed.

In contrast, my fiancee and our friends went to Cha Ma Gu Dao Tea in
Montclair, New Jersey this weekend. We walked in and were offered
free samples of ICED TEA. You know, because it was freaking hot
outside. The service was friendly and they didn't try to force us to
buy anything. We ended up buying some of the loose tea, because it
was that good. They have a bar where you can sample tea and a wide
open area inside with tables where you can sit down with your laptop,
surf the internet and enjoy a cup of hot tea. We've also been to
Franchia, where you can sit down and order a cup of tea as well as
participating in a sampling.

In short, if you are going to have a store front in New York City,
understand that when someone walks into your store, treat them with
respect and offer them some tea.