T-Buds

I organized a group of 12 women here for a tea party baby shower and it was fantastic! Marisa was more than helpful in accommodating a couple different dietary requests I had and everything went very smoothly. There was 1 guest who is gluten free and she couldn’t stop raving about how good her sandwiches and scones were! The normal sandwiches and scones everybody else had were also fantastic! Every sandwich was fresh and homemade. The scones were to die for! Crispy on the outside but fluffy on the inside. Even the mascarpone cream was delicious! The selection of tea was amazing. 3 page menu on just tea! They were more than willing to substitute tea for coffee or iced tea if the guest asked. This is the perfect place a small gathering of friends to hang out and have a lovely afternoon tea experience!

I came here with my friend after finding a groupon for the chocolate afternoon tea. At first, I was skeptical about whether I would enjoy it because I’m not the hugest fan of chocolate. I made a reservation ahead of time.
When I first walked in, I was impressed by how it was renovated. I remebered it was very vintage and floral (we saw a group of girls dressed up in lacy clothes for tea). We were sat down at a small table with huge sofa armchairs. They gave us the tea selection which was a very long list each with their own description and a waitress outlined what the menu would be.
The tea was flavourful and unique. However, it got cold soonly after both in the pot and cup. I also don’t know if I could ask them to refill it with hot water. I remember the the presentation of the tiers of food was very pretty and intricate. However, the taste was a little on the mediocre side.
We were able to have a really nice long chat in a quiet and beautiful setting. We ended up staying for a few hours, way after we finished our food. It was also a good place to take photos.

Picked t-​buds for a workplace outing, the 5 of us ladies had a great time. They were very accommodating and even put together a vegan cream tea option. Four of us split the classic and the chocolate afternoon tea. Plenty of food for us all, the quiches and mini sandwiches were delicious, petite fours were lovely, and the macaroons were chewy yumminess. The chocolate crêpe was a hit with some, the canapé was a skewer of tomato, basil and mozzarella. The sparkling tea was refreshing and delicious, and for the pot of tea I would highly recommend the vanilla bourbon roibos. The bill split 4 ways came up to (taxes included) 18/​person, which was very reasonable. Overall a great experience.

Went here yesterday with my husband for their classic afternoon tea at $ 29/​person.
Pros:
–sandwiches were tasty
–scones were excellent
–excellent presentation of the 3 tiers
Cons:
–cream of earl grey tea I chosen wasn’t good
–petit fours were poor in taste (macaroons was hard, chocolate brownie was close to rock hard)
–lacking traditional China teapots and cups
–décor is not your typical English high tea setting
–seating is tight as you’re sitting very close to the table next to you and behind you making you involuntarily hearing other people’s conversations
–3 of the sandwiches we wanted were not available
–would have liked if scones were served with clotted cream instead of their crème mascarpone
–found an eyelash underneath in one of the fruit cups (wasn’t a biggie to me but I’m sure others may find this gross)
–my teacup wasn’t cleaned well as there was tea stain at the bottom
The price in comparison with other high tea places out there is quite reasonable but it really doesn’t come close to when being compared to higher end high teas, but I guess that’s the price difference you are paying for.
This place is really just OKAY for me to have given it a try and experience here but we wouldn’t be returning as a few of my high tea requirements aren’t met here such as the ambience and the nice fancy fine bone China teapots and teacups aren’t used here definitely took away from my high tea experience.
I would recommend to owner to ensure more careful handling of food to avoid future hairs of any sort to be in food and to clean the teacups better.

An excellent place for afternoon tea, I am a fan. Even my husband, who’s not a big fan of afternoon tea, was impressed a little…
The quiche, sandwiches, scones, macaroon, fresh fruits, desserts… everything was so yummy!
I just wish that the scones were warmer, but everything else was excellent.
I didn’t know about a Groupon voucher, so next time I’ll go using Groupon with my girlfriends.

We had the Chocolate-​Lovers Afternoon Tea for Two: — A Groupon Voucher
Unremarkable. Scones were rock hard and cookie like. Sandwiches were boring, flavours mundane and uncreative, also why give an option to choose sandwiches, when you bring me whatever you want without asking me my preference? I can read the menu you handed me and it said to choose 4 of what was listed, yet you gave me no option and no reason why I was not given a choice… I found this to be a flaw in respecting your customer.
Dessert flavours were not well balanced and tasted like a block of dark chocolate without any differing notes, it served to overwhelm any other aspects of the sweet treats.
I will say the chocolate croissant, Carbonated Jasmine tea, Rooibos Out Of Africa Wine Buds and coco-​caramel buds tea was lovely, but not enough of an incentive for me to return to this establishment as I had come with high hopes for delicious scones.
I however see great potential in a quaint, lovely setting with a very creative room design. I honestly suggest having tea yourselves at the Omni King Edward, Windsor Arms Hotel or Ritz Carlton and getting an idea of what scones should be, for that was the most disappointing aspect of the entire experience, maybe some research will help you further develop your own recipe.
I say if you’re in the area by all means stop in and try the tea and perhaps other fare available on their menu, but sadly at this point an otherwise hopeful tea experience fell short of my expectations. I would sooner pay the extra $$$ for a tea experience with light, melt in your mouth scones, than hard cookies masquerading as scones.
Response to Owner — I have also had Scones in London, Tottenham, and three different regions of Isle of wight, your scones were nothing like what I encountered and sampled. But I am no expert and it indeed did not suit my taste in scones.

What a great place for an afternoon tea! The staff was fast, friendly, and extremely approachable. I have an allergy to fish/​shellfish and staff didn’t hesitate to provide me with delicious alternatives. My boyfriend and I were given so much food we didn’t eat for the rest of the day. Kudos!

I had chocolate inspired afternoon tea set with groupon. Great value!
T-​buds has a large selection of tea. I tried dark chocolate mint buds and coco caramel buds. They both were recommended with the chocolate inspired tea set. Both tea were very good and I ended buying two tins to take home. :)
Tea sandwiches are good, but nothing too special. I was fooled by the crêpe thinking it’s sweet, but it’s actually savory with a little spicy kick. We got two types of scones, chocolate and cranberry. Both were fresh baked and fluffy. All the desserts are good as well.

I had an excellent experience. I made a reservation and the staff were very kind and accomadating. The location is 5 minutes away from Lawrence Station. The restaurant itself is very small and crowded, I was melting by the time we got seated. The groupon deal was a set of tea, savoury foods, and then a 3-​tier full of sweets. Alas the high tea selection was great, I got the bourbon vanilla rooibos (light and refreshing), my friend wanted the vanilla oolong but it was sadly out of stock. The savoury part of the set was delicious and filling (crêpe and spinach quiche and their MINI SANDWICHES ARE TO DIE FOR). And the best part was the desserts. SO AMAZING ! seriously. I’m drooling thinking about it again. I don’t really mind people listening to my conversations lol, but i do agree with other users that the spacings of the tables are a bit to close. The servers are A+ (they had no bias if you had a groupon or not), the tea, food, desserts A+, the interior and location are A-​, the reason i can’t give a full 5 stars is because i would not pay regular price for all of this, at 36 dollar (with tip) per person. But I would recommend T-​Buds to all of my friends for sure!

Second floor is not easy find and the space for afternoon tea too compact. The chair are so comfortable

The 3 tiered snacks were very well prepared! All of the tea tasted great too! Servers were very friendly and attentive.
My only complaints — this place is small and the tables are so close together. I could hear all of the conversation the two girls were having next to us. Also the prices are a bit high for just afternoon tea.

A cozy little tea shop, With a homely feel. I took my mom for afternoon tea at my girlfriends recommendation and was not disappointed. Prices are fair and the staff is friendly. They have a good selection of teas and a light menu, we had the full afternoon tea with scones, sandwiches, macaroons, little cake and some fresh marscapone cheese and raspberry jam on the side. Everything tasted fresh, flavourful and well made. My only negative is that it can get a bit crowded for a smaller tea shop, and can get a tad bit slow, the tables are seated close and I often found it difficult to hear my own conversation while the table behind me had theirs. Overall a nice experience and a great spot to grab brunch or tea with anyone that enjoys tea or wants the British afternoon tea experience.

Located on the second floor right above aroma in midtown Toronto, this cozy café was a great place to chit chat and catch up with some girlfriends. The area is awesome with loads of patisseries and bakeries. When we went on a Sunday afternoon for high tea, it was filled with tables of quietly chatting women. My first impression was that this place was super cute! There were big cushy individual chairs with tables lined with white table clothes and tea served in simple white teapot and white cups. Cute parisian pictures and loads of tea leaves are on either sides of the walls. Its not as fancy as the other places in Toronto, but I think the price was very reasonable! For $ 27 (approx) you get a choice of your own tea, 6 sandwiches, scones w jam and crème mascarpone, 2 petit fours, a small quiche and fresh fruit. Sandwiches come in a variety of the classic types plus a few unique rolls. :) I liked most of the sandwiches :) and the crème mascarpone, jam and fresh scones were heavenly!!! They have a wide selection of teas and they also have a unique section of teas depending on your «life stage». I know I mentioned that when I went it was full of females but they also have a small section of teas «just for men»! I think that’s pretty considerate! :)
I ordered an earl gray crème de caramel which was delightful! I forgot which ones my friends chose hehe but the staff are super nice!
Overall we had a wonderful tea time on a Sunday afternoon with some girl friends without breaking the bank! Definitely go for the scones with crème mascarpone and jam! Its just so delicious and floaty!

Very impressed with the high tea. Luckily we got a Groupon to experience t-​buds and we were not disappointed! $ 32 for $ 64 experience for two.
Served a pot of tea — the sencha passion green tea was delicious! Must drink.
First course was a crêpe (cheese and spinach) with a summer salad (the dressing was so good! I think it was mango and tangerine… Or something along those lines).
Then they gave us the 3 tier plate with small sandwiches, scones, and dessert. Everything was amazing! Wasn’t a huge fan of the desserts but they were decent enough. The scones were buttery and light. Mini sandwiches were delicious!
The place itself is beautiful with natural light coming through. Comfy chairs to sit at. The service was great! Good job ladies.
I would definitely come back for this experience. A great way to spend afternoon tea with your girlfriend :) it is a bit pricey so if you get a chance to experience it with a coupon or discount, DO IT!

Went to T buds with dear friends for an early lunch on a Saturday. You need reservation as the place is small and I saw them turn away customers as they were all booked for lunch. We had crepes, club sandwich and dessert crepes with wonderful teas. The atmosphere is kind of chic. The place is small but charming. On top of all that the meat is halal. I can’t wait to tell all my friends and family about this gem of a place.

While small, this place packs quite a lot of charm. It has a clean and comfy feel to it, with those big club chairs, white tablecloths and local art on the wall,
They have a small brunch menu, with more choices for lunch. Our table each chose something different to try — I had the Sea King (smoked salmon, wrapped in whole wheat wrap to look like sushi). Not great but pretty god. Someone had a savoury crêpe with a Moroccan lamb stew and that was delicious. We all tried different teas but the lychee rose and the champagne tea were my absolute favourites! I would go back for those 2 teas alone!
The service was nice and the staff really know their teas and can help you choose. The tea menu can be overwhelming. They also have the typical dessert plate you can get if you want a more typical tea experience and not more of a food experience.
If you are looking for somewhere to take you mom for Mother’s day this place would be a nice change from the typical hotel tea places. It is small so definitely make a reservation

I came here for an event and it was really great. I don’t believe the menu they served is on their normal menu but it was out of this world. They served us sparkling champagne made out of tea, a normal tea of our choice, a poached pear dessert and much more.
They offered us options for the appetizer, entrée and dessert.
I would highly recommend hosting an event at TBuds.
I also purchased a tin of tea to take home and it is really delicious.

So disappointing. We had been wanting to do an afternoon tea experience for so long and this place seemed great when I found it online. As soon as we walked up the stairs there were no staff in sight. Some other ladies sitting down politely told us that a private party was coming in half an hour and we would have to leave. We thought that was fine. One of the servers came out and tried to get us to leave because they were planning an event (even though the restaurant was open for another 3 hours). She got the owner or manager who was very unpleasant and rude and tried to get us to leave. We weren’t budging since we were tired and hungry and convinced her we would eat in half an hour.
We got the savoury tea for $ 19 each. I almost laughed out loud when I saw how much food we actually got. The server said we could share but if we were «really hungry» we could get one each. You get 6 tiny little pieces of sandwiches, 2 small scones with jam and crème mascarpone and the smallest little cup of fruit. Why are you worried about us not finishing eating in a half hour with this little amount of food? It’s not like you’re paying for good service either. When we finally wanted to pay, no one was in sight. The server decided she needed to correct me when I asked for «cream of earl gray» INSTEAD of «earl gray de la crème.» My apologies. The tea was just okay, I’ve had better earl gray many times. I will note that the scones were delicious and the sandwiches were pretty good, but with everything else it’s hard to enjoy.
Bottom line: If you require reservations and decide to shut down your restaurant 3 hours early for a private party, you need to make this clear on your website or post a sign on the door. They have not updated the website — no longer do they have two levels, it is now just the upstairs. I certainly wouldn’t bother with this place again, but if you wish — call ahead.

Maybe due to the really crappy rain storm during our day of visiting may have dampened my mood a little. My friend and I came on a deal voucher to try our first tea experience. We got choice of seating so we sat in the couches, close to another table but their conversation never came into ours. The waitress was very prompt, we made our order and the tea came out pretty quickly. However the timing for our main treats to come out came a bit longer then I figured it would. But when it did come out, it was a bit sparse in my opinion. The scones were very good, the other desserts definitely looked and tasted like they were from a grocery store. It would have been nice to have been given a choice to add in $ to upgrade to the full tea menu. Tea was good i ordered the vanilla rooibus tea. It didn’t stay hot very long so we drank cold tea later on our outing. The waitress came by with a tea sample of a orchid oolong tea. The service is really good and when i dropped my knife/​fork she came out with another set without even hesitation from the back.
Was a nice experience, but I think I will continue to try other tea places in Toronto.

Quite the cute little shoppe.
My order:
Savory Crepes: The Caesar (absolutely amazing), The lamb one (forgot the name– wasn’t too bad, a bit exotic),
Dessert Crepes: SBC (yummy), Orchard custard (loved it!)
Pros:
— my servers were very gracious and friendly;
In fact Frankie started conversation on multiple occasions and was quite easy to warm up to– he mentioned a bit about tea drinking etiquette, he took the time to get to know myself & my friend. It was a very nice and heart warming ambiance
— a wide selection of teas to choose from– and sugars! (honey, sugar syrup, the list goes on)
— their crepes are absolutely delicious!
— it was a very nice quiet place; very easy to catch up with my friend. there weren’t any loud noises in the background
— loved the furniture and set up of the place
Cons:
— not near a subway line
— subjected to DT parking/​traffic (which is never fun)
I went on a groupon which discounted the Crêpe Experience for me. It was phenomenal; I will definitely be coming back here for their Afternoon tea experience!