Teaquation’s tasty tea drinks in Palo Alto

These craft brews center around green and black tea

Teaquation & Tonic is a trendy, fine-casual tea bar that opened earlier this month in downtown Palo Alto. It specializes in tea mocktails and cocktails made with green tea, fresh fruit juices, herbs and creamy toppers, like whipped coconut or mango sorbet. We stopped by during its soft opening, and, despite a few food misses, fell in love with the concept.

Chic and playful. The space is small, but colorful and well-decorated. Think reclaimed wood tables, jewel-toned chairs and enough living-wall touches to pass the Palo Alto test. Teaquation & Tonic is still in its soft opening phase — right now, it feels like a trendy juice bar with a liquor license — but be on the lookout for live music and an “after-dark experience” to complete the vibe.

You may never go back to super-sweet boba or one-note iced tea after tasting these craft drinks. The mild tannin from tea — usually green, though there are two drinks made with black tea — provides the spine of the drink. T&T mixologists then use ingredients like fresh juice, herbs or in a few cases, whipped creamy goodness to provide the acid and weight, so you end up with a complex, well-constructed cocktail that hits all the right buttons.

It currently offers 16 signature drinks ($4.75-$5.50), from the Scandal, made with grapefruit, lemon, hibiscus,

grapes and black tea, to the Moxito, which features green tea, lime, mint and club soda. Most can be made into an adult beverage ($10 each) and taste best

with gin or vodka.

AMONG OUR FAVES » The tropical yet balanced Gold Digger, with green tea, calamansi, pineapple and coconut

whip. We added vodka to the The Joker — a layered beauty with green tea, pineapple, lemon, basil and butterfly-pea flower tea, which gives the drink its purple

hue — and it was delicious. Not overly sweet or boozy. Highly recommended.

Hit or miss, and still in development. The current menu is small and features a handful of appetizers, such as meatballs and a Buffalo cheese dip, plus sandwiches and a salad.

We found the sweet and savory Honey Bunch meatballs ($12) flavorful but dense, and the accompanying couscous was cold and clumpy, but it’s early days

yet. The T&T salad ($12) topped with roasted pork belly was good, although the description included edible flowers and ours didn’t have any. The house maplelemon dressing was quite tasty.

Look for egg dishes, crepes and toasts to be added to the brunch menu soon.

DETAILS » Open from 11:30 a.m. Tuesday-Sunday and from noon Mondays at 115 Hamilton Ave., Palo Alto; www.tqtonic.com.

TEAQUATION & TONIC Teaquation & Tonic’s jewel-toned chairs and reclaimed wood provides a bright, chic environment for imbibing tea mocktails and cocktails.

JESSICA YADEGARAN — STAFF The tea bar’s menu is still in development, but there’s a selection of meatballs, sandwiches and a salad with protein options including smoked salmon and roasted pork belly.

JESSICA YADEGARAN — STAFF Teaquation & Tonic is a new fine-casual tea bar in Palo Alto from the owners of Redwood City’s Teaquation.