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High tea service at Nudi Blue, opening April 9 in Berkeley.<\/p>\n
Carlos Avila Gonzalez\/S.F. Chronicle<\/p>\n
Nudi Blue will serve 12 varieties of organic, mountain-grown tea imported from Thailand.<\/p>\n
Carlos Avila Gonzalez\/S.F. Chronicle<\/p>\n
When Jezreel Rojas was dreaming of what came next after his and partner Krissana \u201cTanz\u201d Tussanaprasit\u2019s Northern Thai brunch sensation, Tanzie\u2019s in Berkeley<\/a>, he wanted to branch out. A raw seafood bar was one idea that came to mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n Then, an unusual space became available. A former coffee shop, it had no hood, which meant no fryer, grill or range. So focusing on raw seafood made a lot of sense for dinner service. As for the daytime, Rojas wanted to stand out from the many nearby coffee shops, and he and Tussanaprasit were establishing an import tea business, so he decided to serve high tea.<\/p>\n The distinctive result is Rojas\u2019 new restaurant, Nudi Blue<\/a>, opening Thursday at 2049 San Pablo Ave. in Berkeley. It\u2019s named after the nudibranch, a vibrantly colorful sea slug, in keeping with the seafood theme. To start, it will only open during the day for high tea. Rojas plans to roll out the nighttime raw bar and seafood menu in a few months.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Rojas researched high tea around the world when planning the restaurant. With some outliers, such as a creative tea and pastry scene in Dubai<\/a>, he noticed that most pay homage to the traditional English style, serving standard scones and sandwiches on towers. That\u2019s also been largely true in the Bay Area, though a wave of Asian-inspired tea popups<\/a> have brought new energy to the genre. \u201cWe can have way more fun with this,\u201d Rojas said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Nudi Blue displays a selection of tea cups from Doi Din Dang, a Chiang Mai ceramic studio.<\/p>\n Carlos Avila Gonzalez\/S.F. Chronicle<\/p>\n Instead of towers, tea sets arrive on glass box terrariums holding miniature plant landscapes designed to look like the Chiang\u00a0Mai mountaintops in Thailand, where the tea was grown. Rojas\u00a0 transforms a standard tea sandwich into an ornate purple and pink stack of duck and blueberry elements, with alternating layers of duck bacon, mousse and breast, along with blueberries folded into cream cheese and a mint gel\u00e9e. Chunks of candied Wagyu beef and its rendered fat enrich a savory scone that features soft-ripened Quinta cheese melted on top like a glaze. Earl Grey pastry cream and candied tea leaves garnish a golden and blue-gray pinwheel pastry.<\/p>\n San Francisco Chronicle Logo<\/p>\n Make us a Preferred Source to get more of our news when you search.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Add Preferred Source<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Tanzie\u2019s was listed last year on both the Chronicle\u2019s Top 100 restaurants list<\/a> and the Los Angeles Times\u2019 best California restaurants<\/a>, as well as a New York Times\u2019 2025 selection of best dishes in the country<\/a>. Both restaurants honor Tussanaprasit\u2019s hometown of Chiang Mai\u00a0\u2014 Tanzie\u2019s with its Northern Thai cuisine and Nudi Blue with 12 varieties of tea they import from the region, along with pottery from Doi Din Dang, a Chiang Mai ceramic studio.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n For now, Nudi Blue will be open 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday to Monday, for tea sets and slightly larger a la carte versions of some of the pastries and sandwiches, along with crepes and salads. High tea service includes 12 to 13 pastries, sandwiches or other small bites, and up to two types of their imported tea, for $65 per person.\u00a0<\/p>\n Nudi Blue\u2019s decor features plants and warm wood tones.<\/p>\n Carlos Avila Gonzalez\/S.F. Chronicle<\/p>\n Many dishes showcase Rojas\u2019 penchant for using a single ingredient multiple ways, such as a salad featuring kohlrabi pureed, pickled, poached, and made into chips. Deviled quail eggs stand in for the typical high-tea tradition of egg sandwiches, while a croissant stuffed with smoked sturgeon is garnished with whipped cream cheese and cucumber two ways (a coulis and ribbons). Rojas\u2019 take on a classic cucumber sandwich dresses up slices of the fruit with rau ram and cucumber whipped cheese, lightly pickled cucumbers and chips made from their dehydrated pulp.<\/p>\n Tea flavors also show up throughout the menu, such as in a tart with white tea cream and candied citrus, topped with segments of fresh pomelo, grapefruit and blood orange.<\/p>\n A croissant with smoked sturgeon, cucumber and dill, left; and a citrus tart, right, from Nudi Blue.<\/p>\n Carlos Avila Gonzalez\/S.F. Chronicle<\/p>\n A croissant with smoked sturgeon, cucumber and dill, top; and a citrus tart, bottom, from Nudi Blue.<\/p>\n Carlos Avila Gonzalez\/S.F. Chronicle<\/p>\n All of\u00a0Nudi Blue\u2019s tea varieties are mountain-grown in the Chiang Mai area, near where Tussanaprasit\u2019s parents grew up\u00a0\u2014 which makes the selection unusual in the Bay Area, where most specialty tea companies focus on China, Taiwan or Japan. All the tea is organic and harvested by hand, including some from a revered, thousand-year-old tree. Rojas and Tussanaprasit plan to launch a separate business to sell tea by the pound at both restaurants as well as online.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Rojas plans to keep pushing the concept of high tea. \u201cI just want it to be an explosion of creativity,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Nudi Blue. 2049 San Pablo Ave., Berkeley. Opening April 9. @nudi_blue<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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