Raiding local trees and throwing their leaves in boiling water cuts down on aphid infestations, but it won't make a good cup of tea. Enjoy leaf-water made from ingestion-appropriate plants with today's Groupon: for $10, you get $20 worth of loose-leaf tea and more at Satori Tea Company in San Pedro Square. This Groupon is redeemable in-store only.

With more than 70 breeds of loose-leaf tea, Satori Tea Company hosts the ultimate tea party replete with organic, fair-trade flavors for take-home drinkability or in-store steeping. Black, oolong, mate, and more sate traditionalist and adventure-seeking palates alike, as drinkers sift through a leafy compendium of ingredients and aromatics.

Guests can take solitary sips at the tea bar with a single teacup ($2.75–$3.95), drink socially over a shared pot ($7.75–$9.95), or selfishly hoard flavors for the family with take-home loose-leaf bags. Swig a hearty earl grey superior ($9.95 for 3 oz.) or balance a fruit basket on the tip of your tongue with white pomegranate ($13.75 for 1 oz.) or tangerine dream ($12.55 for 3 oz.), a brew made from the disturbing night visions of baby oranges. The chronically indecisive can sample a number of flavors in one sitting during tea tastings, which are lead by a seasoned staffer. For $15 per person, or $20 for rare tea tasting, guest are invited to sample tea flights consisting of four different flavors of their choosing.

Following the revered English tradition of sipping tea and traveling by airborne umbrella, Satori Tea Company hosts five different Anglocentric tasting experiences, including the afternoon tea in Wales, which includes welsh miner's cakes, slices of bara brith with rum butter, and a sturdy pot of tea ($13.95 per person). Introduce children 12 and younger to Lewis Carroll’s hysteria with the Mad Hatter's tea whimsy, an afternoon filled with finger sandwiches, bottomless tea or milk, and sweets such as shortbread cookies ($14.95 per child) that clash ironically with your 7-foot manchild. Afternoon teas ($13.95–$29.95 per person) are served with fancy china and three-tiered trays and include a variety of scones, crumpets, and finger sandwiches. Call ahead for reservations.

Owner Victoria B. has always maintained a passion for tea that branched much further than curing sore throats or defrosting ice-cream headaches. Her storefront takes a contemporary approach to an age-old tradition, with sleek black-and-white tables peppering the modern space far removed from stuffy tea rooms of yore, where downturned pinkies were chastised with paper cuts and unwieldy foam fingers.

Reviews

The Food Pilot reviewed the Satori Tea Company, and 31 Yelpers give it a near-perfect average of 4.5 stars:

• As a boutique tea-room, this place has a modern and contemporary feel to it, unlike traditional Victorian tea rooms. With its black and pink walls and unique art pieces, you’re bound to have a unique experience here! – The Food Pilot
• The Green Tea is always very good. I just can't get enough of that Irish Tea! I even bought some to take home! I highly recommend this place for your next tea time! – Sarah D., Yelp, 2/8/11