Tea and literary lovers unite, there is a food temple for our people in Hendersonville, North Carolina! On my last trip to the Tarheel state, my mother had been telling me about this little gathering place that served the most delicious meals and was buzzing with interest from the locals: It’s called The Book and Bee.
My mother, my sister, my niece and I decided to venture out in the cold to have a ladies’ brunch before the forecasted snow arrived that day. The fellas? They went to a hot dog restaurant, naturally. The flakes were starting to fall as we drove the short distance to the restaurant. Having seen the parking lot packed the day before, we got there early.
The stairs catch your eye right away like a beacon to bookworms everywhere: Come in, take a load off and be with your own kind. Being a warm-blooded creature though, I didn’t beat around the bush: I took the picture of the stairs and quickly navigated indoors.
The food smells were heavenly and the entire place is decorated with, and serving beverages from, teapots and tea cups galore.
You may or may not be the biggest fan of tea served from actual china tea cups, but there is something cozy, maybe even a little magical, about sitting down with your gal pals (or buds) and being served your own personal pot of tea, complete with warmer, and little bee hive honey containers. All that was missing was my own personal recliner with a lamp and a pile of books by the fireplace in their main dining room. And yes, there is a big fireplace.
The Book and Bee is definitely not a gimmick eatery garnering interest on the décor and marketing alone. I ordered a grilled cheese and it was divine. I mean! I was admittedly and hopelessly lost in my own world of peachy warm tea, yummy mixed cheeses grilled perfectly on fresh bread along with fresh fruit.
Bookmark this one for me, I’m coming back on my next return trip.
And I’m ordering the grilled cheese.
Life by Lens and Laptop 