Tea Rooms

Since I started writing about food a few posts ago (and digressed somewhat to other things), I will now return to that topic. I had been musing over the fact that our "traditional" foods have been reinvented and are served in fine restaurants the city over. But this time of year, several area churches hold annual "tea rooms" where folks have an opportunity to have a taste of the homemade versions of some of these recipes. I went to one yesterday at Old St. Andrew's Episcopal Church (which is on the road that leads to the plantations). The church itself sits in a lovely setting of moss-draped oaks and centuries-old tombstones. The food, made by parishioners, was delightful, with choices such as she-crab soup, okra soup, shrimp pate, and Huguenot tort, to name a few. There is also a boutique in the church hall where hand-made items which the "church ladies" have created are for sale. You can even buy cookbooks with the traditional recipes for the foods you've just enjoyed. The tea rooms, accompanied by the beautiful white Bradford pear trees in bloom, are the first signs of springtime, the most glorious season in the Lowcountry.