An English Tea Room in an Unlikely Place

Ojai, California isn't a place where you'd expect to find an English tea room, but then again Ojai is full of things you wouldn't expect to find in most small towns. The Plaza Pantry has been a fixture here for decades and it's where ex-pat Brits go to get their fix of biscuits, shortbread, Heinz beans, PG Tips and of course to enjoy an afternoon cuppa with scones. And it's where I found the elusive British ingredients I needed for the Yorkshire Parkin I made recently.

As I was packing up jars of Devonshire cream and orange marmalade and tins of Lyle's treacle, I lamented to owner Beryl how much I missed Cornish cream teas. With that, she handed me a flyer announcing her monthly "English Afternoon Tea" and I immediately made myself a reservation.

When I arrived for the event, I sat down next to a chirpy table of ladies who were members of the Daughters of the British Empire, an American society of women of British or Commonwealth heritage. There are dozens of chapters in California, but this group's members were from Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. Broad English accents mixed with flat American twangs in a happy cacophony of conversation and bonhomie. I shared my table with a lovely couple from Wales who had just moved to Ojai to be closer to their children and grandchildren. We shared stories of traveling in the U.K., and talked about the different ways afternoon teas are served in Britain and in the U.S. We talked about English weather versus California weather. And we discussed the latest scandals shaking each country.

Our table was decked out with typical floral-patterned china, and tea came in a cozy-covered pot. A selection of small tea sandwiches arrived: tomato, cucumber and egg, along with little sausage rolls. Next, fresh scones were served. As teas go, this one was quite authentic, although we were surprised to find our scones buttered, which isn't customary and certainly wasn't necessary since we were adding jam and clotted cream to the warm scones anyway.

 
The final course was a lovely Victoria sponge with the traditional layer of jam in the center and a dusting of powdered sugar. It was delicious, although by then I was so full I couldn't finish but half of it. I'm thinking of making a Victoria sponge when my family comes for Christmas, but I wouldn't serve it for afternoon tea; they wouldn't sit still for it. I'd serve it after dinner, perhaps embellished with fresh berries and a dollop of whipped cream.

I'm sure this is exactly how authentic regional recipes get adulterated when they migrate to new locations. People do that too. They leave one place and go to another and they change and become someone new. I tried to imagine my grandfather who left England for America in 1879, leaving behind his family, his village and foods that were familiar to him. I wondered if he missed afternoon tea with scones and Victoria sponge. It was a tradition that would have been hard to replicate in the ramshackle mining towns of California. I can only hope that some kind English lady opened up a tea room for all those homesick blokes who would have enjoyed a little bit of home in the most unlikely of places.