Tajikistan Tearoom: 'Drink Some Tea And Forget Your Troubles'
The colorful murals, ornately carved sandalwood pillars, and Persian carpets create an intimate and cozy atmosphere at the Tajikistan Tearoom, located at the Palais am Festungsgraben, Festungsgraben 1. Reservations are encouraged.
Tam Eastley/NPR Berlin hide caption
The colorful murals, ornately carved sandalwood pillars, and Persian carpets create an intimate and cozy atmosphere at the Tajikistan Tearoom, located at the Palais am Festungsgraben, Festungsgraben 1. Reservations are encouraged.
Tam Eastley/NPR BerlinSnuggled quietly in a small upstairs room in the Palais am Festungsgraben, behind the German Historical Museum and the Neue Wache, is a room of wonders.
From inside comes the soft sounds of relaxing jazz, the clinking of tea cups, and quiet, calm conversation. A small heap of shoes guards the entrance way into the tiny room. Once inside, beautiful woven Persian carpets, intricately detailed carved sandalwood pillars, and colorful murals greet the eager explorer.
Take a seat at a coveted and lavish floor table and grab a menu. This is the famous Tajikistan Tearoom, once a carefully guarded secret to Berliners, which, for better or for worse, has become quite popular. Fortunately, the increasing awareness and love of the Teestube has in no way taken away from the cozy and intimate atmosphere.
The tearoom dates back to 1974 when Tajikistan, then The Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic, was still a part of the Soviet Union. It was displayed at the Leipzig Fair in the Soviet Pavilion and was then donated to the Society for German-Soviet Friendship (an East German organization meant to encourage relations between the two countries). It was later moved into the Palais am Festungsgraben, where it now resides.
The tearoom serves delicious teas and a selection of Russian cuisine. You can discover teas from China, Japan, and Russia, with an impressive array of around 30 types of teas, ranging from sweet to smoked. Indulge in a Russian tea ceremony, complete with vodka, a samovar, cookies, and rum soaked raisins.
Tea is an important part of Tajik culture, and is often enjoyed with every meal. Green tea is the national beverage. The traditional tearooms of Tajikistan stem from a nomadic and Islamic culture where men would discuss politics and important issues over tea. (At the time, women were not allowed.)
This culture is displayed on the beautiful walls of the tearoom, with colorful murals depicting a life of constant movement; men sit alongside flowing rivers and drink their tea leisurely, dressed in ornate traditional garb.
Despite its large windows facing the incredibly touristy Museum Island, the tearoom feels like another world. Today, the tearoom remains a place for quiet conversation, somewhere to relax over a cup of tea and forget the increasingly cold weather outside.
Their motto, "Tee trinken heisst die Welt vergessen," which can be loosely translated as, "Drink some tea and forget your troubles," is exactly what's offered. In the winter months, you can lie back on the woven pillows, wrap your fingers around a steaming mug of rose petal tea, and listen to some fairy tales by candlelight, courtesy of the Berliner Märchenfrauen, a family of German storytellers who tell fairy tales in German from all over the world on Monday nights starting at 7:30 pm.