Like steam engines and cryogenically frozen sea monkeys, tea leaves come to life with just a little hot water. Harness the transformative power of hydration with today’s Groupon to Chado Tea Room. Choose between the following options:

• For $30, you get afternoon tea for two and $25 worth of loose-leaf tea (a $61 value).
• For $48, you get afternoon tea for four and $25 worth of loose-leaf tea (a $97 value).<p>

Chado Tea Room’s kettles steep 1 of more than 200 flavors of loose-leaf tea complemented by an array of sandwiches, scones, and baked bites. Afternoon tea service expands on its traditional definition with a triple-tiered tray of savory and sweet noshables available throughout the day, now that electricity allows boiling water to be conjured without having to wait for the afternoon sun. Half sandwiches form delicious crenellations atop the crowning plate, the bread-enveloped contents chosen from one of four sandwich styles: the tea-marinated egg punjab, the goat-cheese-and-watercress Mediterranean, the cranberry-lingonberry-coated souchong chicken, or the baby-dill-infused smoked salmon. The first level harbors a scone for each diner laying peacefully beside a bowl of house-made cream, with the second sporting colorful arrays of fresh fruit, jam, a cookie, and a slice of cake for tea-dipping or an impulsive cake facial. Teapots contain one of the store’s many aromatic herbal brews, such as the house-blended African Dew breakfast mix ($7.52/4 oz.) or the vaguely nutty Makaibari Estate organic green tea ($7.98/4 oz.).

Within the shop, innumerable loose-leaf tea offerings each reside in their own cubbyhole within the vast honeycomb of wooden shelves that cover the walls. Pastel-pink walls dotted by sconces and elaborately framed artwork run the length of the deep dining room, blushing a brighter hue in the sunlight streaming through scalloped shades or whenever someone pinches the baseboards.