Afternoon tea, that most mannered yet totally chill midday ritual, is getting a makeover in Fountain Valley.
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Qua Contemporary Chinese Cuisine has launched its own take on the tradition, swapping the usual cucumber finger sandwiches and scones for egg tarts, honey walnut shrimp youtiao and barbecue pork puff pastries, all served alongside pots of tea on the restaurant’s open-air patio.
The new service debuted Sept. 12, the brainchild of Ivy Ha, co-CEO of Kei Concepts, the restaurant group behind Qua.
“I always liked the idea of afternoon tea because it’s always giving people a reason to slow down and spend time together,” said Ha. “And with Qua, we thought it would be interesting to take that experience and do it in our own way.”
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That meant resisting the urge to simply recreate the British version. “We didn’t just want to copy a traditional afternoon tea,” she said. “We wanted to do something that would like like it was through Qua.”
The format leans into the restaurant’s Chinese identity and Vietnamese point of view (Qua is a nod to the “quarter” in Chinese Quarter). Qua’s cooking takes inspiration from Chợ Lớn, Ho Chi Minh City’s historic Chinatown, and that same sensibility carries into the tea service.
Traditional afternoon tea generally follows a familiar template — finger sandwiches, scones, pastries and tea. Qua keeps the savory-sweet fare and tiered presentation, but changes nearly everything that lands on the stand.
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Sweets include mango sago pudding, egg tarts, black sesame cookies and fresh fruit. Savory items include vegetable crudité with whipped tofu and chile crunch, honey walnut shrimp youtiao, barbecue pork puff pastries and tea egg sandwiches.
Siu mai arrives separately in a small bamboo steamer, a deliberate visual cue. “I specifically requested that item because I think it’s a good visual way to reflect Chinese, Asian influence on the afternoon tea,” Ha said. “When you look at that, you will immediately say, ‘Oh, that’s Chinese.’”
Developing the menu took several months, she noted, with the kitchen testing not only individual dishes but how the entire spread worked together. Tea options include herbal, green, black and oolong. Mimosas are available for $12
Service costs $45 per person with a two-person minimum. A $10 children’s add-on includes red bean panda bao, taro snow bunny bao and apple juice.
Ha said Qua plans to keep the afternoon tea ongoing, with individual dishes changing seasonally. “I really want people to slow down, go to Qua during the daytime and really enjoy the space in a different way,” she added.
Afternoon tea at Qua is available Fridays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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Find it: 16121 Brookhurst St, Fountain Valley, instagram.com/quadining