The Mariage Frères gourmet tea shop is a Parisian institution and one of the few places we make a point to stop every time we are in Paris. We like to go to the location at 30 Rue du Bourg-Tibourg in the Marais, which has a shop and tea room. If you’re really into tea, you can visit the tea museum upstairs.
The company was founded by two brothers in 1854 and today they sell more than 500 teas. You can purchase tea in the house’s signature black cans with a yellow logo (which make great gifts), but we prefer to buy loose tea in bulk from the large canisters lining the walls. The selection is so much greater compared to the pre-packaged teas, and if you ask to smell a tea, they’ll shake the canister and waft the smell to you with a giant black paper fan.
You can’t go wrong with anything in the store, but our personal recommendations are the French Breakfast and the Wedding Imperial teas. If you have not tried blue tea, we highly recommend the “Fall in Love” blue tea blend. If you can’t make it to Paris, you can also order their teas directly from their website. You can also order from Amazon and select stores like Bongénie-Grieder in Switzerland or Neiman Marcus in the United States.
Mariage Frères , 30 Rue du Bourg-Tibourg