What once began as a pandemic hobby has now evolved into a modern tearoom in downtown Antioch, The Hen and Drake Modern Tearoom.
After spending the pandemic gardening, Erin Green said that she began searching for ways to “make something” out of the things she grew in her garden. She also came from a family that enjoyed throwing parties so she wanted to combine the two.
Green said that her mother’s side of the family is from Barbados, which used to be a British colony, and that her grandmother used to drink tea every day at 2 p.m., accompanied with some sort of pastry.
“It was almost ritualistic, every day at 2 o’clock, she took tea,” Green said. “I don’t recall drinking tea with my grandmother but I definitely did with my mother, she never drank coffee.”
Combining her hobbies and her family’s passion for tea, she began hosting backyard afternoon tea parties in 2023 with what she called a “Caribbean twist.”
Green said that she loves the entire production of afternoon tea, which includes tea, sandwiches, scones, and pastries, that are served on a three tier stand.
“I love things that are a performance and kind of fancy,” Green said. “Making something that’s really, really simple, into something that’s really special.”
Post-pandemic, Green said that she found her backyard tea parties as an opportunity to provide people with a space to slow down and make memories.
“During the pandemic, we had this idea of needing to slow down, life is different now,” explained Green. “Then, when it ended, we just went back to normal, back to being busy and crazy all the time. In reality, this [hosting tea parties] was an opportunity for me to provide people to sit down and relax, create memories and take their time.”
With 2023 being the year of King Charles’ coronation, Green said that people developed a deeper fascination with British culture and she felt that it was a good time to weave an old institution into today.
“There’s this kind of, like, throwback for an older generation. It’s something very familiar and comforting,” Green said. “And then for a younger generation, it’s like discovering something new. For us, we’re right in that centerpiece and we’re able to draw on tradition and also introduce new things.”
Towards the end of 2023, Green purchased a food truck to move out of her backyard and begin providing mobile afternoon tea services. The truck was licensed in 2024 and they served hot teas, iced teas, matchas, and pastries.
“It was a little bit of a challenge learning where to go, especially for something that is so niche,” Green said. “We were just this odd duck that doesn’t fit in anywhere.”
While managing her backyard afternoon tea services and her food truck, Green said that she had also been looking for a location in Downtown Antioch, CA for two years.
Prior to hosting afternoon tea, Green was the Marketing Director for the El Campanil Theatre and because of her experience there, she said that she felt like an anchor in the downtown community and wanted to continue contributing to it.
“I love the downtown, it has so much potential, it’s a hidden gem,” Green said. “If we could get the business community to really come together to support the theatre and support all the events that are happening downtown, we can really get some synergy going.”
Sean McCauley called the Hen and Drake a solid addition to the downtown.
“Erin, along with Hen and Drake, will be a welcome addition to the Rivertown dining district in 2025. With so many exciting new businesses opening, I’m confident she will find great success—especially given the location in one of Antioch’s most historic and soon-to-be revitalized waterfront buildings,” said McCauley.
Debbie Blaisure, from the Downtown Antioch Association (DAA), said that she hopes the tearoom and the “new tea craze” will bring more people and businesses downtown.
“We will support Erin with anything she needs and we encourage people to come downtown and check out the new tearoom and the other businesses,” Blaisure said. “The established restaurants and things that are there should benefit with the new businesses and the new traffic and the DAA will absolutely help with events downtown and promote them. This is a great time for Erin to open up.”
In addition to wanting to be downtown, Green said that she really strived for a location with big windows and the possibility to accommodate outdoor seating.
In November 2024, Green leased her current location of the tearoom that she said meets all of her standards for her “dream location.”
After overcoming what Green said was her biggest challenge, the bureaucracy, and with the help of a finance company, Honeycomb Credit, Green is aiming to open the doors of her tearoom on June 14.
“Everything aligned and came together, making me super excited to finally see this thing that was a dream, progress to reality,” Green said.
Green said that she is hoping to create not only a tearoom, but a space for the community.
“If someone has a charity event, or book signing, or an art show, I really want people to think of us as this intimate space where you can make something happen because that’s always been a challenge,” Green said. “When you have so many big companies that are quite corporate, there’s not a whole lot of flexibility and for me, because we’re small, we can do anything.”
The tearoom will be open from Wednesday to Sunday at 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and hosting live music on weekends. In addition to traditional afternoon tea, Green said that they will also be offering a luncheon plate, which is what she called a “mini tea.” Among the pastries they offer, Green said that they specialize in eclairs and créme brûlées.
In addition to tea, they will also be offering champagne to provide for the “royal tea” experience.
With a goal of contributing to the El Campanil Theatre, Green said that they will also be doing collaborations with the theatre.
Green said that she hopes to bring something vibrant and funky to the downtown area, and to provide top tier, unique, service.
“I want this to be a really cool gathering space and something different to do. You don’t need a reason to go to tea,” Green said. “You can just be celebrating life in general.”
For more information on The Hen and Drake Modern Tearoom, click here.
