As the Times reported last week, two new tea shops have opened and each one has a distinct personality.

In Gramercy, on Third Avenue at 17^th, Amai Tea and Bake Shop is cozy and warm. Kelli Bernard, the proprietor, keeps her tea in vintage library card catalogues and the place exudes a neighborly feeling.

The tea is excellent and so are the pastries, including a butter cookie laced with green tea. It’s great that for 75 cents, I could pop one of these small delicate treats into my mouth and feel my need for something sweet and sinful satisfied.

Uptown at Tafu New York, it’s all modern, sleek and spa-like right down to the soothing background music. The branch of a Japanese-owned company, Tafu brews terrific green tea and also offers a limited menu of intriguing tea-inspired items like miniature cheesecakes and chocolates. You can also purchase teas and various accessories.

Amai

171 Third Ave.
New York, NY
212 863 9630

Tafu

569 Lexington Ave.
New York, NY
212 980 1319