A Unique Blend of Innovative Teas, French Cuisine and Scintillating Entertainment Made Headlines at the 2018 Galle Literary Festival

Along the sidelines of the highly celebrated Galle Literary Festival which was recently held in the historic city of Galle, there was a revolution in the making. At the ‘Lipton Tea Room’, it was not only culture but the culture of tea that was being promoted for festival goers. Following the success of the Lipton Tea Room at previous editions of the literary festival, this year too, the Lipton Tea Room created a buzz and was an essential pit-stop to quench parched throats with refreshing teas paired with French cuisine and musical talent to please the ears. In addition, there was also a bubble tea café at the venue by Bubblelement. This wide range of tea based beverages appealed to all age groups, making the Lipton tea Room a hub for innovation.

The Lipton Tea Room is the brainchild of Unilever Sri Lanka who want to propagate the versatility of tea to the country. While the teas were created by its partner Tea talk, the cuisine was designed and prepared by French chef Bertrand Dubois. Ramping up its unique tea experience even further, the Lipton Tea Room became a hive of entertainment, providing an open platform for upcoming musicians, artists and poets.

Visitors dropping into the Lipton Tea room were treated not only to delicious teas served in innovative ways, but also to melodious sounds of classical instrumental performances to electronic loop pedal guitar virtuoso performances. The event was headlined by Bathiya and Santhush who performed a completely acoustic different set of arrangements to the sheer delight of the guests. The entire experience was a multi-sensory one! All the performances can be viewed on the Lipton Sri Lanka Facebook page and on Youtube under Lipton Tea Room 2018.

Commenting on the beverage experience, a visitor to the tea room enthused, “We dropped into the Lipton tea Room not realizing what a fantastic experience it would be. Their highly creative menu featured a mind boggling line up of tea served in unique ways. From traditional teas to iced tea and tea shakes, we tried out as many varieties as we could. The Lipton Tea Room really provided a fresh new insight into how exciting tea can be! I mean, who could have thought of soursop tea, basil tea or chocolate tea! They were simply delicious”.

Adding his pleasure about the culinary voyage, another visitor said, “It was a privilege to try cuisine curated by a French chef at the Lipton tea Room. Even the menu items were named after iconic literary works, which I thought was amusing. We tried Prawn with the Wind and Fowl Play (a chicken dish) and weren’t disappointed at all. The prawns were succulent and tender and the chicken was a completely melt-in-the-mouth experience. We truly felt like we had a significant cultural and culinary experience at the venue with the amazing music acts while we tucked into the food.”

Mihira Kulatunga, Category Head of Beverages & Water, Unilever Sri Lanka, said: “The idea behind setting up the Lipton Tea Room was to invite people to a unique sensorial experience across the beverage, food and entertainment offerings. We received an overwhelming response from all those who dropped in at the Lipton Tea Room. Apart from the sensory experience we want it to act as a platform for young talent across genres. As a result, the combination of food and teas alongside the ambience and the entertainment made for a sensory extravaganza. The overall tea room idea personifies the brands purpose to be a spark of brightness in a busy world.