FAIRHOPE — The Charming Teacup offers an elegant experience in an English tearoom within a historic home in the Point Clear community.

The new dining establishment is located at 17111 Scenic Highway 98 in Fairhope, housed within the historic Miss Coleen's House, a Victorian home built in 1897 that is also home to Punta Clara Candy Kitchen, which is run by the descendants of the family that built the home.

Courtney Pendle, owner of the Charming Teacup, is no stranger to tearooms, with her mother and sister having started one in Colorado. Having fallen in love with tea making, she learned the craft from her family and decided to start one when she moved to Fairhope.

When she learned that a space within Miss Coleen's House was about to become available, she jumped on the opportunity and opened The Charming Teacup in 2024.

"Some people say they're not a tea person, then they come to our tea room and they try it, and they're like 'Oh my gosh, this is actually really delicious,'" Pendle said.

They only use loose leaf tea and have many flavors to choose from. Pendle said they studied a lot about tea, even traveling to London every year for the past seven years, with much of the team room curated from their experience traveling.

Pendle also described the place as "tea theater," going as far as dressing up in character as nippies, an old English term used to describe waitresses who would "nip around or nip about."

"We teach people how to make a proper cup of English tea," Pendle said. "They can do it however they wish, of course, but we recommend two or three lumps of sugar and then cream, and then our tea, and then it's bottomless pots of all the flavors, and that's what people love, too, because they get to try so much."

Their signature tea blend is the Queen's Tea, a favorite of Queen Elizabeth that she served at Buckingham Palace. For the holiday season, they will be serving a Clementine Clove, a tea that tastes like "Christmas in a cup" with notes of cinnamon and orange. Their tea is also available to buy and take home in a gift shop on site.

Outside of tea, they also serve sweet and savory food items such as sandwiches, including chicken salad croissants and English cucumber sandwiches, scones served with Devonshire cream and jam, English sausage rolls, and for Christmas, a choice of three desserts such as mini cakes, cookies, and a candy cane truffle.

With the holidays coming up, the Charming Teacup has limited dates and seating available. Tickets are available now through Dec. 20. To book a reservation, visit www.charmingteacup.info or call (251) 234-5551 for more information.