GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A tea shop promising an authentic British tradition celebrated its opening with a ribbon-cutting Thursday.

High Tea GR at Wealthy Street near Lake Drive SE in Grand Rapids offers loose-leaf teas and hand-crafted pastries.

“I’m just so excited for what’s coming. I’m excited to bring tea time to Grand Rapids,” High Tea owner Melissa Langley said. “There’s nothing like it here. I grew up with the love of everything British, and I’m just so excited to bring it to Grand Rapids.”

She said she worked to make the guest experience as authentic as possible, adding that British people who tried High Tea’s scones “are so excited that they’re authentic.”

“With great dreams comes great responsibility,” Langley said. “So I’m feeling the responsibility right now to make this as authentic of an experience as possible to make it a destination.”

High Tea took over the space that used to house the Eastown Hookah Lounge. Crews demolished the bar area and created an open-floor plan, with seating for guests and a small retail section.

Velvet couches line one wall and a chandelier hangs from the ceiling in the 2,500 square-foot space. When guests walk in, they are greeted by a collection of tea sets to their right and pastries to their left.

“Every detail was carefully chosen for this project, down to the handles for the doors,” a release from Orion Construction, the firm that worked with High Tea to transform the space, said. “The space is meant to give customers an immersive experience, bringing the concept of traditional British tea time to the United States.”

Langley, who grew up in Bangladesh and often traveled to London with her parents, got the idea to offer a tea room in Grand Rapids 17 years ago. She started working to make that idea a reality two years ago.

“I’ve learned two things. I’ve learned hope and dreams are really stressful, and I have learned that you’re only as great as the people you surround yourself with,” she said.

Langley said she’s “over the moon.”

“This is surreal,” she said. “It’s surreal to be here.”

High Tea is open Tuesday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Friday through Sunday 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. For more information, go to highteagr.com.