Callisto Tea House

Less than a mile away from some of Altadena’s most scenic hiking trails, this casual teahouse serves an excellent afternoon tea (weekends 10am–4pm). Each set includes a plant-based array of delicious toasts, scones and pastries, including Asian-inspired sweets baked by South Pasadena’s Cookie Chaos. Our favorite afternoon tea set at Callisto, however, is the gong fu tea service for two ($69), which comes with the regular sweets and savories plus a traditional Chinese tea ceremony. Brewed tableside on a wooden tray, each gong fu service also comes with an adorable color-changing tea pet. (On our visit, it was a pair of metallic pink-gold carp.) Guests are meant to pour hot water over the small pottery figure while blooming their tea leaves, and the tiny figures are associated with good luck. Note: While you can drop into Callisto for a casual pastry and a cuppa any day of the week, advance reservations are highly recommended for the weekend tea offerings.