Today my roommate and I decided to eat at Teany, a vegan/vegetarian tea house more commonly known for its owner Moby than anything else. I'd heard about it last year but had always been too lazy to venture below Houston to try it out.

Well, as I now lived below Houston, I was ready to take it on. We arrived at Teany after a few detours and noted its cheery mod decor. When we entered the store, we stood for a few moments in confusion before anyone deigned to notice us and tell us we could seat ourselves. We squeezed ourselves into a table for two (the dining area is cramped) and waited for the lone waitress to bring us menus.

At length, she set two small metal binders on the table and rushed off. We perused the offerings and both decided on the "turkey club" sandwich. In addition, my roommate ordered an iced oolong jasmine tea and I chose a lavender lemonade. It took another five-ten minutes before our waitress circled back around to take our orders and then another ten minutes for our drinks to arrive. And when they did arrive, my roommate's was wrong. The waitress had set down a pot of hot tea, instead of iced.

When that was finally sorted out, we chatted for a bit, looked around, laughed at the display copy of Moby's book, and checked out our fellow patrons. Most of them were very Lower East Side--European style and foreign languages all aflutter.

Then.. the sandwiches! They were the highlight of the meal. Each bite tasted just like how I remembered real meat turkey clubs tasting--and my roommate agreed. The sandwiches were a good size and it took us a while to finish them off, but finish them off we did, taking each final bite slower and slower until there was no more.

I was in the mood for some tofu cheesecake, however, so I asked the waitress what types of cheesecake they had. She replied that they had chocolate and plain. I decided on plain, she nodded, and we waited.

After an inordinately long period of time, she brought over a chocolate cheesecake. I didn't have the patience or heart to tell her of her mistake so I ate it. The total bill with drinks, sandwiches, and dessert totaled around 30 dollars.

Final verdict? Delicious sandwiches, so-so drinks and dessert, absolutely horrible service.

Teany, 90 Rivington Street, (212) 260-4351