Tea lover? I bet this is not your average hug of the cup.

As a part of our usual summer weekends at my second home, we’re mapping the road to Darjeeling for a Sunday excursion. Sights of leafy tea estates on the hills and in the valleys with the actuality of the fluttering wind more refreshing than pina-colada, is something not new to you when your family is in tea business, but it still gets me every time!

Half way through, we reach Kurseong and I know that a quick pit stop is mandatory but this time the plan’s a little twerked. Instead, the vault’s uphill at the newly opened Margaret’s Deck located near Tung station. The contemporary and suave construction of the lounge, that looks like it’s suspended in the air from a hill, can hardly go unnoticed.

Margaret’s Deck, the tea lounge and Margaret’s Hope, the tea garden are both named after the daughter of the estate manager who was deeply in love with the beauty of the gardens. She promised to return back but passed away soon after due to a sudden illness on her voyage back to England.

The deck consists of a small in- house tea shop one can buy local produce from which will surely feed the nostalgia when one gets back home. To add to the charm of the place, connected by a narrow, however beautiful passage is the thirty seater restaurant and tea lounge. Furnished beautifully in English elegance, one can sit here enjoying their ‘cup of tea’ (pun intended), while scanning the beautiful panorama of the gardens.

The restaurant extends a well laid variety of teas and a selection of snacks like scones, cookies, tea cakes and quiches to begin with. To add to my excitement, they even had this rare variety called purple tea. Alas! the colour did not live up to what it’s called and the result was yellowish-orange, but well, I’m still admiring the atypical name.

While connoisseurs can opt for their signature Castleton Muscatel or maybe white tea, for others, jasmine or chamomile could be an ideal pick if flowers teas are your thing! Mingle your tea with shortbread cookies and pretend like it’s high tea time in 12th century British isles. Blame my eccentric choices, but my personal favourite snacks at the deck would be the spinach and corn quiche and peanut butter cookies, something I savoured to the extent of getting a few packed for home.

Overlooking the lush greens of the tea plantations and the soft greys of the foggy skies, this place surely does get the advantage of the alluring landscape. It is no secret that Kurseong weather (something I'd choose over Darjeeling's) adds up to the reviving capabilities of the place and the nature of the experience.

I believe that I will always have a biased tendency towards the ambience of a place. Probably that is the reason my second visit on an extensively rainy day actually made me grow even fonder of the deck. The wisely done glass windows made sure my gaze at the beautiful weather wasn't interrupted while keeping me from the discomfort of the rain and the inside still felt like outside.

Bill Watterson wrote, “Rainy days should be spent at home with a cup of tea and a good book”, and I had no second thoughts about that, but I would be lying if I said this place hasn't changed my mind.

How to reach-

The nearest airport is Bagdogra airport and the nearest railway station is New Jalpaiguri. It's around a 35km uphill drive from the nearest town, Siliguri. Local taxis and buses operate from the town.

Picture Credits: Raashi Singhi, 2016