One of my favourite pastimes on a Melbourne Saturday in winter is dropping the turntable needle on some soulful beats, brewing a pot of Genmaicha, and sinking into the plump clefts of my brown leather armchair. Thanks to MzRizk’s Hip Hop High Tea, I can now nip over to joints like Belleville and recreate the seamless combination of timbre and tannins in the irreplaceable company of crispy chicken.
The equation is simple: Beats, exclusive teas, and a hip hop-themed food menu. The combination is so perfect it’s no surprise these events sell out.
For Kiss FM Urban Fervour MC, Rizky’s Block Party thrower, and all-round rad DJ MzRizk, hip hop and tea is given some serious thought. Teas are sourced from international trips and paired with a food menu from the hosting venue in true name-dropping fashion.
Enjoy Houjicha by Perfect South with Ludacrispy chicken sliders and Lil Kim-Chi slaw, Notorious P.I.G pulled pork Bhac Nam Chimmi and pork scratchings, and Questlove Philly cheesesteak spring rolls while you groove to Jill Scott.
Of course, high tea wouldn’t be high enough without dessert. Salted caramel Wu Tang flan and buttermilk strawberry cream Dilla donut with Matcha chai by Change Chai.
Each tea gets its own time and place to sing as you vibe out to your favourite Friday night slow jam.
Thanks to MzRizk, traditional high tea culture reserved for middle- to upper-class manicured women wielding tiny pooches and tightly-pinned hair buns at the Park Hyatt has been redefined.
Infusing high tea with the kind of tunes you’d hear at one of Melb’s underground cocktail bars means, finally, you can leave your Lipton Earl Grey steeping in the mug you made in Year 7 pottery class and instead sip Lemon and Ginger tea by TTotaler and eat Three Six Parfia red velvet cupcakes as your head involuntarily bops to ‘Suede’ by NxWorries.
If none of this gets your senses brewing, how about a Chai Called Quest smoked rum and chai boozy iced tea? Beats, teas, and life.
Ate: Hip hop-themed food menu and high beats.
Drank: Tea, glorious tea.
– Matt
Matt M. is a mad scientist by day and beer connoisseur by night. When he’s not devouring a new set of craft beers you will find him in a dankly lit room plotting his approach at the next alcohol-related festival.
Check out MzRizk’s website for more hip hop high tea and her upcoming events.
