This story was written in collaboration with L.A. TACO’s Media Lab class at USC, an incubator for emerging journalists aimed at forging a new path for the future of journalism. Keep a look out for our ongoing series of stories from L.A. TACO Media Lab students.
You won’t find it on Google Maps. There’s no glowing sign pointing the way, no crowd spilling onto the sidewalk, cocktails in hand. On a quiet stretch of Downtown L.A., behind an unmarked warehouse door, a low hum of conversation rises over the bubbling of boiling water.
Inside, people are blissfully buzzed—not on booze, but on tea, with varieties strong enough to lift your mood, hangover-free. Soft lantern light dances across the concrete walls, drawing you into Bu Tea Den, which opened its doors in May 2025, quietly carving out a hidden third space for the city’s tea lovers and the sober-curious alike.
It’s not a bar and it’s not your standard teahouse. Visitors RSVP online and follow secret directions into the speakeasy, making a deliberate choice to be here and be present.