Lovebirds looking for a unique Valentine’s Day experience need not look too far. One eatery on Franklin Turnpike in Mahwah works to transport guests to a European high tea experience without leaving the township.

Mahwah residents Ed and Samira Lotfy, who opened Bon Appétit Bakery and French Café in Mahwah 17 years ago, expanded their operations two years ago, opening the “Bon Appétit Tea House” next door to the café. “It’s something we always wanted to do,” Ed said. “It’s a very special place. We wanted to make it into an elegant way for couples to spend quality time together.”

Visitors to the Tea House are met with a classic setting (proper attire required and no children under 12 are permitted), a choice of 52 varieties of tea, scones, finger sandwiches, soup, salad and desserts. For Valentine’s Day, the eatery is opening from 12:30 – 2:30 p.m. and 6:30-8:30 p.m. for couples looking for a unique way to celebrate. A violinist will provide a musical backdrop for the day, and candles throughout the room will “create a very romantic setting,” Lotfy said.

If high tea is new to you and your someone special, Lotfy says, “don’t worry! My wife will take a few minutes when you get here to explain how it all works.” Each guest gets his own pot of freshly brewed tea to accompany a shared meal of the couple’s choosing.

“High tea is new to Americans,” Lotfy, who came, with his wife, to New Jersey from Egypt in 1969, said. “But it’s easy to learn and appreciate.” That is, in fact, what the Lotfys did. Ed was an accountant at a firm in NYC for 25 years before retiring in 1994. “Every morning, getting to New York right at the Port Authority, there was a fresh French croissant shop,” he explained. “I got a croissant and coffee every morning and I always said, ‘hey, when I retire I want to do something like this.’”

Though they are separate locations, the two businesses work in conjunction with one another. Pastries and desserts from the café are used in the tea house.

In addition to Valentine’s Day festivities and elegant nights out, the Tea House hosts corporate dinners and private parties, like engagement, bridal and baby showers, birthday parties, charity events, weddings, anniversaries and other celebrations. “People need to make reservations to come anytime, but for parties they should reserve the room as early as possible,” Lotfy said.

The tea house is still accepting reservations for Valentine’s Day. And, the bakery is still taking orders for desserts to be picked up on Valentine’s Day, for lovebirds who are eating in.

Lotfy’s recommendations for Cupid’s Day – chocolate ganache, mango and vanilla mousse, which he says is “very light and very good, especially for people who don’t like chocolate,” and French cheesecake, which is “very fluffy, and different than New York style cheesecake.”

Get more information or make reservations by calling 201-529-1144.