For many Americans, tea is like soccer. We know the rest of the world is obsessed, but for some reason we can’t get excited ourselves. If The Green Teaist can’t get us hooked, nothing will. The luxurious North Shore salon gives itself the grand-sounding moniker of salon de thé vert et l’atelier and lives up to it. The 1,800-square-foot space is dedicated to books on tea and tea-friendly pastries by Gerhard’s, a couple of blocks away—and, of course, Japan’s pure green teas themselves, including the famously rare Gyokuro, which fetches $28 a pot and as much as $165 for a 100-gram bag from the shop’s climate-controlled "tea cellar." 647 Bank Ln., Lake Forest; 847-735-0400.

Photography: Michael Boone Photography