Now brewing: Iced ‘tea playground’ using purified water headed to north Arlington

A store specializing in iced tea brewed with natural ingredients and purified water is on tap for multiple cities in Dallas-Fort Worth.

Leslie Ann Kitten and Jennifer Jean Davis are weeks away from opening the first HTeaO location in Arlington. The chain uses double-pass reverse osmosis water as a canvas for 24 flavors of sweet and unsweetened tea, as well as pink lemonade and a “Ryan Palmer,” an iced tea and lemonade mix named for a professional golfer from Amarillo.

Davis and Kitten spent three years searching for the right home for their franchise before finding the perfect location in an old Church’s Chicken at 2231 N. Collins St. Kitten said the location’s proximity to major roads and entertainment attractions, as well as the community of residents and businesses nearby, made the location an obvious choice.

Kitten and Davis plan to open around June after putting the final touches on renovations and hiring employees. Kitten said the finished building will look nothing like a fried chicken restaurant.

“You would never know it, if you didn’t know it before because we have completely redone everything down to the studs,” she said.

Spencer Perkins, HTeaO’s chief marketing officer, called the shop a “tea playground.” Customers can sample and combine flavors in single-serve cups or fill up jugs. The store includes a bar where customers can top off their drinks with cucumbers, mint leaves and fresh fruit. The store also allows customers to fill up on water by the gallon.

Perkins said the north Arlington location will allow the company and store owners to “love on” their customers and the city.

“We see the area that we’re located in tends to be the hub of where the community gathers, so that allows us to dive into that local community,” Perkins said.

Kitten said the community has embraced her and Davis as they open the store. The duo has been active on Facebook groups and around town, offering tea samples to soon-to-be neighbors ahead of their opening. The water purification process, Kitten said, makes for a better iced tea.

“We’re so used to everything being so processed and so fake that when they taste it, it’s just really a breath of fresh air to taste how clean and pure and real our product is,” she said.

HTeaO has locations in Carrollton, Plano, Denton, Lubbock, Bedford and Weatherford. More locations are planned in Garland, North Lubbock and Lake Highlands.