“Everything’s Good” at the Irie Cup
Inside the Irie Cup.
HUNTLEY — “Irie” is a Jamaican greeting and response that means “everything’s good.” It’s how Joe and LaShanda Lewis hope their customers feel when brewing and sipping some of their high-quality tea.
The Irie Cup, their new tea shop located on Main St. in Huntley, is a place where the couple hopes to share their knowledge and love for tea and herbal blends born out of their family roots.
Both Joe and LaShanda grew up in families of Jamaican heritage, where tea and herbs were woven into the fabric of everyday life.
Joe’s father grew up on a farm in Jamaica, but when he settled on the south side of Chicago to raise a family, he continued using teas and herbs. “We had mint leaves planted alongside our house,” remembers Joe. “My Dad never drank coffee. He was a big believer in tea and in herbal products — that’s the way he grew up. A lot of times there was a traveling nurse and not a lot of access to hospitals, so using herbs was just common knowledge among families in Jamaica.”
“My parents grew up on the islands as well,” says LaShanda. “My grandmother was a nurse. She knew a lot about how to heal different ailments. If you were sick or had a headache, she incorporated her education in nursing and she also used herbs.”
The Right Thing at the Right Time
LaShanda had already been experimenting with growing her own herbs and creating tea blends as early as 2016, but once COVID hit in 2020, Joe was furloughed from his job, and LaShanda, a teacher’s aide at Hampshire Middle School, was suddenly at home full-time, teaching students remotely while also juggling their three children’s homeschooling. Even when the school where LaShanda worked opened up, her kids’ school remained closed, leaving the family looking for a new way to make ends meet.
“Everyone was in this place of fear and trying to be healthy. We were, too,” says LaShanda. “We’ve always used tea to try to help with our immune system and general health. We thought it would be a great idea to share our knowledge with our community.”
“It’s always been my wife’s dream to create a ‘tea oasis,’” says Joe. “Part of our mission is to not only share high quality tea, but to also create a space—whether you’re at your home,or at our tea shop—where you can get away and relax. It takes 3-5 minutes to brew loose-leaf tea. Sometimes we don’t take that time to relax and be mindful and gather our thoughts.”
Besides trying The Irie Cup’s array of black, blended, green, and oolong teas, avid tea-drinkers are already coming back for bestsellers like their island-inspired Paradise Tea that incorporate fruit pieces and lemongrass, or Blue Mountain Berry, with notes of blueberries and hibiscus.
Customers will be able to take advantage of events, too: tea tastings, paint-and-sips, and children’s storytimes.
“Sometimes it’s not just the tea, but the memories we create around tea,” says Joe. “And it’s about the people we share tea with. That’s what we want for the shop.”
‘The People Are the Difference’
Before the shop opened on Main St., Joe and LaShanda had already fallen in love with the community at Huntley’s Farmers Market. “Huntley has some of the warmest, friendliest people that we’ve met in a long time,” says Joe. “That was a huge factor in deciding where to establish our business. We’re excited for everything that’s happening in Huntley, but the people are the difference.”
On Saturday, April 8, The Irie Cup is hosting its grand opening event. “Expect a lot of smiles. We’ve been greeted with excitement for this milestone in our business,” says Joe. “For those customers that have been following us since 2020, this is a celebration for us all.”
The Irie Cup is located at 11805 Main St. in Huntley. More info at TheIrieCup.com.
