At Flore Café, a Ukrainian Chef Puts a Thai Spin on British Afternoon Tea
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At Sisters Thai Restaurant in Tysons, in-the-know guests can venture deep within the restaurant to find a staircase that lead to a bloom-bedecked mezzanine area, complete with checkered floors and a poster for the famed Parisian Galerie Maeght. Only then, will they discover Flore Café, known for its high teas that have recently shifted to offer a playful, subversive take on the format.
According to chef Oksana Chepoy, the afternoon tea here changes four times a year, making its debut in 2025 with a White Lotus themed tower of delectables.
Inspired by a visit from chef Daniel Green, the author of Take Home Thailand, Chepoy has created a menu that pairs amiably with the brews from British luxury brand Bellocq. The many options thereof include steaming pots of The Queen’s Guard, a black tea with rose and lavender, as well as naturally sweet Jasmine Pearl tea.
Chepoy arrived in the United States from her native Ukraine a decade ago. Since then, the graduate of the Culinary School of Odessa Region made her name at Vienna’s Clarity, where she filled the roles of pastry chef, chef de cuisine and eventually, executive chef. She says that both Thai food and afternoon tea were new to her when she connected with Sisters owner Sumontita “Tammie” Disayawathana early last year.
But learning on the job is nothing new to Chepoy. When she arrived in the U.S., “I started to work with the garbage,” she recalls. “Then I started to work with the line.” But she put her European culinary training to best use when she found her place at the pastry station.
“She gets to the point that it’s just perfect,” says Disayawanthana of Chepoy. “What she makes is very, very unique, very pretty. Every single piece has detail.”
In essence, the restaurateur, who is also behind whimsical Magnolia Dessert Bar & Coffee in Vienna, credits Chepoy with making her longstanding dream of offering a destination for tea and treats a reality.
Here are a few of our favorite things that the talented women are serving.
Editor’s Note: The dishes described below are from Flore Cafe’s Jasmine & Jubilee Tea Ceremony menu, which was served through March 2026. The current menu is titled Flore in Bloom.
Scones
Every iteration of the menu at Flore Café has included four savory bites, four sweet ones, two Thai surprise treats and two varieties of scone. Recently, Chepoy dreamed up cranberry scones with vanilla mousse and candied orange scones with strawberry mousse.
Yes, mousse. Rather than clotted cream and jam, the chef essentially combines the greatest assets of both. The cups thereof welcome dipping or spreading on the lightly sweet, crumbly pastries.
Spiced Pumpkin Soup with Beef Bacon Crisp
“So creamy and rich,” says Chepoy of the petite cups of hot, viscous orange-hued love that sings with spices. She uses a crispy chip of beef bacon to add texture to the warming sip. Why not classic pork? The team keeps the entire meal halal for the many Muslim guests who visit Flore Café.
And that’s not the only way that the kitchen accommodates its fans. Chepoy adds that she has made gluten-free and dairy-free versions of the afternoon tea and is open to catering to other allergies as well.
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Mini Yorkshire Puddings
When discussing the deeply British Yorkshire pudding, most of us don’t think of Ukraine. But Chepoy does, at least in the case of her salmon-adorned version. Her airy pastry is the base for house-cured salmon, ribbons of cucumber, and fresh dill.
“It makes me feel like I’m at home. You know, we were always carrying fish from the house. My family was always fishing. My parents taught me how to cook when I was six years old,” the chef recalls of the age at which she realized she loved to cook and bake.
Roasted Root Vegetables
With the goal of replicating the vegetables that appear with a Sunday roast, Chepoy presents a plate of al dente beets, carrots, parsnips, and celeriac. But rather than soaking up beefy flavor, this version is covered in a pool of chunky blue cheese dressing and topped with candied walnuts and microgreens.
Berry Trifle
Every layer of this stacked British favorite is made in-house at Flore Café. Blueberry compote rests in a tiny jar beneath a brandy-soaked almond cake, which in turn is covered in raspberry compote, vanilla crème anglaise, whipped cream, and chocolate crumbles.
Chepoy says that this particular sweet was Disayawanthana’s idea. “She’s always like, ‘Hey, Oksana, do you want to make this one?’” Chepoy says of their collaboration. “And it’s like, ‘I got it.’”
Mango Pandan Tart
A pair of Thai bites change at whim, on a recent visit, the standout was Chepoy’s green-and-orange mango pandan tart. On the occasion of the creation’s debut in 2025, “All the Thai people said it was the best pandan dessert they ever had,” says Disayawanthana proudly. That’s despite the fact that Chepoy had never tasted the coconutty grass known as pandan before she joined the restaurant.
Thai Tea Crème Brûlée
This sweet finish is one of the most popular items on the regular dessert menu at Flore Café, served throughout the week. For the restaurant’s high tea, the mini version is topped with a crisp pandan tuile. The custard beneath a crackling layer of glass-like burnt sugar is creamy, strong with tea, and not too sweet. The tea-on-tea experience is also one of Chepoy’s favorites, harkening back to her fine dining roots. After all, what’s more upscale than a chic afternoon tea?
