Jasmine Dragon

The Jasmine Dragon is a traditional-looking tea shop in the Upper Ring of Ba Sing Se; due to its location, its clientèle mostly consisted of the upper class citizens of the Earth Kingdom capital. It was once failing, but now completely revived after Iroh took over. It opened shortly after he and Zuko arrived in the city as refugees. Iroh named it that because, in his words, "It's dramatic, poetic, and it has a nice ring to it".

History


After arriving in the city as refugees, Iroh managed to get himself and Zuko a job as waiters in a local tea shop. Iroh soon discovered, however, that the tea was less than to his liking as it was "nothing more than hot leaf juice". He decided to take matters in his own hands and enforced some major changes. Business picked up and soon the city was buzzing of Iroh's fame as the "finest tea maker in the city". Upon learning about Iroh's brewing abilities, Quon, a merchant whose goal was to be the greatest tea baron in Ba Sing Se, visited the Pao's tea shop to see how much of the rumors were true. More than satisfied, Quon tried to poach Iroh away by offering to fulfill his lifelong dream: his own tea shop. Quon said he would finance a tea shop in the upper ring of the city, give Iroh full creative freedom and ever throw in a new apartment. The offer was too tempting to refuse and Iroh readily accepted.



After Zuko's illness and much to Iroh's joy, Zuko willingly and happily ran the "Jasmine Dragon" with his uncle. Business quickly picked up and Iroh's fame as tea maker was increased; praise of his brewing skills spread further through the city, and it even reached the corners of the Earth King's palace, resulting in the visit of a Royal Messenger, who brought with him a formal invitation to Iroh to serve tea to the Earth King. The invitation, however, turned out to be a trap laid out by Princess Azula and led to Zuko's imprisonment in the Crystal Catacombs. Iroh sough the help of Team Avatar in an attempt to save his nephew; due to Zuko's betrayal, the Avatar was killed by Azula's lightning and Iroh's capture by the Dai Li. The tea-loving general was taken back to the Fire Nation to serve his time in the Capital City Prison, leaving the Jasmine Dragon unattended. What exactly became of the tea shop during Iroh's absence is unknown, however, the building was still there after the War.

The day before the arrival of Sozin's Comet, Iroh swore that he would liberate Ba Sing Se with the help of the Order of the White Lotus and reconquer his tea shop; intending to spend his retirement serving tea and playing Pai Sho. After Ba Sing Se's successful liberation, the defeat of Ozai and Azula and the renewed peace after Zuko's coronation as the new Fire Lord, Iroh reopened the Jasmine Dragon and served tea to the young war heroes at the end of the series. The Jasmine Dragon was also the place where Aang and Katara shared their passionate kiss, marking the start of their relationship.

Exterior
The Jasmine Dragon was a large, exquisite building in the upper ring of the Earth Kingdom's capital. Two separate, broad stone steps led up to a neatly paved patio in front of the tea shop; in the middle of this patio was a large, rectangle shaped fountain with a statue in the center. The elevated position of the terrace provided a panoramic view over the city.

Wide, stone steps stood before the wooden, double front door at the center of the building. At both sides of the door was a large, round decorative window and located above the door was a black sign decorated with carefully applied golden letters to form the name of the shop; the sign was flanked by two slim, elegant golden dragons. A large copper flowerpot sporting a neatly trimmed green bush was placed at each corner of the shop.

he building sported eighteen windows, nine on each side of the door, all facing the street. Each window was made of wood, donning an enriched deep brown color with yellow shutters. The windows were on hinges, allowing them to fully swing open to let in the warm air of the Earth Kingdom and to let the sweet, inviting aroma of tea spread to the passersby.

Interior
The tea shop consisted a large frontal dining room and a smaller working area and kitchen located at the back.

Dining Room


The dining area filled the majority of the available space. It was filled with aesthetic brown square and round tables with matching chairs. The tables were large enough to accommodate four people, but is was also possible to request a table for fewer.

In the middle of the shop lay a large, dark green, rectangle carpet edged with a yellow border and depicting two dragons. The lightning is mostly provided by natural sunlight flowing in through the windows during the day, but rectangular wood and cloth lanterns in the same yellow-green colors to match the Earth Kingdom feel were also hung from the ceiling to illuminate the shop at night. Right above the entrance is a framed piece of calligraphy displaying a proverb: "It is better to go for three days without food than one day without tea". Numerous intricately designed scroll paintings were hung on each of the room's walls, each artistry different than the other. As finishing touches, potted plants were placed at strategic locations spread over the shop, to create a more natural, green environment. Decorative kettles and tea pots were also part of the decor.

Workers' Area
Not much is shown of the kitchen except that the entrance to the back room was separated of the main area by green drapes which could be drawn back to provide an easier access to the kitchen. White fabric dividers were hung above the counter to limit the customer's view of the kitchen.

Hostesses
Right at the door, there were two hostesses positioned. Their job was to welcome the incoming customers and provide them with a table. Their attire consisted of a fashionable Earth Kingdom dress donned in the typical green and yellow of the nation, also the primarily used colors in the decoration of the shop. The main color of the dress is dark green, sporting light green borders at the side and at the shoulders.

Waiters


There were several male waiters at work in the Jasmine Dragon. It was their job to serve the customers, provide refills and clear the table once the customer had left. Their attire consisted of yellow pants and a dark green robe, tied around the waist with a belt; the green robe donned a lighter green border which ran diagonally down the front and sported some detailed at the sleeves. Each male wore his long hair in a single braid on his back and supported a round, dark yellow hat with a dark green rim and cross on his head.

Iroh, as owner of the job, donned the same outfit, but Zuko wore a slightly modified version. The lighter green line on his robe ran straight down and he wore dark brown pants instead of the customary yellow pants. He also didn't wear the hat the other workers and Iroh wore.

Trivia

 * A possible name for the shop was "The Tea Weevil", but it was quickly deemed stupid by Iroh himself.
 * The name for the shop could be a conjecture of his title "Dragon of the West" and his favorite tea "Jasmine Tea".

Goofs

 * The shop seemed to be located at the side of one of the fancy streets of Ba Sing Se's upper ring. When Katara and Momo first visited the tea shop, a shot showed that there was another building across the street. However, when Aang stepped out on the patio during the final scene of the series, there wasn't a building across the street, but the patio allowed a nice panoramic view of the entire city below.