If you cook while you're on the island, or want a food gift that packs flat in a suitcase, The Spice & Tea Exchange at 316 Centre Street is owned and run by Bill and Linda Files as a franchise of the national chain. The store's specialty is its seasonings: more than 85 handcrafted blends, mixed by hand in the shop every day, and you can watch the staff blending while you shop.
The chain's catalog gives a sense of the range:
- Whole and ground spices, cinnamons, peppers, chilies and paprikas
- Rubs for meat and seafood, grinder blends, curries and salt-free mixes
- Smoked and infused salts, flavored sugars, honey and maple syrup
- Loose-leaf black, green, white, oolong, herbal and chai teas, with tea accessories and gift sets
There's a tea bar inside that pours freshly brewed tea, hot or iced, so you can carry a cup while you look around. The staff will help you pick blends for a menu, and the store says it works with people who run food service businesses as well as home cooks.
If you're staying in a rental and don't want to haul bags around downtown, the store offers curbside pickup and local delivery when you order by phone at (904) 432-7897, and it ships. Posted hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
Across the Pond is a few doors back toward the river at 310, in the same 300 block of downtown Fernandina Beach.