Paul Bass Photo
A hot over-the-counter remedy this pandemic-flu-Covid season turns out not to require a prescription — and it goes down smooth while soothing your sinuses.
Requests have been on the rise for the remedy, called “Sick Girl’s Tea,” at Claire’s Corner Copia.
Diners this “tripledemic” virus season encounter a sign for the remedy right at the register of the iconic 47-year-old vegetarian eatery at the Church-and-Chapel Street corner. It lists the ingredients: Ginger, lemon and turmeric accented with cayenne and black pepper “with optional honey.”
Basically the stuff that boosts the immune system and clears the passages when the viral invaders go on their annual tear. (Claire’s uses organic turmeric and ginger to avoid pesticides and arsenic.)
The concoction came “aboveground” at Claire’s after years as an “underground” offering, according to restaurant owner Claire Criscuolo.
She first brewed it at the request of students looking for relief during the “Yague,” or “Yale plague,” the time each fall when colds start spreading on campus.
“These girls came in and said, ‘Do you have anything? I don’t feel well.’”
The customers “loved it.” Soon other female students started coming in and asking for the beverage. The name “Sick Girl’s Tea” was born.
“Then the guys started coming in feeling terrible. They would lower their voice and ask, ‘Can I have the Sick Girl’s Tea?’” Criscuolo assured them the drink is gender-neutral.
For years people had to know to ask for the drink. The Claire’s staff eventually decided to bring it out of the shadows and place it on the menu.
Requests for the drink have risen as expected in recent weeks amid the confluence of Covid, flu and other viral upticks, according to Criscuolo.
“The other day a customer said, ‘This sounds so good. And I do feel something coming on.’”
This sampler can attest that you don’t need to feel sick to feel better after imbibing.
