These Dallas-based Combat Veterans Want to Change the Way Americans Look at Tea Culture

When Brandon Friedman invites you over for tea, don’t expect clinking china, “big hats” or stuffy propriety.This is minimalist, unpretentious, let’s-have-real-conversation tea, much like the way he learned to drink it while serving in Iraq and Afghanistan in the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division after the 9/11 attacks.Friedman, 40, a combat veteran, University of Texas at Dallas graduate and public relations professional, lived in Washington, D.C., for eight years, serving in the Obama administration. He worked as deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and as the first director of digital strategy at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.He moved to Dallas last year with his wife, young son and a new mission: He is founder and CEO of Rakkasan Tea Company, which he runs from two small, stripped-down rooms at the back of an old brick building in Deep Ellum.  Continue reading...