Miss Luci’s Tea Room & More

Miss Luci’s Tea Room & More occupies the historic Forcade House at 6865 N Allen St in Bagdad, a cottage dating to 1919 in the heart of Bagdad’s National Register historic district. Owner Luci Bailly opened the tea room after leaving a career in nursing, drawing on years spent collecting antiques with her husband David and visiting tea rooms across the country before deciding to open one of her own in a town built around the old Bagdad lumber mill.

The tea service leans traditional and Southern, built around hot tea, scones, and finger sandwiches served with attention to presentation and pace rather than speed. The menu draws from a selection of roughly thirty teas alongside a seasonal rotation of sandwiches, soups, salads, quiches, and small desserts, and afternoon service can include wine or champagne for guests dressing up the visit. During special events, the tea room has also served ice cream, giving return visitors something new to look for beyond the standard seasonal offerings.

Reservations are required for every visit, a policy the tea room enforces to keep service unhurried inside a small historic space with limited seating. Because the Forcade House predates modern accessibility codes, guests with mobility needs should call ahead so staff can plan around the building’s layout. The tea room also asks guests to skip pointed heels, which can damage the original flooring, and requests advance notice of food allergies, since the kitchen cannot fully guarantee against cross-contact between dishes and does not maintain a separate gluten-free preparation area.

Beyond regular tea service, Miss Luci’s hosts private events, including bridal and baby showers, birthdays, and small gatherings that take advantage of the historic setting for a memorable backdrop. Public hours are limited to Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., so visitors should plan Bagdad excursions around that narrow window and call 850-564-0797 well ahead of a visit, since a reservation-only model with limited weekly hours fills quickly, especially around holidays.

Bagdad’s compact historic district makes it easy to combine tea at Miss Luci’s with other nearby stops, including the Historic Bagdad Village Museum and the shaded streets of century-old homes that define the neighborhood. Several of those homes still carry markings tied to Union soldiers from the Civil War era, a detail local preservationists point to when explaining why the district earned its spot on the National Register, and it adds another layer of history to a walk around the block before or after tea. The tea room’s Southern hospitality and antique-filled dining rooms give visitors a sense of Bagdad’s genteel side, a contrast to the industrial mill-town history documented just down the road, and combining the two makes Bagdad a worthwhile half-day detour from Milton’s main strip.

Visitors should note that the tea room’s own website lists a Milton, FL 32583 address for the Allen Street location, while other records list Bagdad, FL 32530; both refer to the same historic Forcade House, since Bagdad sits within greater Milton and the two place names get used somewhat interchangeably by longtime residents. Because the tea room operates as a small, owner-run business inside a century-old cottage rather than a full-service restaurant, arriving a few minutes early for a reserved seating and dressing for a slower, sit-down pace will make for a smoother visit than treating it like a casual lunch stop.