NEWBURYPORT — A coffee latte is not a hard item to find in Newburyport. But a tea latte? You can only find that at one store in town, and only in the last few weeks.

Tucked away on quiet Middle Street sits Licorice and Sloe Co., a teahouse owned by Bil and Meg Silliker that opened earlier this month.

In a downtown area in which there are more than a dozen coffee vendors, the couple knew there was room for something different.

With the coffee generation, Meg Silliker said, everything is more fast paced and on the go. She and her husband wanted to create somewhere where people could sit, relax and enjoy drinking their tea.

"We want people to hang out here and do something for themselves," Meg said.

And so the atmosphere inside the house reflects the owner's and staff's own personalities — warm and welcoming. Inside at the front of the building is a cafe-style setup, with a bar, bar stools and tables for four or two people.

At the back is what the Sillikers call the "tea lounge" — different-colored cushioned chairs sit around small tables where people can sit to chat amongst themselves, or use the wireless Internet that the Sillikers installed inside the teahouse.

But a teahouse in a coffee town? At least so far, it seems the Sillikers' dream is catching on.

The Sillikers first got the idea of opening a teahouse when Bil Silliker ordered some tea online. A franchising opportunity was available. The Sillikers never heard back from the franchise, but they held on to their hopes of opening a teahouse in the area.

"We knew Newburyport would be the best place to be. It's the perfect community. It's small and walkable," Bil Silliker said.

He figured there would be people willing to go out of their way for a cup of tea, too, considering he stopped drinking coffee two years ago when he started getting dehydrated when he rode his bike.

Now that he's decided to open a teahouse, he had to stop drinking coffee altogether.

"I thought, if I'm opening a teahouse, then I need to practice what I preach," he said. "I love tea. It's my mainstay beverage."

But they aren't just banking on tea sales alone. Part of the business plan is to be make people feel at home.

Even dogs are treated well at Licorice and Sloe Co. Right outside the door to the store is a large dog bowl in the shape of a teacup, with dog biscuits inside.

Meg Silliker described their business as a "home away from home," and even for customers that may be true.

So far, it seems to be catching on.

On Friday afternoon, a number of people sat around the teahouse, waiting for friends on the couches, or sitting by the large open windows, pouring their pots of tea and laughing.

"We want people to feel comfortable here," Meg Silliker said. "We want people to hang out all day and relax."