PORT GAMBLE — Soft music whispers through the restaurant, mixing with the delicate smell of baking and tea, creating a relaxing environment like a hot bath. No judgments, no demands, just good food, friendly people and happy times.

Though Janis Kelley does require that people wear clothes to her new teahouse, she wants every person who dines at the Tea Room at Port Gamble to leave feeling happy and soothed.

“I try to create an atmosphere that’s warm and inviting to men and women alike,” Kelley said. “I want a place that makes women feel beautiful. Our world is hard on women. Even if all they do is come in for a cup of tea, I want them to go away feeling special, feeling like family.”

Based on that premise, Kelley has built on what used to be La La Land Chocolates to create a small, snug world full of food and happiness. She serves a breakfast tea along with a chocolate tea daily.

The breakfast tea includes quiche, various kinds of scones, fruit tarts, a fruit cup and a choice of tea, which is imported from India.

The chocolate tea is a bit more extensive, involving sandwiches, scones, chocolates, fresh fruit and chocolate fondue and, of course, tea.

Kelley said she prefers reservations, especially on the weekends, as she and her husband, Scott, who helps out with the baking, get up early each morning to buy fresh goods and bake. It helps, she said, to have a number of people in mind while shopping for ingredients.

“We enjoy walk-ins as well,” Kelley said. “But reservations do guarantee a table, especially on the weekends.”

Along with the tea, Kelley said she is working to create dresses especially for tea parties for younger girls.

“I’m sewing dresses right now for girls to use during Victorian or Pretty in Pink themed parties,” she said, noting that she also does cake decorating, and loves to make cakes for different kinds of parties. “Doing this is fun for me. I like being able to create a place for women, young and older, to come and have fun.”

Kelley had never been in the restaurant business before, always working managerial positions at various companies. The tearoom just fell into her lap by accident, she said.

“My husband and I were looking for a house,” she said. “And my daughter showed me this house in a real estate magazine. At first I said no, that this was a business not a house. But Scott and I came down here to look. By that Saturday we had a bid in.”

Kelley built on what La La Land created before she arrived, keeping many of the same food options, and said she’s working hard to create a unique feel for the place.

“There’s a need in society for more than just a place to dine,” she said. “People need a place to feel comfortable, even just for a cup of tea.”

Working within the desire for a friendly feel, Kelley has hired only family to work in the tea room, saying they all get along. She stressed the need for stable relationships between employees.

The family had that, and so she hired them to help.

With these factors, Kelley is working to provide a place for anyone, of any age, to go for a relaxing meal.

“This was just a natural thing,” she said. “Scott and I really work it together. We work hand in hand. I hope anyone who comes through the front door feels that in this place.”