Welll... (whips out book of Japanese art...)

The "traditional" style of tearoom architecture/decoration is Shoin-style
architecture, which was later adapted on a grander scale for palaces such 
as Nijo-jo... The tearoom versionhad several distinctive features:  a 
_tokono-ma_, or alcove in which a hanging scroll and/or flower 
arrangement were displayed; shelves set asymmetrically into the wall 
(_chigiridana_?); tatami mat floors, often with a small hole in the floor 
in which a brazier was placed to heat the water (near the tea-server's 
position).  Small or no windows, roughly plastered walls (often with 
straw mixed into the plaster), and otherwise rough unfinished 
construction.  The room -- often a separate building in the garden -- was 
to be approached along a narrow cobbled path and entered through a tiny 
hole (nijiri-guchi).  These features were based on the aesthetics of 
_wabi-cha_ (roughly translated as "poverty tea") which espoused 
simplicity and roughness in accessories, etc; _wabi-cha_ was not the only 
type of tea-ceremony, but it is probably the best known one, that 
espoused by the great tea master Sen-no-Rikyu and popular with the first 
Tokugawa shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu.  So the tea bowls, utensils, etc. are 
also generally very simple in design, the pottery often having a 
deliberately rough and simple design.

This architectural style is adopted by many modern "traditional" teahouses
as well, and is used in many houses as well; the style gradually diffused 
down to just about everyone.

There ya go -- more info than you ever wanted to know about tearooms.  
Hooray for art histry classes!

mata ne,
bengman

"...The vanilla extract and garlic I chopped into the dough completely 
destroyed the hidden nodes of cherry and watermelon, and for some mysterious 
reason, the cornstarch I dissolved in hot water and blended in with the flour 
is hardening to a bricklike consistency!" - Akane <b-engma@students.uiuc.edu>  

On Sat, 28 Sep 1996, RPM - acct 3/5 wrote:

just wondering, but what's the setup in a traditional japanese teahouse?
No chairs, shoes off, er.... what else is there?

-rpm