CHICAGO - Since the Boston Tea Party 240 years ago, Americans have not embraced tea as readily as we have coffee. But in recent years, the popularity of tea ?" both iced and hot ?" has begun to soar, especially on restaurant menus, Nation??s Restaurant News reports.

Last year, tea appeared on 74% of restaurant menus selling drinks, behind only soft drinks among nonalcoholic drinks, according to Datassential??s MenuTrends. Hot tea graced 63% of menus last year, ranking higher than milk, hot chocolate, iced coffee, premium coffee and lemonade, among other drinks.

The upward movement of tea can be traced to the fact that drinks overall are "super hot" right now, said Nancy Kruse, president of the Kruse Company. "Second, and related to the first, is that beverages offer superior margins. Plus, tea is very versatile and mixes well with a range of flavor treatments. I also think that tea benefits from the halo of health, and patrons like better than to feel virtuous while indulging in something they truly like."

Restaurants spice things up with iced tea by adding fruit flavoring to the beverage, raspberry being the most popular addition. Other fruit flavors often paired with tea include strawberry, peach, mango and lemon. Last year, restaurants debuting new flavored iced teas included Arby??s (Passion Fruit Iced Tea), Peet??s Coffee & Tea (Berry Pomegranate Tea Freddo), Ruby Tuesday (Blackberry Handcrafted Fruit Tea) and Wendy??s (Wild Berry Tea).

Hot tea also has shown growth. Top flavors in hot tea include chai, green and herbal, as well as chamomile, Earl Grey and jasmine. In 2012, Teavanna (recently bought by Starbucks) debuted Sweet Fruit Garden Herbal Tea, while California Pizza Kitchen added Zen Tea to its hot-tea menu.

"I think the tea trend will pick up steam as operators innovate around flavors," said Kruse. "I think the tea-shop niche will evolve and grow. I don??t think it will ever really threaten the primacy of the coffee chains, Americans are still dedicated coffee drinkers, but I do think smart merchandising and appealing products will allow some specialists to flourish."