to be kept waiting, to cool one's heels
O paciente tomou um chá de cadeira no consultório do médico.
The patient was kept waiting forever at the doctor's office.
Tomar chá de cadeira ("to drink chair tea") means being left waiting for a long time, seated and ignored. The popular explanation traces it to the days when nobles and officials made visitors wait hours for an audience as a show of their own importance; while they waited, the guests were served cup after cup of tea.
Source: Últimas Notícias.
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