I'm a big fan of CHICHA San Chen, and I've had the chance to visit locations in Southern California…read moreas well as the headquarters in Taiwan, so I was really excited to try the Houston location. I'm happy to say that the quality did not disappoint! What I love about CHICHA San Chen is that each drink is freshly brewed to order. Rather than preparing large batches of tea ahead of time, the tea is brewed individually when you place your order using their signature tea-press technology. You can really taste the difference--the tea is fragrant, fresh, and flavorful. My absolute favorite is the King Bubble Black Tea with Cream. The combination of the rich black tea, creamy topping, and chewy king pearls is just SO good! I was also pleasantly surprised that the Houston location still offers the Taro Series. The taro drinks are another favorite of mine, and it's wonderful to see that Houston has kept this part of the menu. After visiting CHICHA San Chen in different places, I can honestly say that Houston holds up beautifully. The tea quality, fresh preparation, and overall experience are exactly what I have come to expect from the brand. CHICHA San Chen never fails to deliver! If you're a serious tea or boba lover, this is definitely worth a visit.

I have heard the hype for Chicha San Chen and I wanted to try it. This place is definitely a more…read moreelevated than your normal boba tea place and you can tell by the crowds. We had to wait a little in line but the service was fast! The tea tastes great and I like the cup they serve it. I appreciate that they offer your sweet level and ice level you prefer. And the prices are reasonable compared to other places I've visited. You see families of all ages come into this place, as it's shown in social media it definitely brings a crowd. One nice addition that I saw was a Photo Booth and tea tasting station! You don't have to worry about parking as it's located in a strip mall so there's quite a bit of spaces. Overall I enjoyed my time and would like to try other tea options here.

I was in for a long drive from Sugar Land out to The Woodlands, so I decided to swing into Asiatown…read moreand grab a drink to help soothe the pain of driving on the Sam Houston at 3pm. I pulled over in the first parking lot I could find and opened Yelp to help me find something. I'm telling you all of this because I ended up walking into Le Drip and ordering the "Egg Coffee", knowing nothing about it. Now, I've been on this earth for a minute and I've drank a lot of coffee. This is among the best coffee drinks I've ever had. Certainly the best I've had in recent memory. What I'm saying is it's in the running for the best coffee drink I've ever had. The egg cream is thick and eggy, which I loved. The coffee itself is bold with a strong coffee taste. The cream is dusted with a heavy shake of cinnamon and it all melded together into a delicious concoction that I couldn't get enough of. If you're looking for a memorable coffee drink, I would recommend giving this spot a shot. Tell 'em Big D sent you.

Finally got around to trying this cozy little coffee shop. Perhaps it wasn't for me, but I found…read morethe drinks at Le'Drip to be just okay. The famous Egg Coffee didn't stand out at all from all the praise it receives. I expected a rich, creamy coffee experience, but I couldn't find any coffee essence at all. Instead, the drink was overwhelmingly sweet from start to finish. I was also excited to try the new Lychee Jasmine Matcha since it sounded phenomenal, but it ended up being my least favorite. The lychee flavor completely overpowered matcha, making it hard to enjoy the drink. Overall, it was a good try but it wasn't cup of coffee.

We stopped by and tried a milk tea and a fruit tea. The tiequanyin oolong milk tea was so fragrant…read morewith very qq boba! I had it at 50% sweet and thought it was still too sweet for me, will try lower next time! The mango orange tea has fresh fruit which very refreshing, though we couldn't taste the tea very much. The interior is modern and clean. The staff was patient and helpful to explain the different drinks!

Macu Tea is located on Bellaire in Chinatown, on the south side, in the same shopping center as…read morePappaRich. I decided to check it out after a good friend raved about it--and I'm happy to report it absolutely lived up to the hype. I'll keep this short and sweet: I ordered the Ruby Grapefruit Li-Li Tea with green tea jelly, and it was legit. Incredibly flavorful, super fresh, and loaded with real grapefruit pulp. I went with 100% sugar (no regrets--just work out an extra hour afterward ). The balance of tart and sweet was spot on, and the quality really stands out compared to your average boba shop. Yes, the drinks aren't cheap, but they're worth every penny. You're paying for freshness and flavor, and it shows. The ambiance is clean, bright, and modern, and the service was solid. Drinks came out relatively quickly, even though it was busy. If you're tired of the same old average boba places, definitely give Macu Tea a try. Enjoy!

This spot remains one of my absolute favorite boba places in Houston, thanks to their top-notch tea…read moreand milk tea quality. I love their app, highly recommend it to pre-order through the app, it's extremely accurate in term of wait time and easy to use. However, there are a couple of downsides: their matcha is just average, their menu is a bit limited, and my favorite drinks are frustratingly often out of stock or out of season. My top recommendations are the Coconut Mango Boom, Cloud Jasmine Tea (basic but so good), Yuzu Oolong Tea, Brown Sugar Milk Tea, Mochi Yingde Black Milk Tea, Grapefruit Boom and the toasty/wheat-y Longji Cloud Milk Tea.

(+) Aesthetic spot (+) Good menu selection…read more(+) Convenient ordering through the app or at the counter (+) Excellent tea flavor (-) Long wait time (-) Steep price for small drink First time here with my college friends and their families. We tried the highly recommended mango boom and the yuzu green tea, which were both solid choices. I downloaded the app and was able to place my order from there by-passing the long line at the counter. However, it still took a significant amount of wait time for my order number to be called to pick up my drinks. The app had some deals that discounted my order, which was a plus. Not sure if I'd go out of my way to return, but if it comes up as a suggested place, I wouldn't pass it up.

A spot dedicated to tiramisu treats (as well as mousse cakes, panna cotta, cookies, and croffles)…read moreand pretty drinks that is open all day? Count me in! The inside is mostly white and going for that IG "it spot" vibe. Most people were ordering their drinks that come with a little slice of tiramisu, but we were there to try just the latter! The tiramisu varieties aren't all truly tiramisu (which traditionally has espresso and alcohol), but they're called tiramisu because there are cookies or ladyfingers layered with their mascarpone cream. I tried the Biscoff Tiramisu-- while they could work on their presentation (the filling looked messy and slapped on), the taste was quite nice! Sweet, creamy, and the mascarpone filling was light and not too heavy despite being sweet and indulgent. I'm excited to try the other tiramisu varieties :D I like how the tiramisu comes in its own container instead of scooped into a takeout box because it's a lot less messy + prettier when eating it. Service was really friendly and there is self-serve water available too. Lots of tables for two but they were all taken during my visit. There's a little table outside in the shade if you're willing to sit in the heat. Overall, 4.5 stars for the tiramisu-- will be back to try some more! Check them out next time your sweet tooth calls :)

I think this place is super pretty inside!!…read more My husband and I wanted to get boba and try a new place since there's been so many places that have recently opened in Chinatown. I got a basic jasmine tea with sea salt foam and my husband got an oolong with matcha. We both liked the drinks and would definitely come back again!!

I really love this place--from the atmosphere to the drinks. I've tried many different cafés, and I…read morecan honestly say this one is my number one favorite. Today I had the Dubai Pistachio Cloud Coffee and the Dragon Fruit Peach Green Tea. The coffee was excellent, with a rich flavor and not overly sweet. The tea tasted very fresh and refreshing. The space smells wonderful with the aroma of tea when you walk in, and the way they decorate the place is very bright and inviting. They also open very early, so sometimes I can stop by to grab a drink before going to work.

Mtea Reserve has put effort into providing customers great space with comfort. Modern, nice, clean…read moreand neat. The service is very friendly as well. The first time I came, there was only one cashier + multitasking for making drink. So we could order from the machine setting right at the counter. The fruit tea was more satisfying to my spouse than the milk tea to me. Actually, I think Mtea has a very good version of this fruit tea. I did come back second time for fruit tea for my spouse. I also had an order of new item - Sticky Rice. It was fine. Point to think: I understand that "Restroom Is For Customers Only." Yet, personally, I think restrooms with keys+lockers might be inconvenient to some customers. Best, Chloe

There are so many boba places along Bellaire and I personally recognize how expensive of a habit…read morethese sugary drinks can be, so I generally avoid going. But when I'm in town I go out of my way to "eat all the things" to take advantage of being near the Vietnamese community. I decided on trying Tea Top over other -- seemingly indistinguishable boba shops -- simply because this shop participates in the Dining Rewards Program, which allows me to earn airline miles per dollar in addition to my standard credit card points per dollar. I will say, the tea here is very good. They actually sell tea, rather than just sugar water. You can taste it. And for that, I appreciate this place. I tried their Alpine Green Tea with boba. It was good. I came back a second time to try their Wintermelon Alpine Green Milk Tea and thought it was even better! Quality drinks and I can earn additional airline miles per order? I'll be coming back. I also like that their in-store rewards program keys to your credit card so it recognizes your account and you can instantly apply small discounts to future orders every time, or save up your points to get a buck or two off an order when you feel like it.

My friend said this was his favorite boba place in Chinatown and it did not disappoint…read more Taro milk tea usually sucks with these giant taro chunks, but Tea Top's taro drink was well integrated into the milk tea and went down smooth! Good attention to detail and good drinks.

Strawberry Breeze - 50% sugar: Perfect level of sweetness,…read moreespecially if you don't like overly sweet drinks. Very refreshing. Don't forget to mix it first! You can taste a nice balance between the lychee jelly and strawberry purée. 9/10 Mango Breeze - 25% sugar: Still on the sweeter side, but really enjoyable if you're craving something sweet. Great choice if you love mango drinks. 9/10 Service: Always excellent. Staff has consistently been friendly and efficient. 10/10

One of my go to milk tea spots! Their Thai tea never misses and even on busy days you're never…read morewaiting longer than 5-10 minutes for your drink. Workers are always super friendly and willing to help out with any questions and the atmosphere is super chill.