Julie S.

I decided to stop by this cafe to grab a small meal, which I think is perfect for those who don't want to eat something so heavy. This place is ran by mainly ordering through the screen inside and waiting to pick up afterwards. I waited about 10 ish minutes or so. I ordered the honey walnut shrimp burger and black sesame matcha latte. I was excited about the burger because I don't usually see people include honey walnut shrimp inside. It was super crunchy, however, I do wish I got to taste more of the walnut shrimp. If you're a huge fan of black sesame then I would definitely order the drink because I think its flavor overpowers the matcha.

Kathy S.

We've been here a few times and every single time feel very unsatisfied. We love bopomofo- Cerritos and would rather drive 45 minutes for better quality food and drinks. The wait for our order is always more than 20 minutes- not sure why when there's only a few orders ahead of us. The drinks are light and underwhelming. You don't really taste the tea in milk tea. I do love the lactose free milk and nondairy milk options! The food is expensive and portion doesn't justify the price especially when quality isn't there. Walnut shrimp sandwich didn't taste as fresh and there seems to be more fillers. Fried chicken scallops pancake wrap just didn't do it for us. I would have preferred the chicken sandwich with pineapple buns, but that's not on the menu. The braised pork rice was good but a bit too pungent of Star anise and bay leaf. The store is quite small and only enough for an ordering counter and 2 kiosks. Service, interaction with staff was minimal.

Adrial P.

Been seeing this place on my tiktok for you page and had to give it a try! I definitely see the hype with the spicy popcorn chicken, it packs some heat with that crunch. The service was nice and helpful, they recommended me the dark chicken for my first time. The boba was great as well, refreshing and not too sweet. Has plenty of out door seating so perfect this summer if you want a place to hang out with some good drinks and food!

Alice W.

Popcorn chicken spicy (ask for extra basil!) and mapo tofu tots are my favorite menus items! The mapo tofu has great flavor and not very mala (I can't handle too mala flavor).

Leonard K.

TLDR Pretty good milk tea with fun recipes. The seasonal sweet much better than the standard menu goods. Everything seems to be made in house but very little seems made fresh aside from espresso. Also expect service to be centered on online orders. Bopomofo is a simple shop with a visible kitchen in the back and drink bar in the front. Ordering is best done online or on the self service tablet as it seems the barista doubles as cashier. Most of the staff I noticed was in the back hustling and bustling. I did notice several online orders were fulfilled before my order was made, and I was served well before 2 parties that ordered before me with the cashier. The more digital you go, the more priority it seems. Service 5/10 Black sesame matcha latte Strong matcha flavor comes through with a decently smooth texture though it's a bit grainy at the bottom (and not from the black sesame, definitely a difference). Not as creamy as I would have liked either. 6/10 Black sesame cold brew oat latte This was fantastic. Tasted exactly like black sesame soup. Not too sweet, very nutty, and a great balance of grit and smoothness. Didn't know I'd like this dessert as a drink or like it cold; color me impressed! This one is a winner winner for me 10/10 Drinks vary in quality. Would be curious to come back to try food. Looks good on the menu.

Jade L.

I was excited to visit the Irvine location of Bopomofo, which opened after my last visit to Orange County. I used to go to the SGV and Artesia locations when I lived in SoCal, so it's nice to see they've expanded to multiple other cities. I came with my friend during my visit and got the black sesame matcha latte with oat milk. I was informed that the black sesame puree is dairy free for the win! I don't remember seeing this drink on the lineup before, but it was great and well balanced at 50% sweetness adjustment I requested.

Mike L.

Having been a fan of Wong Fu Productions ever since their second video (my ex was friends with one of the guys in it), I had been wanting to check out Bopomofo for the longest time. Sadly, the few trips I made down to SoCal never brought me close to any of their locations, but the stars finally aligned here in Irvine. And I have to say - even though it took far longer than I ever would've liked, it was worth the wait! Sort of, considering how it still took me a couple of trips down here before I could finally make it happen...ha. Although this Bopomofo is notably smaller than how the others look in photos, it doesn't take away from the fact that this place is pretty awesome. Despite how their modest size dictates why they have more of a takeout set-up, there's still plenty of seating right in front. More importantly, though, the menu still has all of the same innovative and enticing food and drink options, like their Mapo Tots, Honey Walnut Shrimp Burger, Black Sesame Matcha Latte, and Ba-La Matcha. In fact, if anything, the menu actually had more than we expected to find, as we saw a couple of things listed that only seem to be offered here! -- BLACK SESAME MATCHA LATTE (75% sweet) - Matcha Latte with Black Sesame Puree...$7.25 This was great! Macha lattes have become one of my default orders and I love black sesame, so this pairing was perfect for me. The slight bit of nuttiness worked really well with the matcha. I do think 50% sweet might have been the way to go, but this wasn't bad as is. -- BA-LA (GUAVA) MATCHA (50% Sweet) - Guava Nectar, Matcha...$6.75 The second drink that caught our collective eye - we both love guava, so it wasn't a hard sell to try this one. Loved how well the fruitiness of the guava balanced the matcha, but my gf thought 50% was a little too sweet (FWIW, I thought it was perfect). -- BA-LA (GUAVA) MATCHA (25% sweet) with Taro added (+$0.75)...$6.75 We got this one only 25% sweet and we both agreed it was a little too light. Also, we both liked the taro, though I still prefer my drinks without toppings. -- TRIPLE STRAWERRY MATCHA LATTE (50% sweet) - Real Strawberry Puree, Strawberry Cold Foam, and Premium Matcha...$7.25 Not as intriguing as their other drinks, but I wanted to compare this to the Ba-La Matcha. While this wasn't too shabby (loved the strawberry flavor in this), I do think the Ba-La was better and just not as common. -- SCALLION PANCAKE CHICKEN WRAP - Salt & Pepper Chicken Tender, Scrambled Egg, and Thai Basil Wrapped in a Homemade Scallion Pancake with Sweet Soy Glaze...$9 We got this as a snack, but it was so filling! The chicken tender was surprisingly moist, the pancake was crisp and just the right thickness, and the glaze wasn't cloying, like we had feared. -- MAPO TOTS - Tater Tots topped with Hearty Mapo Tofu, Ground Pork, and Cheese...$13.75 I was most excited to try this and it didn't disappoint! The tots were as crispy as I could've reasonably hoped for, the mapo tofu and ground pork were super flavorful, and the cheese added a nice richness. SO GOOD! -- HONEY WALNUT SHRIMP BURGER - House-made Shrimp Patty, Honey-Wasabi-Yuzu Sauce, Candied Walnuts, Pickled Jalapenos, Red Onion, and Shredded Romaine on a Kings Hawaii Bun...$18.50 Along with the tots, this was the other item I was dying to try. And just like with the tots, this delivered! The shrimp patty was crispy and juicy and I loved how well the sauce, walnuts, and jalapenos complemented each other. I just wish it had the bolo bun! -- SPICY TAIWANESE FRIED CHICKEN SANDWICH - Taiwanese Salt & Pepper Chicken Breast Filet, Napa Cabbage Slaw, Thai Basil Aioli, and Chinese Pickled Cucumbers on a Buttery Nini Bakery "Bolo" Bun...$17 Pretty solid, though, I thought both the shrimp burger and chicken wrap were better. For me, the highlight was the bun - super soft and I loved the bolo crust on top. While I enjoyed the chicken filet and all of the toppings, I just found the other two to be a bit more flavorful. As far as service goes, it was just as good as the food and drinks. Each time we've been here, the workers have always been on top of everything and I love how they all seem to be so genuinely warm and friendly. Also, even though it can take a while for food orders to come out, it's nice that their buzzers reach will reach you wherever you are in the complex (we'll usually do some shopping at the Ralph's or wander into The Game Chest while we wait). Between how much we've enjoyed the majority of the food and drinks we've tried and how great the service has been, Bopomofo has quickly become my favorite milk tea shop I've tried so far in OC. Yes, their prices are a little higher than other places out there, but I love the fact that they use real fruits and ingredients instead of powders or anything artificial. For that reason alone, and also the tots and shrimp sandwich, I'll definitely be back plenty more in the future! FOUR AND A HALF STARS rounded up.

Megan C.

OVERALL: Two stars for service and location. FOOD: Originally, I went to the West Hollywood location unexpectedly whereas every other bopomofo location was out of the way. Therefore, I was excited to finally head to one that had food because through their YouTube videos (wongfu ftw!), my mouth was drooling and wanting to try the mapo tofu (especially since I don't consume poultry). I was SO disappointed. Ninety percent were tater tots so much so people who shared it with me were like wtf is this; "I thought it was supposed to be mapo tofu but special" The rest were tiny bits of tofu. Then the entire thing was literally sitting in a pool of Lao gan ma. And it was freaking $13.50!!! Mad respect for the evenly thinly sliced green onions though! I also ordered jasmine milk tea with boba and pudding (something OG right? And I had to add the boba with the hopes they'll redeem themselves from last time) and guava fruit tea (who can resist that 20% discount?). Both were SUPER dilute. Boba was still hard in the middle and not chewy. I couldn't even finish either of the drinks. Pudding was good though. ***one person in my party who is born and raised in Taiwan legit said "they have to stop disrespecting Taiwan" -hahaha, sigh-*** SERVICE: The girl working the cashier was sooooo sweet. People mainly order via the one kiosk but the folks in front were taking so long so much so the girl allowed me to order with her. Drinks were done and sitting there. If I didn't see them (we went walking around in Ralphs), they probably would have no ice left since it was already partially melted which probably caused how dilute it was. About 10 minutes after I picked up the drinks, the food was finally ready. VIBEZ: lots of outdoor seating shared with other eateries in the area. No indoor seating. Lovely clean decor and very well lit. Gives you a pager which supposedly can work as far as Ralph's. Located in the Ralph's plaza with many many many eateries around. Located in close proximity to other plazas as well. Lots of free parking at your disposal. Would I come back? Definitely not and I should stop giving them chances. Even one of my friends who watched wongfu on the regular (because she also went to UCSD) said it was totally "meh"

Joshua T.

We capped of OC Restaurant week by trying BOPOMOFO for our first time. There is no seating inside, but there is a lot of outside seating as their often is in Irvine shopping centers. The inside keyosk said their OC Restaurant Week deal was sold out, so we asked a worker and they told us they were running low on one of the items, but they could still put the order in for us. Thank you! We added a Scallion Pancake Chicken Wrap and a Strawberry Corn drink. We were a bit disappointed that it basically tasted like regular strawberry milk. Using a Scallion pancake as the wrap(er), was pretty good, though. The nori fish sandwich is drowning in tater sauce. The sauce is flavorful, but I wanted to taste the taiwanese spices in the batter more. The tots were a pretty interesting take on mapo tofu. I just wish there was more tofu because the soft texture added to the crispy tots was pretty nice.

Joy C.

Bopomofo's interior is clean and well designed. The menu definitely drew me in. There is an iPad for ordering or you can order with someone. The service was fast and everyone was very nice! They even leave cute messages on their cups. This review is for the drinks as I still want to try their food items, which look great! I've tried a couple of Bopomofo drinks and each time has been hit or miss. I've been on a recent Hojicha kick, but I found their Hojicha latte to be really grainy that it didn't feel like it justified the price. We also tried their seasonal Sesame Matcha in January which was also alright. I'd be excited to try the food but might hold off on the drinks for now unless a seasonal option looks good!

Ashley C.

First time at Bopomofo and I was pleasantly surprised. While this is more of a pick-up/to-go place, there are lots of covered seating outdoors in this plaza so you can still have a dine-in experience. Came here early on a Friday and it wasn't too busy. They have someone at the register (super rare these days) and a kiosk for quick orders. We got two drinks, one from the seasonal menu and one from their main menu. Vineyard Green Tea | green tea shaken with real grape and pear juice - This was recommended and it was super refreshing. It's definitely more on the sweet side so if you don't want too sweet, you can try 50% sweetness. We got 75% which was a tad bit sweet but after the ice had melted, it was pretty balanced. BA-LA Matcha | pure guava nectar, layered with lactose-free milk & premium matcha - I had to try this because I rarely come across guava anything unless it's from Porto's. I'm a fan of strawberry matcha so this sounded pretty good in theory and is one of their popular drinks. While I wouldn't say this is better than strawberry matcha, I think it was a very good drink if you are a big fan of guava. The flavor comes through and works well with the matcha. We were told that the guava nectar can be a bit on the sweet side so I opted for 25%. I think given the earthiness of matcha, if I were to get this again, I would go with 50% on sweetness. Overall this was a great first experience. The staff was very nice. She took her time to recommend their drinks and also was very thoughtful in suggesting the sweetness modification. I would come back here again and try their other drinks.

Elizabeth M.

I was impressed by the guava matcha (Ba-La Matcha) drink, but I don't think real matcha lovers would love it because guava overpowers the whole matcha taste. It was refreshing and light. 10/10 in my opinion Strawberry basil ginger lemonade 6/10. I love all those ingredients, however I could hardly taste the basil, ginger was overpowering, and I think I expected a lot more from the combination of those 3 ingredients. Blueberry Wang was a 5/10. I think of it as a blueberry shake. My daughter loved it. Service was relatively quick for it being lunchtime and the employees were very kind and helpful. Place looks very clean and well kept. I'm still going to give a couple more drinks a try. Maybe I just didn't choose right for me :)

Anissa M.

The strawberry corn milk is my forever go-to at bopomofo! but this review is specifically for the 02/14/26 limited special -- the Nami Rose Matcha~ first off I love that BPMF is doing collabs with other Asian-owned businesses, & hope they do more events like this in the future! The service was quick, and as many people have already mentioned in previous reviews, plenty of outdoor seating in the plaza to enjoy your drinks! I'm not a huge matcha girlie just bc of past experiences at other establishments with grainy matcha, but this was delicious! I was worried that either component of the tea would overpower each other, but the rose tea complemented the matcha so well. And ofc you can never go wrong with an order of popcorn chicken. prices are definitely more on the expensive side for tea & snacks, but the quality is worth it. Whenever I'm in OC, I will always try to make a pitstop at bopo