Parking can be rough! There's a restroom. I got the Purple Kow Black Milk Tea with boba. Drink was pretty quickly prepared. I do like the tea flavor and I got it 0% sweet so I love how it came. The boba has the subtle sweetness and was a good texture. The staff taking my order was nice. read more

Purple Kow - B1. Purple Kow Milk Tea with boba - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Pretty solid spot for milk tea and quick bites! Their chicken is well seasoned and crispy as are the fries. I usually get a D6 (fresh milk series) with no boba no sugar and it's good and super refreshing every time. I have also tried their fruit tea drinks and their thai tea and they're all really solid options as well. It's also a good place to catch up with friends or study and grab a quick bite but space might fill up quick since there isnt too much seating. Service was really good and really quick too! My only real problem was parking since it is in downtown Berkeley but the area is full of lots of students and people so the walk is nice if you park a few blocks down. read more

Purple Kow - D6 no boba no sugar - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

My fav boba place in berk! I've been coming here even before they moved to this location and it's still been consistently a go to place for me. I always get their toffee QQ milk tea, 25% sweet, less ice. The balance of texture with the boba and brown sugar jelly / crystal boba goes so well together, along with the milk tea not being too sweet. Their drinks tend to run on the sweeter side for me so keep that in mind when adjusting your sweetness level. My friends who prefer sweeter drinks usually get 75%. Their regular milk tea and passion fruit green tea is also good. Their grass jelly also has great flavor. ALSO you can choose oat milk over organic milk for no extra charge, which is a plus. Their snacks? Also top tier. Their garlic fries, sweet potato fries, and fried zucchini are my favs. They always come out hot and crispy, with the perfect texture. There's limited seating and some outlets around the tables. You can also order ahead on Snackpass. read more

Purple Kow - Garlic Fries - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

I love purple kow. I've been going to the university location for years but they closed and opened a location in Channing. The drinks are consistently good. You can't go wrong with their milk teas, fruit teas, specialty milk drinks. I will say I miss their stamp card system. They had the best reward. Nonetheless, my fave boba. They are very generous with the amount of boba they include in a drink. read more

Purple Kow - Black milk tea with boba Strawberry slush with lychee jelly - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Makes for a nice quick boba stop! I wouldn't say they have the most quality tea, but I like all the flavors they offer and I'm a big fan of the shape of their cups! I prefer their refreshing fruit teas to their milky drinks, and opting for less sweet. read more

Great service by the ladies that took my order and made my drinks today! Very kind and helpful thank you read more

Purple Kow - D2, C12 - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

I'm so glad that Purple Kow is still around! The last time I came was about 7 years ago and when I came this time around, it looked completely different! I asked the cashier if they had changed locations and she confirmed my suspicions, they moved from Shattuck to this new location about a year ago! The location is very bright and there were a couple tables and chairs to hang out and chill with friends. Boba wise, I ordered D4, the iced milk drink with boba and grass jelly. It tasted as delicious as I remembered it! I asked for 0 sugar and it's still sweet. I wonder what kind of milk they use! The grass jelly is perfect and the boba is soft. The cup size is still pretty funny. If only parking was easier, I would come more often. But the boba is absolutely delicious! read more

See all

Very disappointed with Purple Kow after this experience. First of all, the opening hours are completely unclear and misleading. Yelp showed the store was already open around 11:00 AM, but when I arrived, the store didn't open until 12:00 PM. It was freezing cold, and customers were left waiting outside with no explanation. To make it worse, I had already placed a DoorDash pickup order, which showed 11:55 AM ready for pickup, yet the store was still closed. This is extremely unprofessional and a waste of customers' time. Another frustrating issue: DoorDash does not allow adding black boba. I ordered 5 drinks, and politely asked if I could purchase extra black boba separately for $5. The staff said they don't sell boba by itself -- which makes absolutely no sense. I bought multiple drinks and snacks, yet they refused to sell a basic add-on. I've been a loyal customer for many years, but this experience was unacceptable. Poor communication, poor coordination with DoorDash, and zero flexibility toward customers. This place really needs to do better. read more

Purple Kow is one of my go to places when the other boba spots close at 9pm or when I'm craving their specific drinks. You get a HUGE cup with boba for way cheaper than a lot of places around. Last night I stopped in for my favorites- their V-DAY STRAWBERRY MILK and TOBANGO WINGS W/ FRIES COMBO!!!! So good every time. The staff who work here are so sweet. I love hopping around all the boba spots in berkeley because they each have good things about them. Purple Kow is for sure in my rotation. read more

Purple Kow - Fried zucchini + popcorn chicken + Garlic Wings - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

I realized my review is 5 years old! I still love Purple Kow so much, and I'll always go out of my way to go there, if I can. I think they moved since my last review and are a bit harder to find - there isn't a great sign out front - it is also hard to park on the street, so best to order and pick it up. Even with all this it is still completely worth it! Same great quality tea, and they're always nice - They even called us once when we ordered online to make sure we had the right location. The new location is more fancy than the old but I haven't spent much time in the store/seating. Recommend more than every boba place, ever - however you have to keep in mind I only ever get the one pineapple green tea drink -- read more

Purple Kow - Pineapple green tea - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

We were there Wednesday, August 20, sometimes between 2:30-3:30pm. 1st - the music was way too loud. 2nd - it took a while to make 3 drinks. 3rd - they got one of the drinks wrong. When approach the guy working there, he simply said it was the right one (he did not want to be bothered with it) - even though the drink was clearly wrong - it wasn't even in the right color. So disappointed with this place. Do not recommend. read more

If you haven't been to this location before, be warned that there isn't a ton of street parking directly next to the store, but there is a parking garage within walking distance that has 1 hour free parking! The interior isn't huge, but you can definitely go in to sit down with a couple of friends! We only came for the drinks (D3 & B2). The service was quick as well. I generally try to go by the rule that if you've never had a drink before at a new place, you should always get 100% to try the drink how it was intended to be made. That being said, we got the B2 with green milk tea & 80% sweetness but didn't really feel like the flavor was super strong... I definitely feel like I should have gotten a 100%! There was A TON of boba in there, which was half appreciated but also it was so difficult to try the drink on its own! We also got the D3 with 100%( Milk with Caramel, Boba + Pudding). The caramel definitely makes this feel like it's 200% sweetness, so you could totally tone down the sweetness for this drink. Other than that, the boba was nice and chewy, a little smaller than usual though! read more

Purple Kow - D3 & D2 - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Off Channing street, New location to me as only make a trip to berkley once in a blue moon. Today daughter was craving purple kow, we Used to frequent SF & SJ when we in town. The signature drinks are the D series & the pudding was really tasty in the milk teas. Pop corn chicken is always a hit as they are really chunky chicken pieces. Say that 5x. Parked in a parking lot $4 an hour with first hour free otherwise limited street parking. read more

Purple Kow - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Purple Kow sells their smallest drinks usually for around 6-7 bucks in the form of a 24oz cup. Truthfully, not impressed. I am by the size because it is a good size and the price is good too. However, the drinks, even at 50% sweetness, are way too sweet!! Yes, you can do a 25% sweetness or no sugar, but truthfully, if I had been a first time customer ordering alone, I wouldn't have expected to have to lower the sweetness by sooo much. Their food looks pretty yummy. My friend really enjoyed their garlic wings and I will say the wings looked golden. Not much else to say. The service was fast and the ambiance was chill for a Saturday afternoon. The workers were nice and one of the guys behind the counter made an effort to remember customer names, which is something I appreciated. Not the biggest fan of the options here but it's not the worst. I'll say it's 3 stars because even though it's cheaper, it's nothing special compared to other places. It's a chill place though, and if you want something quick and relatively cheaper, I recommend! read more

Salt and Pepper Chicken: 5 stars for this because the chicken nuggets are big and juicy and you get a lot of them. Definitely enough to share with friends as a snack. They should be called Spicy nuggets though as they definitely taste more like they have Spivey flavoring vs "salt and pepper." I would get the chicken again, it was tasty and a good value. My roasted oolong milk tea with aloe was alright... I'll probably try something else next time as I think it just wasn't my preference. My friend's drink was really good. Don't remember what it was. The cup is annoying to hold. Service: The person working told us there was no WiFi but we saw there was a WiFi and were able to sign on no problem... Ambiance: loud as heck!! Spend a little over an hour doing some computer work in here and it sounded like a college cafeteria with the kids constantly coming in and out and talking loudly. Definitely a place to hangout and not necessarily to work but there is WiFi and one bathroom decently clean. read more

Purple Kow - Salt and Pepper Chicken Nuggets - should be called spicy nuggets - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

See all

This Purple Kow location is closer to where most of the other boba spots are in Berkeley and in the area where most of the students hang out in. Parking is a bit hit or miss here, as everyone is always doubled parked, but they are located on a quieter street, so there is usually some parking right in the front of the shop. Not much service - I ordered ahead on the app and sat inside waiting for my drink and even though they finished making it, the time for the drink being done was not updated and my drink was just sitting on the back counter. I ordered the Purple Kow Green Milk Tea with boba and grass jelly. The milk tea tasted a bit off like the milk tasted a bit funny like it did not go well with the drink and it also tasted a bit lukewarm, even though I ordered it cold (there was no % option for ice, only either cold or hot). I feel like I only go here because I like how big the cups are, but the milk tea is just eh. read more

Purple Kow - Purple Kow Milk Tea with boba - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

My milk tea missing grass jelly, plain taste and sweet potatoes fries is sooooo soggy. :(

I was surprised to hear Purple Kow had moved to Telegraph! It's one of my favorite boba places to go to in Berkeley because their drink size is huge compared to other shops so you get more bang for your buck. We had the peach green tea and mango green tea, both were yummy and full of flavor. This location is a lot smaller than their old one understandably, so keep in mind there's only around six tables inside. The only thing was service was very slow, we waited around 15-20 minutes for our drink to be finished on a Saturday afternoon. Otherwise, I recommend Purple Kow if you're looking to get boba in Berkeley (which seems to be everywhere). read more

See all

Purple Kow is one of my favorite boba shops in Berkeley. Their milk tea is consistent and are served in large cups! Some may say this is inconvenient to hold, but I personally don't mind it. My go-to order is their Twins QQ Jelly Drink, which has milk tea, grass jelly, and pudding. I usually like to taste the flavor of the tea, so 50% sweetness always works for me. Overall, solid spot for boba. They recently changed their location to be closer to Telegraph, which makes it more convenient for UC Berkeley students to stop by. The new location is very spacious and is definitely an upgrade from their old location. The service is quick as usual! read more

Purple Kow - F5. Twins QQ Jelly Drink - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Decent boba place in Berkeley. Convenient location with wide selection of flavors. The serving sizes are generous and the cups are awkwardly large. I recommend the fruit teas, specifically the mango green tea. The yakult drinks are good as well. Great place to get boba with friends. read more

Purple Kow - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

I ordered the fresh mango green tea with boba and I enjoyed it! The drink was sweeter than other places I've been to, so I set the sugar level to be 50%. The portion is worth the price and it's cute too! read more

Purple Kow - C2. Fresh Mango Green Tea - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Man...what happened to purple kow....idk if it's just this location, but I've never been so disappointed. I am obsessed with iced milk from purple kow for years now. Boba her3 was so hard. It was either undercooked or old. Horrible. Non edible so we had to strain it out all 3 drinks. Chicken wings sold out, was offered a refund and never received it. I will have to dispute charges at this point. Popcorn chicken at purple kow used to Hella hit. Man where is the seasoning?!!! I asked for one spicy one not and they both looked and tasted the same. Attached photos. I also got the salt and pepper fries...in which we're missing the seasoning at all. Please don't ask what seasoning we want when ordering if you do not plan on adding it. read more

Purple Kow - Half filled and no salt and pepper seasoning....no seasoning at all actually - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

See all

The 10 Year Anniversary Celebration was so sweet! I loved the plethora of stickers and the pins that were given out! I got the Green Tea Purple Kow Milk Tea which had super nice and chewy boba! Definitely will be coming back to eat the snacks and try more boba later on! read more

See all

The store is located on Channing, which is one of the busy street but if you are lucky you could still find some parking nearby. The store has some seating areas inside. The staffs were great and the food did not take long. They serve drinks and snacks such as noodles and cheese sticks. We ordered garlic fries and F5. Twins QQ Jelly Dink with Boba. It has two types of jelly and it was good but the toffee milk tea I had before was better. The serving size is great for the price, both for the drinks and food. I ordered extra boba and they gave me 1/3 of the cup full of boba. I would also recommend the popcorn chicken. They would serve it in a bucket, so it was bang for the buck read more

Purple Kow - F5. Twins QQ Jelly Dink with Boba - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

See all

I decided to come back here for the first time in many years and I ordered ahead for a roast oolong milk tea in the regular chubby cup, 25% sweetness, organic fresh milk. It was done on time, and it really wasn't sweet at all, which was what I hoped for. I had a hard time judging whether it was a good value for volume because the cup is significantly shorter but wider in circumference than the standard boba cup, but it did feel satisfying enough in drink quantity. They are located close to the west side of UC Berkeley campus and downtown Berkeley BART. read more

Loved Purple Kow and was super excited to find one close to campus Food/Taste/Flavor: 1/5 - D3: purple Kow Iced Milk Drinks with caramel, pudding, and boba at 25% sweetness and less ice. The boba texture was awful. It is way overcooked and falling apart but so sticky. The caramel didn't seem like it was cooked long enough or they used a cheap quality one as it doesn't have the typical buttery/creamy undertone that other shops have. Ambience: 3/5 - small shop but there is an upstairs for seating. A really artificial sweet smell in the air Service: 3/5 - slight language barrier and the cashier didn't seem very knowledgeable about their products Value for price: 1/5 - They charge an extra dollar for no ice! They didn't say anything and I only caught it since it was more expensive than expected. The drink was disappointing read more

See all

Such a fun place. The garlic chicken is to die for. So are the fat bobas. Great for sharing, especially the garlic chicken bucket

Prices increased from a few years ago which is fine but the iced milk drink (D2) I usually get at 25% was extremely diluted and it lacked any flavor except milk. Maybe they readjusted their sweetness level from before, but their drinks were consistently the same for 6 years. Back then I would have give this drink a five star review and it was one of my favorite drinks. I went back a year later just to give it another try, this time at 50% sweetness, and I had the same experience. Unfortunately, the drinks were bland and actually gave us all a stomachache this time around. I'm not sure if they reformulated their drinks, but I don't think I'll be coming back. read more

See all

Pretty good boba place in the area. Just don't get the plum tea, that one was a little weird.

I saw this place on Yelp and was instantly lured in by the cute chubby cup design. I can't help it -- I have a weakness for cute things like this! I got the D4 -- Purple Kow iced milk drink w/ grass jelly and boba with 25% sugar. This drink still came out pretty sweet, so I wouldn't recommend getting above that unless you're a sweet tooth. The boba was a little chewy but still yummy, and I loved the combination in toppings. I honestly wasn't expecting too much for this drink other than the cute chubby cup but it turned out better than I expected and I love that they use organic milk for their drinks. I would definitely come back whenever I'm craving a sweeter dessert bubble tea. Another note is that these cups are a little too big to put in a cup holder so keep that in mind before putting the straw in if you're driving! read more

Purple Kow - Chubby cup is a little too wide to fit in cup holders but it is so cute! - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

See all

Due to the pandemic, I will be removing criteria that I had added to my reviews, such as restaurant ambience, mood, and wait time. This review will only focus on the dish. Quick Summary: - Large cups - A tad sweet at default sweetness - Chewy boba - Favorite here is the milk drink with coffee jelly and boba I've known Purple Kow for a while now, and it has been a great partner in nice snack times. Compared to the other boba drinks I've been to, this one is sweet. I would order at 80% or under to get the sweetness I prefer. There is one drink that I think it can only be found here, and it's the milk drink with the coffee jelly. It tastes like a sweet coffee milk drink. I like the creamy flavor to the milk drink with the nice chews of the coffee jelly. The only small warning is that the cup is large. It's like a full meal if you request more toppings. read more

Purple Kow - Milk drink with coffee jelly and boba - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

I've been coming to Purple Kow in Berkeley for about 8 years now and it is still one of my favorite boba shops! Definitely in my top 3. My go to order is D3 (purple kow's special milk with caramel, egg pudding, and boba). Their boba is sweet and chewy and milk drink is creamy (almost tastes like whipped cream). 100% recommend this place. read more

Purple Kow - Purple Kow Iced Milk Drinks (D3) - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

See all

I wanted something refreshing on this hot Berkeley day, so I dropped by Purple Kow. Being that it was my first time, I pointed to the photo of the beverage I wanted. Unfortunately, I should have been more specific because I just received the base matcha flavor without all the toppings I wanted that were featured in the photo. Pros: -you can adjust your sugar level for your drink Cons: -be specific when ordering or they will give you just the base drink -I did not see any hand sanitizer. -there was only on physical distancing market in an odd location on the floor read more

Purple Kow - Matcha QQ. A little under $6.00. - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

The storefront is kind of cool, it's on the bottom floor of a private apartment complex for UC students. Service is fast and attentive. I don't like the drinks here, there are just better boba places around. I am, however, a huge fan of the giant salt and pepper chicken bowl, which I 100% recommend. It's also reasonably priced, especially for Berkeley standards. You should get the chicken and skip the drinks. I can't speak for any of the other food because I haven't had it. read more

Purple Kow - Salt and Pepper Chicken Nuggets - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Oh my god. I've been going to Purple Kow for almost 7 years now and I've finally had the opportunity to leave it a review. If there were 6 stars to fill out it would be. Just everything they have speaks delicious. There is a lot of space there. Their quantities for drinks is maybe not only be the biggest, but the best for your budget and wallet. I've never seen this in any boba store and I've been a happy customer for, again, 7 years and counting. read more

Just had this recently and for the second time (last time was 2-3 years ago) and was a bit disappointed by their roasted oolong milk tea. It was a bit too 'watered down' and didn't really taste the milk tea flavor. However, they did give a generous amount of boba pearls! Not sure if I would come back. :( read more

Purple Kow - B2. Roast Oolong Milk Tea (with boba pearls), regular size - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Pretty average boba place, nothing really stood out to me. I remember trying this spot almost 3 years ago and got a milk tea with boba. This time I decided to try the Peach QQ tea since it seemed to be one of the more popular specialty drinks. I got it half sweet, which actually ended up being a good level of sweetness. The drink itself was decent, with the peach flavor coming through. I do wish the tea was a bit stronger though. It also came with boba and lychee jelly, both of which was also pretty standard. The size of the cups is honestly a bit inconvenient since they dont fit in any sort of holder and carrying it around is therefore really awkward. They have a few tables inside to sit at, but otherwise the place is pretty small. I think there's a lot of better boba options in the area, but this spot isn't bad by any means. read more

Purple Kow - F2. Peach QQ - Special Jelly Drink - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

WHEN: Saturday @9pm I was actually on my way to U-Cha when I stumbled upon this spot and thought I give it a shot. Here's what I had: SALT & PEPPER POPCORN CHICKEN - $5.55 Okay I don't usually care for popcorn chicken but this is more like chicken nuggets because they are huge, not mostly batter, and lots of meat! The meat is mostly dark and tender. There's a lot of mice seasonings with just a tiny kick. I'm amazed at the size of this portion too! There must have been at least 10 of them! My only complaint was that there was not enough sriracha mayo that came with this. Check it out! F7 - PEACH OOLONG w/FRESH MANGO - $5.29 I requested to have the green tea jelly's be replaced with grass jelly. This drink is so refreshing, I'm really happy with it. They say there's fresh mango in it and I do taste the flavor! I was expecting actual fruit chunks but it's okay! Still really enjoyed it! This place isn't very large. If you want a place to sit down and hang out, go up stairs. I think it only seats like 8. Staff is friendly and very efficient it seems. read more

Purple Kow - SALT & PEPPER POPCORN CHICKEN - $5.55 - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Ordered a Lychee Green Tea, 75% sweet with light ice. Huge amount of tea! I like the funky little cup that the drinks come in. There was a huge line and my order came up super fast. The menu is huge and there's also food options. I can see myself coming here to get some work done, good drinks and nice vibe! read more

Purple Kow - Lychee Green Tea - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California

Always walked past this shop on my way to Downtown but for whatever reason, could never be there when they were opened. Well, I am happy to say I finally got around to grabbing a drink from here :) Ordered the Peach Oolong w/ Fresh Mango because I wanted something refreshing to complement the clear blue sky day! Was fairly quick in terms of service and while I wasn't craving any food, the location would be perfect for anyone who wants to grab a quick bite from Purple Kow or any of the other restaurants along the street (including Halal Guys!) Overall, the tea quality was quite good, although I'm not sure if I really tasted much peach flavor. The jelly was a nice texture change and went well with the drink. While the mango bits were a little on the sour side, I won't hold that against them because it is not mango season. Solid drink overall along with an almost comical large cup. Will definitely stop by again to try their iced milk drink along with some of their snacks :) read more

Purple Kow - Peach Oolong w/ Fresh Mango - Desserts Near Me - Berkeley, California