Cannot believe this is A tapx. Seriously?! Tapx is known for their drinks, and definitely their crispy chicken and calamari. At this location, the drinks were ok nothing to complain or say it's not tapx quality. But hold on, thecalamari is on a whole different level. I was craving for tapx and was in the neighborhood- if I was to know their Calamaris are like onion rings, burnt, I would've just gone to the one off convoy or off college. I can't believe the other tapx locations allow this location to serve Calamaris like this. This is not tapx quality. The chicken was ok. But the calamari, unacceptable for them to even be called tapx, it was completely burnt, close to black! How can they have thought it was ok to serve this?! I would not recommend this tapx location to anyone. Please drive the extra miles to convoy or college for the calamari and chicken- you're guaranteed to get what they're known for. read more

Tapioca Express - Not what I expected - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

See all

I figured I'd try this place since it was closer to me than the ORIGINAL one on CONVOY. Ehh, I'd rather do the 20min drive to Convoy. First of all, it's in National City (Manila City), I should've known they'd tweak the food and made it more fillipino (no offense). If they're going to open a Tapioca Express, at least make the food the same, I ordered a crispy chicken meal. The chicken were in small pieces, like it was different parts of the chicken, it was bland, and the fried egg that it usually comes with wasn't fried, it was hard boiled and I think it was boiled with adobo because it was dark brown hard boiled egg. Instead of fresh veggies, they used frozen peas and carrots. They called my number, but only for my drinks, not food. I didn't want my drink to melt before I got my food so I drank it while I was waiting. I got a milk tea that tasted like sweetened milk and no tea in it at all. By the time my food was ready, I had already finished my drink. I don't think I'll come here again. IT DOESN'T TASTE THE SAME AS THE ORIGINAL ONE ON CONVOY! read more

This place is a joke they're busy and I understand but they forgot my kids drinks after 20 mins? ! That's freakin bad service !!!! I complained and there's no manager ! Dude seriously ? And they want to upgrade it for what? No way Jose because I have ordered large drinks for them ! Yeah no brainier ! This place is a nightmare ! I don't think I'm coming back here again. And today is hot day ain't no time for patience just sayin ! Kids are thirsty and I'm pretty upset !!!! I think I need an iced cold freakin beer! Yeah right read more

Tapioca Express - Got kids drinks after 20 mins because they forgot to make it! What a bad service ! workers don't pay attention! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

Wooo hoo! A tapex in national city? I'm there! it doesn't taste EXACTLY like the one in Clairemont, but its still pretty damn close! I got the crispy chicken snack and my friend got the combo. I also got a latte snow with boba.. everything was delicious! The chicken didn't taste as spicy as the one from Clairemont but it was still pretty tasty. Food and drinks came out in reasonable time and the place was pretty busy at the time. The cashier was really friendly and upbeat. The place itself looks quite different compared to Clairemont because its way smaller and there's only plain seats and chairs.. no high tops or different size tables. The atmosphere seemed way different here because it was mostly people just waiting for their food and leaving, not really hanging out like most do at Clairemont. All in all, its still pretty cool to not have to drive all the way up north to get Tapex :D and parking here is ample and spacey! I highly recommend you all to give it a try! =) read more

See all

Customer: "I'll have a REGULAR almond milk tea with BOBA" Cashier: "what size?" Customer: "regular" Cashier: "boba?" Customer: "yes" Cashier: "ok can I get you anything else?" Customer: "yeah I'll take a REGULAR avocado snow bubble with BOBA" Cashier: "what size?" Customer: "REGULAR" Cashier: "with boba?" Customer: "YES" On top having to repeat the order over and over, I still did not get boba in my avo snow bubble. It was not loud at all and the order was given very clearly, not quite sure what made it so hard for my drink orders to be understood. 2 stars for a delicious almond milk tea. read more

The only thing I like about this place is how spacious its new location is and how tasty their popcorn chicken is. Everything else isn't all that great, honestly. A lot of their milk teas taste burnt (?), I don't even know how to describe it, but I usually order their Honey Milk Tea with boba and I feel like it just tastes worst every time I go there. The tables here are also usually covered in crumbs, plastic straw wrappers, or tapioca balls and I find myself having to wipe them down myself. The restroom also has an unpleasant smell to it, and the lock on the door is broken and hasn't been fixed yet. Just everything about this place feels very unclean. In addition, their customer service isn't all that great; I'm usually served by someone with a sour attitude, which doesn't make me feel great at all. The only time I would prefer coming to this boba shop over SD Boba is when I want to get some boba with friends and hang out. It's definitely larger and has longer store hours in comparison to SD Boba, making hangouts with friends a lot easier; however if you're looking for a boba shop with good drinks, good customer service, and a clean environment, I wouldn't recommend coming here. read more

The worst service possible. Employee at the cashier was rude and had an attitude the entire time we were ordering. Would rate a 0 if possible. Never going back there again. read more

Wow this place is getting bad I been coming here for years and all I got to say is customer service is going down the drain they updated there hours 2 months ago and I get there at 10:30 pm and they closed the doors but it says 11pm talk to a person who works there and said sorry we closed early and are kitchen is closed already like what kind of business are you running nothing but kids work here wanting to get off early no passion on there work if owner is reading this you need guidelines to make ur business more successful read more

Tapioca Express - Closed early - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

The bigger location is an upgrade for starters. On a Monday night, this place is pretty packed with young high schoolers. Pretty mellow and not too noisy. Bathroom is pretty dirty and needs attending. As for the drinks, it all taste the same for me. Would recommend if you don't want to drive all the way to convoy. read more

See all

Came here last week for a quick boba with my momma! Surprised at how crowded it was for 3:00pm and parking was a little crazy but that's okay!!! I ordered their taro milk tea with tiny boba and it was the BEST taro milk tea I've had down here in San Diego yet. AND THEY HAVE CUSTARD PUDDING!!!!!! Love this place and will definitely be coming back forever :) read more

Tapioca Express - Inside menu - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

See all

Majority of time it can be great, but sometimes it is hit or miss. Depending on what hour you go to TE, boba can either be too over cooked or not cooked enough. It's rarely happened to me that I get one or the other and I'm usually there within the last two hours of closing. My favorite boba is the peach snow bubble. My boyfriend ordered the strawberry snow bubble, but it was super sweet and almost tasted like a milkshake. The peach snow bubble tastes straight up like fruit with no dairy, the strawberry one tasted like it had dairy. I also love green tea snow bubbles, but realize that there is a difference between MATCHA green tea and JASMINE green tea. I'm not a fan of the Jasmine green tea and not every place has matcha green tea. One complaint I do have is their crispy chicken. I've ordered crispy chicken at least 20 times in the last year and every time it comes out a little different. The thing is.. my order stays the same...???? So what gives? I'm not sure. I always order, crispy chicken, no spicy, with two sweet and sour sauces. Sometimes they come out with a little kick of spice and a couple of times they have come out with absolutely no spice at all. The small kick of spice is actually really great because it adds a lot of flavor, but I'm scared to ask for mild (or whatever is the next step up from no spice) because every time I order no spicy, it always comes out with a little kick. PSA: If you go too close to closing, they will not allow you to order extra boba. DAFUQ?!? So what if I want extra boba and you didn't make enough to last you until the end of the night, I'm a paying customer and I'll pay that extra $0.50 to have my extra boba! Extra boba is $0.50 and a large instead of regular is also $0.50. read more

See all

I bought avocado snow bubble today around 11:am.after she got my payment not a minute after my order was done and I made a comment saying it is too fast ,the cashier didn't say a word.I live about 3 minutes from the store when I punched the hole in the cover I have noticed that the snow bubble that I ordered was warm and already melted.it seems like that the drink was seating there for quite sometime. I'm so disappointed that I threw away the drink I've been going there before and no problem . but this time it's bad.there's a lot more better place to buy snow bubble. I'm not going back there anymore.this store is by Starbucks in plasa blvd. read more

I tried their food here recently and it is pretty good. The chicken is different from other tap exs, because it is not crispy, and does not have barely any breading on it. But I don't really like breading that much, the flavor is good and not that salty. I have a sneaking suspicion that there sweet and spicy sauce , is the thai mae ploy sweet and spicy sauce. I have the sauce at home and it tastes exactly the same. Texture, scent, and appearance wise. Contrary to the chicken, the calamarai has a lot of breading on it and is definitely not as flavorful. The breading kept on falling off, so I was left with small pieces of breading in the bag. I would suggest to get the chicken instead. angry face =_= they still do not have the osaka curry chicken yet. read more

This place looks so different now! They completely renovated it. The menu is and ordering area are nice. The chairs and tables look brand new! Good job, TapEx. My usual drink order is a caramel milk tea with no boba, but I saw on the menu that they had specialty drinks, so I had to try one. I ordered the Ferrero Rocher with boba. It is delicious and tastes both nutty and chocolaty. I'd definitely recommend it, but is is really rich. I was a bit disappointed, because when they gave it to me, the drink wasn't covered correctly and my drink was seeping over the sides. It wouldn't stop until I drank the top really fast so that I could take off the lid and wipe it all down. But other than that, the drink was worth it. Their crispy chicken snacks are.always consistently crunchy and fresh. Very delicious, and they come in varying levels of spiciness. It gets pretty packed here weekend nights, but that's fine because it is a cool, simple place to relax and grab a drink with friends. read more

They locked the door 10 minutes early and ignored me when I knocked. Then they waited a couple minutes and turned the lights off. We had to drive ten miles north to luxe boba and discovered that they taste better than tapioca express. I'm sorry but if you're going to close at 10:50 then you should update your hours online. read more

Website says they close at midnight. 1 week ago I show up at 11:18 pm. They locked the doors and ignored me and another customer at the door. I give them the benefit of the doubt and figure it must be due to Covid. Tonight I decide to give them another try. This time I call to confirm the closing time. I was told "we close at 11:30 pm". I hop in my car and arrive at 11:13pm. I see 2 customers in the lounge enjoying their drinks. I watch a young female worker bag an order for another customer and hand it to him. I dawn my mask and exit my car. The customer that just received his order walks out the front door. As I am walking to the front door the female worker locks it, turns, walks away ignoring my knocking and turns off the kitchen lights. It is 11:14 pm at this point. I stand there and watch her begin to clean up and ignore me. I get back in my car and call. No answer. My passenger calls also. A female answers, we explain that we called and were told they close at 11:30 pm. She then begins to make excuses as to why they are already closed. You just lost 2 customers and WORD OF MOUTH is the WORST thing that can happen for a business. My review would be no stars if possible. I guess the 3 star rating is too high for them and they are striving for less. read more

Skittles drink is so yummy. Would recommend coming here for fun drinks! The location is spacious to sit down in as well read more

This location is in the heart of the "filipino central" area where it's upcoming with newer stores. I still wish this area had better parking & but it brings back childhood memories. This tapex is not new but has remodeled right next to Starbucks. Bigger & welcoming with more seats. Still fast service & the workers are high school students, but very friendly. I like coming here when I'm in the area & they also have Filipino food being serviced here! Even better to get my boba & Filipino food fix! 4 stars because of parking! But it's a great location for this neighborhood. read more

Tapioca Express - Captain crunch snow bubble & tai tea! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

Horrible...Daughter literally stood there for two minutes waiting for them to say hello they were speaking a different language the whole time. Continue to speak this language throughout our visit no thank you for a purchase so noted... no tip. I am in the service industry she's so service needs to be pretty horrible for me not to tip it happened today...bye read more

My first time here! The service was quick. I had to try the taro snow bubble! It's my favorite flavor out of all of them. I've had more tastier ones (taro bobas) but it was still yummy! I liked the menu and all the choices they had. I'll definitely come back and try the chi chi fries. The parking lot in this location was okay, it was crowded when I went but overall not as bad. Oh and finally a place that doesn't close too early for a late night boba fix read more

Tapioca Express - TARO SNOW BUBBLE! Large! YUMMY! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

I came here the day before yesterday and order the caramel boba. The drink was really good but my only complaint is that they need to clean the bathroom. It's not sanitary. read more

Tapioca Express - Caramel boba! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

Haven't stopped by since the old shop next door. New place that replaced Chow King really nice if they kept the dining area clean. Turned off by the dirty floors and straw wrappers all over the place. I'm sure a lot of dirt has been tracked in from all the construction going on outside. Anyways , I had the sisig fries on this stop. The sisig fries taste great even though it looks like diaper slop. The fries were super soggy this time around. Either your oil is old or the fry cook has no patience. I want crispy fries next time and maybe top the fries with the sisig last so the pork belly don't get soggy. Some green onions and red chili's would go a long way with these fries . Service was as usual, got my Taro/coco snow bubble quick style. read more

Tapioca Express - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

SISIG FRIES!! Definitely a must. Got some crispy chicken on the side with a mango bubble tea! This place is amazing. Knocked one star off because customer service was...ehhhh. But I'd recommend this place. Note: Parking here can be horrible!!!!! Lines are not even and some are faded. But...still worth the risk. read more

Tapioca Express - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

Came here at 10:20pm to get food and drinks and the cashier told me straight up that their kitchen is close already so they can't serve me food anymore when the website specifically says they close at 11pm. I am not the one to put on reviews for minimum shit but I have worked at food industry as well and knows what's up when workers just wants to go home and not want to do their job. They literally had 30 mins on the clock before closing and I'm pretty sure there's no rule that you can't just serve people just because you're too lazy to freaking cook or serve 30 mins prior closing. So does this mean that the workers are getting free 30 min pay cuz they're lazy as hell to even accommodate to hungry ass people lol. read more

The hours say they close at 1am... I arrived at exactly 23:17 and for those of you who don't know that time in the 24 hrs we have in a day, it is 11:18PM. They were closed !!!!! If there are any changes put a sign up on the door or change the online information!!!!! I know... it's because of FUCKING COVID !!!! read more

This place a in the heart of Little Manila found in National City, California. It is a tended but it's been around more any a awhile. Offering good tasting snack foods and drinks. All ages find there why here but one must concede it high school and college hangout. My favorite drink is the Taro Mile Tea and yes no boboa read more

Tapioca Express - Order here - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

One of my favorite boba places. I love the fruity stuff icys and snow bubbles. The milk tea is okay but nothing compared to Tea Station. They also have the best spicy chicken and can't forget about the sisig fries! Dieter's nightmare but soooo good!! Cashiers are usually cute pinays too! read more

Tapioca Express - Spicy chicken and litchi snow bubble - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

My fav drink here is taro root one though I've also tried a few other flavors and all taste as good. Bobba or no bobba is one's choice and I like either way. The service here is lousy. Messy and untidy tables and trash on the floor. Once you luckily park outside, there is no pleasant atmosphere inside either. The staff needs to keep the place like the Starbucks next to them. read more

Only because they don't take call in orders... Not tryna wait in line with the whole HS dance team...I need my yit ready to go!.. - frustrated fat girl. read more

Love the coconut milk tea here. Luckily I haven't experienced bad customer service *yet* except for that one time I said no ice & they forgot but nothing too big. & they should have stamp cards cuz me & my hubs go there all the time. read more

With COVID, they are limiting the amount of people inside which I think is great. I love this location because it's the only one I can get a Ferrero Rocher Snow Bubble. While there also check out the chicken, its amazing! I promise. read more

Of course they had to add a Filipino twist to this boba chain at the National City location. I have to say though, they did themselves a huge favor by doing that. Having heard about their famous sisig fries, I knew I had to stop by and try some since I was in the area (even though I was going to dinner right after haha). Coming in, it was kind of crowded in the front for there's not too much space and the place itself is really narrow. I was just going to take it to-go so it was nice that there was a little waiting bench near the register. Anyways... I got the sisig fries and they were pretty pricey. About $8 a box I think? But they were really good! The fries were nice and crispy, and seasoned with their famous spicy stuff. The sisig was good - very flavorful - salty and vinegar-y and fatty. The cheese and jalapenos on top added more good kick and flavor. Overall, it was definitely worth the stop. A nice alternative to carne asada fries. San Diegans - please dont kill me for saying that :P read more

Tapioca Express - Sisig fries - Coffee & Tea Near Me - National City, California

This is my go to boba spot. The only negative thing I would say is the line can be pretty slow and they never have change. Other than that I really enjoy the boba and my favorite thing on the menu is the Thai tea snow bubble :) read more