Hanlin Tea House serves very good and refreshing bubble tea. It is such a pleasant surprise that they also serve high-quality afternoon tea desserts. Paying $20 for a plate of 6 bite-size snacks is a little expensive, but you get to try most of what Hanlin Tea House has to offer. If you share this order with another person and order a drink, the $15 per person visit to Hanlin Tea House is actually quite reasonable.
Shiny Tea’s quality is comparable to Hanlin Tea House, if not identical. The lower cost for the same tea comes without the wonderful interior decor Hanlin Tea House has. The price tag of $5.49 is cheaper than Hanlin, which makes Shiny Tea the perfect tea station for a quick grab and go.
Comebuy’s fresh milk tea costs $6.20 with pearls, which is a little lower than average. The tea has an interesting flavour and everything in the cup feels refreshing. It was a little odd that the staff blended my milk tea with ice before serving, but I guess it was to cut the ice into smaller pieces. Comebuy offers a simple cup of refreshment and it makes me want to go back for more. I will stop making fun of the name.
Most of the large tea in Coco is in the range of $5 to $6. My 3 guys cost $6.40 because of the toppings. Coco’s large size drink uses the long and narrow deceiving cup. It is because of this, I prefer Chatime over Coco. All prejudice aside, Coco’s drink has a good flavour. They are not aiming to be the top of the line bubble tea place, but they are the good enough tea shop when it’s convenient to you.
I understand the location probably cost a lot more than a stall in Richmond Public Market, but $5.25 can almost buy me two $2.75 drinks from Peanut’s Bubble Tea. When the drinks here don’t even taste as good, I can’t justify coming here. Dessert Dynasty feels like a bubble tea shop who just hoard a good location to make a quick buck.
I guess there are advantages of being an establishment with no similar stores nearby. That must be how Presotea was able to survive thus far. This tea station failed in all aspects of our review except for the service. I have not seen any bubble tea franchise do this bad. Customers paying for $7.04 per cup definitely deserve better. They can improve on either larger-sized drinks, cheaper price, more balanced flavour, or higher quality topping. Even if they only pick 2 items to improve, Presotea’s drink would be acceptable. For now, I cannot recommend them.
Choo Tea offers specialty drinks at a premium price. When they didn’t want to charge more to go above the norm, they reduced the quantity in drinks. I don’t find their drinks refreshing. It feels more like a dessert that requires another drink on the side. The poor service and careless staff show Choo Tea lacks integrity. Worst of all, I do not appreciate their manipulating social media reviews.
If I was the emperor to receive this cup of tea as a tribute, I would have wiped out their civilization really quickly. Perhaps my expectation was set too high after reading Gong Cha’s business philosophy. Unfortunately, they did not live up to the standard they have set out on their own website. Today, I have had a cup of tea that fails at the forefront of the tea’s body, the topping, and even the size. I cannot think of any reason to recommend Gong Cha.
Peanut’s Bubble Tea holds a lot of history and memories for many. Emotions asides and focusing on the assessment point of view, this bubble tea stand provides lots of value. True that my passion fruit green tea was made of syrup, but the $3.25 with pearl drink is still unbeatable. Getting the flavour just right without modification is another feat where many others fail. When one cup of bubble tea elsewhere can buy you two cups of drinks at Peanut’s, I have to recommend it.
