Tiger Sugar Brown sugar boba milk tea with cream mousse: Stopped by the Tiger Sugar stand on Main Street in Flushing on a Friday night and waited in line for about 15 minutes to get a cup of the famed brown sugar boba milk tea with cream mousse. The Flushing location is the first in the US from Taiwanese chain Tiger Sugar; there is an additional spot now in Sunset Park, and the latest will be opening in Chinatown this Saturday, so all major Chinese neighborhood across Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens are covered. I actually didn't know too much about the chain, other than its reputation for extremely long lines, so I perused some of the Yelp reviews while I was waiting. Their most popular offering, brown sugar milk, is a non-caffeinated drink consisting of organic milk and a brown sugar syrup that, when mixed together, gives the drink a distinctive look, with brown streaks running through a cream-colored backdrop. I patiently waited as seemingly everyone in front of me took away orders of four cups (a limit that was placed as a result of high demand). In Yelp's Q&A, someone asked about the drink's nutritional information; a reviewer responded "Load with Sugar & Calories...If you're diabetic I suggest you do not drink this. It is really delicious." That pretty much sums it up - it ultimately tastes like a rich sweetened milk with a distinct caramel flavor. Overall, I did find it to be very sweet for my taste, but the chewy boba was just right in texture. I got in line at around 7pm, which ended up being fairly good timing because the line quickly became twice as long. Probably not quite worth all the hype, but not bad if you happen to get in line at the right time. (Also the kiwi backdrop is just from the fruitstand next to the stand - they don't have any fruit beverages!) 3.5/5.0

drinks boba taiwanese brownsugar tigersugar brown sugar milk tea cream mousse 3.5