Traderspoint Creamery Banana Mango Yogurt: Made with organic milk from grassfed cows, this creamy yogurt has a distinct aftertaste that I haven't experienced before with other yogurts. Slightly sour but also faintly sweet, the closest ingredient I can compare it to is hay. Its on the watery side ("European style") so that when you tip the clear glass container, you can see the liquid flow easily from side to side. I'm unsure if there is any benefit to storing yogurt in glass containers versus plastic or if this is simply a marketi... (read more) 3.0/5.0
organic berkeleybowl yogurt banana mango dairy traderspointcreamery 3.0
Tretap Organic maple sparkling tree water: I'm conflicted about this drink because, on the one hand, it tastes shockingly accurate, with a deeply sweet maple flavor that somehow only lends 3g of sugar per serving, yet I'm not sure why anyone would want an entire 12oz can of sparkling, liquid maple syrup. If that person is you, check this drink out. If not, take comfort in knowing it would taste exactly as you would expect it to. 3.0/5.0
drinks soda vermont tretap organic maple sparkling tree water 3.0
Uchi Cafe Strawberry milk with tapioca and pulp: Japanese convenience stores had a wide variety of coffee beverages to chose from; one surprising offering is their packaged tea and milk drinks containing tapioca, often available in the same refrigerated section as the coffee. They come with an expandable bubble tea straw and contain boba-like spheres more akin to popping boba than chewy fresh boba. The snap of the popping boba, though, was more satisfying than I expected. Kind of like a cross between kefir, with a slightly tangy / sour ... (read more) 3.0/5.0
lawson drinks japanese uchicafe strawberry milk tapioca pulp 3.0
UHA Tea Gummies: An impulse buy at 7-11, these are miniature gummy candies about half the size of a typical gumdrop. There are four different flavors: brown sugar, milk tea, mango tea, and orange tea. They seen extra chewy and dense. My favorites is the milk tea and mango, though they all have a definitively artificial candy flavor. I'm not sure it works collectively since milk tea is pretty different and someway clashing in flavor with free teas. 3.0/5.0
japanese candy 711 uha tea gummies 3.0
Uji Purple Potato Soft Serve: Returning to this small ice cream shop on Shattuck to sample additional soft serve flavors, I tried their seasonal purple potato ice cream, which came in a lovely shade of lavender. The ice cream had a rich milk flavor with only a hint of potato at the end. Given that the tofu, black sesame, and matcha flavors from Uji are all vastly superior (I've sampled all three flavors by now), I wouldn't recommend the purple potato ice cream, but it's decent. 3.0/5.0
icecream japanese berkeley uji purple potato soft serve 3.0 ujitime softserve
Uji Mochi Ice Cream: Offering over 12 different mochi ice cream flavors, Uji in Berkeley is taking a unique spin on this classic Japanese dessert. They take it very seriously, serving their mochi with bamboo sticks that are meant to be used to prod the mochi, ensuring that it's soft enough to eat. After ten minutes of waiting, though, I got impatient and held the container in my hand to try to bring the mochi down in temperature quicker. I tried the Ginger Zing (a mild, rather than spicy, sweet ginger flavor)... (read more) 3.0/5.0
berkeley pumpkin lychee ginger uji mochi ice cream 3.0 ujitime