I-Tea Pomelo Green Tea with Aloe: I was super surprised to find an i-Tea at the San Francisco Premium Outlets and purchased a round of drinks for my family. This location, though, proved that not all i-Teas are created equal. The pomelo green tea I had was fairly average as far as fruit teas go, with an artificial citrus flavor that made the beverage more of a juice than a tea. Chewy and crunchy cubes of aloe were a bit better, though still not much different than what you might find at a normal Asian tea shop. The 3G, w... (read more) 2.5/5.0
drinks itea fruit citrus pomelo green tea aloe 2.5
Asha Tea Hot ginger tea with goji berries: A mild but warming cup of ginger tea with fresh goji berries that add interest and sharpness. Two slices of very strong ginger top the beverage. I only wish they imparted more of their flavor. 3.0/5.0
drinks berkeley asha ashatea hot ginger tea goji berries 3.0
Asha Tea Asian Pear Oolong Tea: The fruit teas at Asha Tea in Berkeley are consistently good, with housemade textured purees made with seasonal fruit. The puree adds enough bite that I find your typical add-ons, like boba or grass jelly, are unnecessary. For this particular Asian pear tea, the strongly-flavored oolong had a rich and robust herbal flavor much stronger and more interesting than your typical green or black iced teas. The natural fruit carried enough sweetness on its own to cut through the tea, producing an... (read more) 4.5/5.0
exceptional drinks berkeley fruit ashatea asian pear oolong tea 4.5
I-Tea Roasted barley milk tea with grass jelly: Returning again to the Kearny St. location of this bubble tea chain, I decided to try a drink with 0% sweetness and opted for the roasted barley milk tea. Like the last drink I had from i-Tea, the grass jelly was excellent. However, I found the tea to lack flavor, verging on bland. This may be my fault, since there was no sugar, but places like Asha do a fantastic job with barely sweetened teas, so I think this particular flavor just might be not so great. Still, there are other better o... (read more) 3.0/5.0
drinks bubbletea milktea sanfrancisco itea roasted barley milk tea grass jelly 3.0
I-Tea 3G milk tea with boba, grass jelly, and pudding: I made a dangerous discovery that my new favorite bubble tea shop has a location in San Francisco, much closer to work than the Downtown Oakland spot. I ordered their third most popular drink, the 3G, named because of its three toppings: boba, grass jelly, and pudding. It comes with classic milk tea, and, by default, is served in a "chubby" container that's short and squat. I opted for the more portable standard cup (all drinks come in a single size). The black milk tea was done just right -... (read more) 4.5/5.0
exceptional drinks tea sanfrancisco itea 3g milk boba grass jelly pudding 4.5 bubbletea
Ito En Milk Tea: A "Hawaiian Exclusive," I was able to purchase this canned milk tea from Tokyo Fish Market in Berkeley. It is definitely sweet, like at 100% sweetness from a bubble tea shop that lets you adjust, but it does have black tea undertones and an herbal aftertaste. Now that I've had this drink, it will now be a baseline for how decent black milk tea is from a boba tea shop. As far as I'm concerned, if I can buy it for half the price at the local grocery store, it's not worth getting it "fresh." 3.0/5.0
drinks tokyofishmarket itoen milk tea 3.0