Purple Kow Rosie Oolong Tea with Brown Sugar Jelly: Somehow, I kept finding myself at this bubble tea shop in Berkeley, likely because of its proximity to the downtown BART station. Purple Kow serves its bubble tea in "chubby" cups (essentially stout buckets) and uses organic milk products for its milk teas. I think they're a little too proud of this fact given that the last few milk teas I've had have been overwhelmingly milky to the point that you feel like you're having sweetened milk. Even with the "micro sugar option," it was too swee... (read more) 2.0/5.0
drinks milktea berkeley purplekow rosie oolong tea brown sugar jelly 2.0
Rabbit Rabbit Tea Japanese buckwheat milk tea with almond pudding: A caffeine-free option at bubble tea shop Rabbit Rabbit Tea, located at the edge of Union Square. It tasted more of milk than buckwheat, but it did have a familiar Asian breakfast porridge vibe to it, reminiscent of powdered grain packs you mix with hot water. The tea was so so, but the almond pudding was quite good - it had a distinctly non-dairy-milk nutty quality and a soft, slick texture. Overall, though, I probably wouldn't come back to Rabbit Rabbit gven the quality of this drink alone. 3.0/5.0
drinks milktea nyc rabbitrabbittea japanese buckwheat milk tea almond pudding 3.0
Sconehenge Crystallized ginger and lemon English tea scones: At the checkout at Monterey Market in Berkeley is a variety of locally-baked good positioned as impulse buys. Cookies, chocolates, and small cakes are neatly arranged, mostly near the register closest to the exit. For a tea party, I purchased these Sconehenge crystallized ginger and lemon scones, which were of surprisingly excellent quality. These packaged scones were more flavorful, moist, and light than any scone I’ve purchased directly from a bakery. One of its most distinct qualities was... (read more) 4.0/5.0
recommended montereymarket sconehenge crystallized ginger lemon english tea scones 4.0
Secret Scoop Thai Gelato Thai Iced Tea and Roasted Coconut Gelato: Just a few paces away from the Trader Joe's in Berkeley is a small ice cream shop specializing in Thai-inspired flavors ("Thai Gelato" refers to the unique flavors rather than a specific style of making gelato). Their curated set of gelato and sorbets range from chocolate lemongrass to soursop, originals you're unlikely to find elsewhere, even in a diverse, food-minded community like Berkeley. The Thai iced tea gelato is easily the best I've had; it's very lightly sweetened and tastes stro... (read more) 4.5/5.0
icecream sweets desserts berkeley exceptional secretscoopthaigelato thai iced tea roasted coconut gelato 4.5
Sharetea Hokkaido black milk tea with boba: I stopped by this branch of Sharetea to scout out tea shops in downtown Berkeley; this one is located right on the edge of campus. Coming in around lunchtime meant there was a sizeable line of college students, and it took about 10 minutes total from getting in line to retrieving my drink. Their menu has several variants of classic black milk tea, including Hokkaido black tea, which supposedly has a roasted brown sugar flavor. Though I ordered it at 30% sweetness, it was more sweet than I wo... (read more) 2.5/5.0
bubbletea milktea drinks berkeley sharetea hokkaido black milk tea boba 2.5
Share Tea Mango green tea with lychee jelly: After attending an event in Palo Alto, I wanted to get a caffeinated beverage for my drive back to the East Bay. I found myself at Share Tea, whose Berkeley branch I had just tried several days before. This time, I opted for a fruit tea and ordered their mango green tea at 30% sweetness with lychee jelly. Even at 30%, I still found the tea to be too sweet, though it did have a nice herbal flavor that came through. I also liked the lychee jelly, which had a good amount of firmness. The m... (read more) 2.5/5.0
drinks sharetea mango green tea lychee jelly 2.5