Come rain or shine, the weather is always perfect for this Taiwanese tea speciality! We’ve teamed up with some friendly bubble tea experts – who treat themselves to a bubble tea nearly every day – to come up with our list of top bubble tea spots in Hong Kong.
The best bubble tea in Hong Kong
HEYTEA
HEYTEA came from humble beginnings in Guangzhou and now boasts stores all over China – and six in Hong Kong! The Chinese brand is known for something very special indeed: its signature Cheezo tea. In recent years, the admittedly strange-sounding cheese tea has grown in popularity, and we can see why. HEYTEA’s cheese topping is made with cream cheese and condensed milk, which adds an extra layer of indulgence in the form of this sweet and tangy foam. If you’re sceptical, there are cheeseless varieties at HEYTEA – the Fruity Boom teas are wonderfully refreshing – but we recommend giving the Cheezo a go.
HEYTEA, multiple locations across Hong Kong
CHICHA San Chen
Award-winning Taiwanese brand CHICHA San Chen has been going strong for over quarter of a century, even developing its own teapresso machine, LION, to extract the best flavour from its six types of tea (green, black, cassia black, osmanthus oolong, dong ding oolong, and high mountain pouchong). To order a bubble tea at CHICHA San Chen, there are three steps. First select your preferred tea type, then add on a flavour, such as honey, lemon, or passion fruit, to the mix. Finally, it’s time to choose a topping, ranging from konjac to taro balls. Like most shops specialising in bubble tea, you can also customise the amount of sugar and ice added.
CHICHA San Chen, multiple locations across Hong Kong
POT•ION HOUSE
Last spring, home-grown brand POT•ION HOUSE debuted in Wan Chai as the first jelly-based bubble tea concept in Hong Kong, and it now boasts two smart locations on Hong Kong Island and one in Kowloon. All the delicious bubble tea concoctions are made with ingredients from Taiwan, featuring signature jellies like peach-infused black tea jelly, jasmine green tea jelly, and soybean milk jelly. Our ideal combination is the Jin Xuan alpine tea with apricot kernel jelly, which is refreshing and fragrant.
POT•ION HOUSE, multiple locations across Hong Kong
The Alley
With just one tiny shop located opposite iSQUARE in Tsim Sha Tsui, The Alley is a Taiwanese brand with an iconic deer logo that has made a splash in Hong Kong’s booming boba scene. The Alley’s house-made sugar-cane syrup really makes a difference in the addictive sweetness of its drinks. The Crunchy Milk series is a big hit, especially the Crunchy Milk tea with brown sugar jelly, as is the Snow Velvet peach oolong with its creamy cheese topping.
The Alley, Shop F, G/F, Alpha House, 27–33 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, 2157 9267
Chun Shui Tang
The inventor of the actual concept of bubble tea, Chun Shui Tang deserves a prominent place on our list, with the brand founded in Taichung in 1983 under the name Yanghsien Tea Shop. Chun Shui Tang’s extensive menu of cold tea beverages presents a variety of teas and flavours, alongside a food menu of traditional Taiwanese dishes like braised beef noodles, spicy beef tripe, and deep-fried chicken wings. On the tea front, the pearl milk tea is a deserving bestseller, showcasing all-natural and delectably chewy tapioca balls. If you’re not all boba’ed out, the tea-based desserts are also winners, in particular the tieguanyin tea-flavoured cake with brown sugar pearls.
Chun Shui Tang, multiple locations across Hong Kong
Silk.
Founded as a tribute to the heritage of Hong Kong milk tea, Silk. is a burgeoning local brand that uses a secret 50-year-recipe to craft its beloved milk tea, which is literally as smooth as silk. The Smooth King is a well-balanced signature for good reason, delivering a mixture of milk tea and plump black boba topped with a cheese “cloud” and bits of honeycomb. On the lighter side, the Silky Starburst is a fruity delight of four seasons oolong tea, grapefruit, orange, passion fruit sherbet, and agar crystals.
Silk., multiple locations across Hong Kong
COMEBUYTEA
COMEBUYTEA is another Taiwanese brand with a long history, this time dating back to 2002 and now operating hundreds of shops around the world. The chain stands out from the pack in Hong Kong with its locations displaying large glass canisters containing different types of hand-picked tea from across Asia, as well as its showpiece teapresso machines. The number-one order here is the evaporated milk roasted oolong tea, which comes with a foamy “creamccino” topping and boba made of taro and yam.
COMEBUYTEA, multiple locations across Hong Kong
KOI Thé
Extremely popular in its native Taiwan, KOI Thé is preferred for its precision and consistency, and its baristas are stringently trained in every aspect of the bubble tea-making process, from the ideal ratio of tea to water for brewing to the optimal amount of ice in each drink. KOI’s bouncy boba, made with natural ingredients, is well loved for its signature golden sheen. The golden bubble milk tea is a must-order here, whilst the caramel biscuit milk tea adds another layer of rich sweetness.
KOI Thé, Shop KOW 62, Kowloon MTR Station, Tsim Sha Tsui, 2708 8831
KOI Thé, Shop 6, G/F, Dundas Square, 43H Dundas Street, Mong Kok, 2385 8518
