Tea Boss

Oh-​mah-​gah
The egg puffs are sooooooo good! It looked really good in the pics on Instagram so I was like «I gotta get me some!» and I did!
Egg Puffs — Slightly crunchy exterior w/​soft, warm doughy interior. It wasn’t bland, it wasn’t too sweet, it was PERFECT. Like the perfect amount of sweetness and the perfect texture. It was so cute, too! It’s actually SHAPED like an EGG w/​a the color of organic eggs. Tehe. When you first grab it out of the bag, its piping hot (since they make it to order), and it has a bit of a soft, bouncy, squishiness to it. Kinda like softer than a stress ball. Its almost too cute to eat! Each order comes w/​5 egg puffs. Remember, its the size of an actual egg! I ate 3 and that was enough for me lol.
Thai Tea — Really good Thai Tea. Not too sweet, not too bland, and there was still an aromatic tea flavor to it. Sometimes, Thai Tea doesn’t taste like it has any tea, but this one does! I’d recommend it!
Milk Tea w/​Ice Cream, Boba, Oreos — My partner loved it. It was reeeally good.
Overall, ⁵⁄₅. Service was great, fast, efficient, and most importantly, the food was REALLY good and inexpensive!

Unfortunately for the first time service is slow. Seems new staff and not trained. Took over 5 minutes and not busy.
One week later returned and service back to good again. Quick friendly service as before. Thank you

Tea boss is da bomb. Everytime I come here the staff are always welcoming, super friendly and fun.

Going to keep in short. It’s not Taste Tea (right up the street) but probably my second favorite milk tea place on island. Don’t usually get because of location but I do make it a point to stop by after eating Phở One.
No complaints at all on this place, it just suffers, at least for me, from being too close to Taste Tea.

Tea Boss continues to be my favorite boba place on the island for the jasmine milk green tea and for the flavored green tea drinks. The jasmine tea flavor is always apparent without being overwhelming. The jasmine milk tea is just sweet enough (I order half sweet) and is milky, not watery. The flavored green teas can run on the sweet side for me (even at 25% sugar), but I still enjoy them. The boba is well cooked — chewy but not soggy.
I have only tried one of their smoothie drinks — mango — but I was not a fan. For these, I would definitely opt for one of the other nearby options such as those in Ala Moana.

I tried this place out for the first time last night. The menu is pretty extensive and if you don’t know the differences between the teas, you better learn! Haha! Being my first time, I wanted to stick to their favorites so I got the Melon Milk Tea with the mini boba. I most definitely like the mini boba better because I don’t need to chew and it makes drinking easier. They also have three different sizes. They’re largest size is pretty huge! They also have different percentages of sweetness. I got the sweetest and my drink came out the way I wanted it to.
The only reasons I’m giving this place a mediocre rating is because of the noise level and because they first got my order wrong. I also noticed that their system looks a bit unorganized still (saw papers all over the counter and post-​its with writing on top of a tray with food on it).
Another pro for you android users is that they have several wireless charging spots on their tables.
Overall, I’d go again… This place just isn’t so great as a hangout spot because of the noise level.

This is the second time that I came to Tea Boss and I was really rooting for this place to be great all around by giving it another chance.
First of all, their tea is just meh to me compared to all of the other tea places that I’ve been to around the island. The first time around I ordered the cookies and cream milk tea and it was just okay. The second time around ordered the «Melon Jasmine Green Milk Tea» and let me preface why this item is in quotations.
So, if you look at their menu screen, you’ll notice that their 2 DISTINCT melon teas listed on the menu: Melon and winter melon. So, I order the melon one with the logical thought that there would be a distinction between the two, also checking the differences in katakana and kanji for further reference. So, I came on a busy night, right before their final call and so they were basically slammed at the end of the night. Fine, whatever.
One of the male workers was there and at some point he was calling out «winter melon tea,» which I assumed was someone else’s drink because the large amount of people crowding out up small, tight space that did not receive their order. So, I watched as more and more people got their drinks and decided to ask, basically: what happened? The same male worker came up to me sarcastically and was like «Well, I called it 2 or 3 times for a ‘winter melon tea.’» So, I was like ’ hmmm okay so why make the distinction in the first place by listing two different types of ‘melon teas’ on your menu because for one I really don’t care for winter melon to begin with. Better yet, I found out that he threw out the same «winter melon tea». That’s great! So then, he proceeds to ask me «So, do you want me to remake it?» Well, duh. I paid for it. What kind of question is that. I’m not exchanging my money for nothing in return. So, after the histrionics of it all and the dramatic banging around of their equipment, I get my drink and I get the sarcastic «I have the «winter melon tea,» the item that was not listed on the menu. So, I guess there was no real difference between the two, even when the menu say something completely different. Great.
All in all, everything would have been sort of fine if I didn’t have to deal with all the dramatic and sarcastic retorts and performance that I had witnessed.
So, to the same worker I’ve been posting about, let me lay out some tips for you as a person who also has worked in the service industry for three years.
1. Just because there’s a rush at the end of the night, it doesn’t give you the right to lash out your frustration on the remaining customers just because you want to go home. Your company has laid out a set of hours that you chose to work and your service and attitude makes the overall reputation of the company.(You even made a 10:50 call!) Deal with it or turn in your uniform.
2. Just because you messed up the previous party’s order in front of me and made them wait a long time for their drink, it doesn’t mean you let that get to you and let your frustration lead you into having a fit.
3. Banging around equipment and sarcasm may make you feel better as immediate gratification but it’s unprofessional and of the likes of a petulant child.
4. If you’re going to be rude, follow the golden rule «You get what you dish out.» At any moment I could have called you out your bs attitude and not once have I delivered a rude or aggravating retort back to you via any form of visible or audible communication.
And the best one of all…
5. If you’re going talk $hit about a customer, make sure that your customers actually leave the premises first, so they actually can’t see, in very plain sight, you flailing your arms around and yelling your frustrations out to your coworker from you being pent up from your escapade of sarcastic remarks.
Like to me, that was the cherry on top of all the ‘great’ service I received and the mediocre drink that I could not enjoy.

We walked here from Ala Moana so we didn’t have to worry about parking. However, the parking seems like a nightmare especially during peak hours and especially since it’s on a really busy main road (must suck to get out).
The store is really small but it was empty when we were there (a weekday afternoon) besides one other person. There seemed to be phone charging stations on the tables. I wish the store felt more welcoming. It kinda felt like it was just halfway done with decorating. The tables in the center of the store are at an awkward height when you sit on the chairs. The music was blasting quite loudly too.
The girl who took my order was nice, welcoming, and professional (though quite young) but the others seemed to be playing around and talking story. I get that it may be slow but if there are customers in the store, I feel like you should still have a professional presence. There’s a line between being fun/​casual and being unprofessional. When my drink was ready, I asked if the smaller straws should be used for the mini boba (I’ve never had mini boba before) and the worker said «just take both (straws)» and turned away. Gee, thanks for your help.
I tried using the small straw but it wasn’t large enough so I took it out and threw it away. I tried putting the larger straw in but of course, made a bit of a mess (which is why I wish the girl just let me know that the larger straw would only fit the mini boba). However, the majority of my mini boba ended up being clumped together so it was pretty awkward to drink my drink even with the larger straw. The straw kept getting clogged. Not a pleasant experience. Also, I only got 25% sweetness but the juice didn’t seem like real juice to me. It tasted artificial and a little syrup-​y even though there were bits of lychee seeds (?) in it.
I only came here because my friends wanted to go and I’ll probably only come here again if my friends want to go. It’s not worth the hassle or the money.

I swore I would never go to Tea Boss again, just because there’s so many other options out there nowadays! But,
I went out with some friends and they really wanted to try here. I gave it another shot and HEY! it’s been awhile, they have redeemed themselves! My drink was a coffee drink and my boyfriend got milk tea. Both perfectly «less sweet». Still not my FAVORITE place but I won’t say I’ll NEVER come back here ;)

I had the Thai Tea. I really love the taste. Its pretty busy for a small location but worth it price is decent.

If you’re a boss at drinking tea … or want to drink tea like a boss … this is the place for you.
Tea Boss doesn’t have much parking, but there is a small lot in front of the restaurant and there are allotted spots in the structure the café is in. Fortunately, when my friend and I met at this café, there were two stalls right out front so we didn’t have far to walk.
I definitely liked the décor and atmosphere of Tea Boss. There isn’t plentiful seating, but there are several tables and countertop seats available. The menu is also extensive, so you may have a hard time choosing one drink.
What I liked about Tea Boss was that I felt like I got what I paid for. There are larger cups available, which reminded me of Half & Half Tea Express, one of my favorite tea shops in So Cal. The «regular» is a larger size than most, and you can also choose the sweetness level of your drink.
Besides the grand assortment of teas and slushes, Tea Boss also sells macarons and Bubbie’s mochi ice cream if you want a small snack. You can also taste their made-​in-​house egg puffs.
My friend and I ordered our drinks and, since we were one of the few customers on a Thursday around 11:30 a.m., it didn’t take too long for our orders to be ready. But, I noticed during our time there, there was a steady stream of people coming in and out of the café — usually with orders to-​go.
I would definitely return to Tea Boss because there are so many other flavors I have yet to try on the menu, plus, I really do want to try one of the Cake Works macarons or get mochi ice cream. Here’s what we got during our visit:
Regular «Milk Tea»: My friend doesn’t like her drinks too sweet, so she opted for the regular-​sized milk tea with 50 percent sweetness and she added boba. She was pleased with her drink, saying it was refreshing and the boba was soft and chewy (not too hard for her liking). She looks forward to trying another flavor during our next visit, but said she really liked the consistent flavor of this milk tea.
«Cookies and Cream» milk tea: I saw the «cookies and cream» flavor as being one of the best sellers from Tea Boss, so I immediately knew that’s what I wanted. It cost $ 1 extra to add a scoop of vanilla ice cream, but I wanted my milk tea to look just like the one in the promotional photo. This was the first time I ever had a milk tea with ice cream in it, and I didn’t mind the added sweetness. The milk tea itself was good — it did feature a predominant cookies and cream flavor, but it wasn’t as rich or sweet as a milkshake or smoothie of that nature. I did like the ice cream in it, but I didn’t expect there to be so many ice cubes, so I was trying to sip my drink, keep up with my melting ice cream and stay away from the ice cubes at the same time. I would get this flavor again because I really did enjoy the cookies and cream taste; I could aptly taste the ground OREOs in the mix. I would recommend this one to any chocolate lover out there.
«Egg Puffs»: My friend and I tried the egg puffs because they’re something unique to this café. We both thought they would contain some sort of filling, but they didn’t. The egg puffs are sold in packs of six, so we split it; they are light, airy and puffy in consistency. They sort of reminded me of lighter andagi, but they taste rather bland in of themselves and would be better if filled with something (chocolate or creamy or something). I didn’t know they were empty, but it was a nice snack to go along with our drinks. I was glad we tried this, but I probably wouldn’t order it again. Instead, I would get a macaron or mochi ice cream next time (even if I’m already drinking something cold!).

I like that this place has a lot of options, and some really unique choices. The service is fast and friendly, and the shop was pretty clean, though I hit it right when it opened so not much time for mess to occur.
I usually get taro milk tea but since I was in need of caffeine I went for the coffee milk tea with boba. The 16oz (smallest) was $ 4.45. I feel that’s a little pricey since most places you can get a 20oz for under $ 4, and the 16oz looks more like 12oz.
The boba was a little al dente which for anyone who knows good boba knows that it means it’s not just hard but kinda still crumbly on the inside. When you order you’re asked what sweetness level you want and I chose regular (100%). I’m quite surprised at how bitter my tea was. It didn’t taste sweet at all so next time I know to ask for extra sweet when ordering coffee milk tea. Overall the taste was ok but my drink was warm. They use hot coffee and it melts the ice instantly. So instead of a nice iced drink it’s a warm bitter drink with hard boba.
I’ve definitely had better but I won’t wrote this place off just yet. I’ll try it at another time and get a different drink.

As a bubble drink lover I am definitely a fan of this place. You will never know how much you will like/​love/​hate any place unless you try it for yourself!
I got the flavor I would normally get at any bubble drink place, TARO. I got it 50% less sweet but probably could have been content with 25%. They also have the smaller size boba for those of you that prefer that one instead. We waited about 15 minutes for our drink but I didn’t mind. They were short staffed but everyone was so friendly and welcoming.
This place is kind of hidden, right off Kapiolani boulevard. Only a few stalls in front of the place. I saw a sign that there were more parking if you drive through the driveway but I was lucky to score parking in the front.

I’m not a milk tea person. I prefer green and black tea so I like the idea that they have mixtures.
My sister treated me to a 16 oz winter melon lemonade in green tea base with the signature pearl boba. The tea was good but they mess up on the pearls. It was so hard like half cook so sticky and hard at the same time!!! Boba are my favorite so I was disappointed!!! Pretty bad if this is there signature and not worth the extra charge for it.
I do like the Rattan phone charging station. My phone was at 1% so if you give them your ID you can charge your phone for free.

Location/​Parking:
They are located off Kapiolani Blvd next to Phở One. Parking sucks! There are a few parking stalls available to customers. The parking stall numbers are listed on the door.
Menu:
They have an extensive menu from milk tea, slushes, ice cream flow and coffee. They offer a variety of toppings such as mini boba, pink boba, coffee jelly, grass jelly, pudding, azuki beans, rainbow jelly and vanilla ice cream.
I tried the wintermelon milk tea and lemonade. I preferred the wintermelon lemonade over the milk tea. The mini boba are really tiny. The larger boba was chewy and hard. The sweetness of some drinks can be adjusted.
Charging Station:
There are charging stations on the counters. Ask the cashier for the charge cord. You’ll need to give them your ID to hold while your phone is charging.
Desserts:
They also sell macarons, pudding, cheese cake and ice cream mochi.
Overall, I enjoyed the wintermelon lemonade but I was hoping for a more sweeter wintermelon milk tea. I’m glad I didn’t order the larger boba because it was not soft like the mini boba.

This place definitely has a different tea selection than other boba places. Their prices are just a tad bit higher. The one thing about this place is that they have a variety of milk tea flavors and I love milk tea. They also have different flavor of slushes so I know that they have a blender, unlike Taste Tea. When I asked to have my milk tea blended, the cashier said something to the effect of the milk tea being watered down if it was blended. That just didn’t make sense to me. So having the ice cubes that they put in there isn’t going to water the milk tea down? Whether you put in ice cubes or have the ice cubes blended into the drink, it’s going to be watered down. I just kept it to myself as the girls working behind the counter were really nice.
The hubby got the pineapple passion fruit tea with boba. That drink was refreshing and very fragrant. It had sort of a floral smell to it. I got the strawberry milk tea with the strawberry boba. I really liked my strawberry milk tea. I could taste the hint of strawberry. The boba was exactly how I liked it, chewy and not too soft. They let you choose how sweet you’d like your drink to be. We both chose 100% sweet, which I felt wasn’t very sweet at all.

Tea Boss has officially become my favorite boba place, even more so than Coffee or Tea! *GASP*
I still haven’t tried the regular milk tea because I’m a big fan of their matcha milk tea and why fix what isn’t broken, right? The matcha milk tea is perfect if you love green tea. Although the 100% sweetness is too sweet for me, it may be good if you’re a sweet tooth. For those who prefer things to be less sweet 50% or 75% is good without it being bitter.
My bf and I tried the yuzu juice recently. Although, we were a little skeptical since they described it as a citrus drink that wasn’t super sour. I asked if it was like lemonade but they said it wasn’t. What would this sweet citrus drink taste like??? I still can’t really explain it but it’s delicious! It’s a Korean yuzu citrus tea (Which oddly enough, I’ve had before. My mom makes it for me when I’m sick). There are chunks of yuzu shavings in the bottom for added texture. It reminds me of citrus mixed with honey? Either way, I think it’s worth trying at least once. Ask for extra ice since the drink is made hot at first and a lot of the ice melts quickly when they mix it.
I love almost everything about Tea Boss. Except for the parking (which sucks sometimes) and the fact that they don’t add enough ice. Add more ice please!

I’ve been back here a few times recently, and have seen a VAST improvement in service since my last review. Their bubble tea is pretty darn good, and they have a huge array of interesting flavors – my newest fave may be the Thai tea.
Their regular bubble tea is pretty good, and you have a lot of choices for toppings, etc. I’ve tried the passion fruit, the milk tea, the Thai tea, the lilikoi tea, and a few others. This place is great because of their variety, as well as the friendly owner, Alex.
If you’re in the area, or waiting to be seated at a nearby restaurant, it’s a great place to swing by for bubble tea. I’d suggest checking it out, and ordering something that you’ve never seen before: it could become your new favorite!
Pro tip: Check out their daily deals, and bring a friend to enjoy with you!

Tea boss had a wide variety of options to choose from which was nice. I got the honey black tea with green tea with pearl boba. It was amazing!
I wish that the person who took my order didn’t snatch my card out of my hand, but other than that the service was great. We met the actually Tea Boss himself and he took great care of us.

I eat macarons
LIKE A BOSS
munch on mochi ice cream
LIKE A BOSS
drink tea
LIKE A BOSS
I’m so glad I can get 3 of a few of my favorite dessert cravings all in one crack. The macarons are from Cake Works. The mochi ice cream is from Bubbies. The tea products and other items is imported from Taiwain.
Parking:
A bit tight. There are a few parking stalls in front of the store. There is also more parking inside the building.
Service:
Great. The first time I came I believe it was one of the owners. He was willing to answer all my questions and he kept smiling the whole time. I had my heart set on trying their pink boba but sadly I would have to wait 20 minutes for it to finish cooking.
Other times that I came I was met with the same type of service. Smiling, willing to answer questions, and received a good consistent drink.
Something different:
This store allows you to charge your mobile device. In exchange for your ID they give you a cord that sits on top of the charging station. I have a 4s and they have the newer iPhone charger cords so my sister was able to charge her phone.
Tea Boss offers FREE wifi so you can post your drink, mochi ice cream, and macaron on Unilocal + Instagram with ease so you can make your other friends J.
I will be back again when I’m in the area.