12 Refreshing Bay Area Boba Shops to Cool You Off This Summer

Asha Tea House

2086 University Ave., Berkeley

As the story goes, this Berkeley institution opened as a vehicle for evangelizing the pleasures of fine Asian teas, and offered a simple boba menu as just one part of that mission. But the boba drinks were so wildly popular, they quickly overshadowed all of the shop’s higher-end offerings. More than probably any other Bay Area boba shop, the focus at Asha rests squarely on the quality of the tea itself rather than on any bells and whistles. All of my favorites have been on the menu from day one: the potent, condensed milk–sweetened Hong Kong milk tea, which is delicious hot or cold, with or without boba. Or any of the seasonal fruit teas, which rely on no artificial flavorings. Instead, they’re just pure tea, supplemented with one of Asha’s pulpy housemade fruit purees. When available, the strawberry black tea and the Asian pear oolong are especially elite.

Dek Doi Cafe

4125 Piedmont Ave., Oakland

It’s a testament to the beverage’s mainstream universal appeal these days that this little Thai cafe has a whole section of its menu dedicated to boba, which doesn’t have any traditional roots in Thailand. That said, Dek Doi’s boba drink selection is fairly basic, so you’d be better off choosing one of its boba-adjacent Thai drinks — like the “Mango Sunset,” which is just an S-tier exemplar of the kind of slushie mango smoothie that many shops sell. This version comes topped with whipped cream and crispy mung beans. Or try Thailand’s famous “pink milk,” or nom chompuu, which is made with red palm fruit syrup and resembles, and vaguely tastes similar to, a retro diner–style strawberry milk with tropical undertones. Note that the drinks here run sweet, but, like at any respectable boba shop, the sweetness level is customizable: For me, 50% was just right.

Urban Ritual

488 Fell St., San Francisco

Just when I got done saying boba isn’t all about all the toppings, here comes a boba shop that is, to a large extent, all about the toppings. And yet I love it, unreservedly. Actually, the tea at Urban Ritual tastes quite good, and the texture of the boba itself is unimpeachable. But what sets the shop apart is its next-generation approach to creative flavor and topping combinations. The most obvious example is its signature crème brûlée milk tea, which combines black tea, cream, tapioca balls and crème brûlée — both the eggy pudding and the crunchy-smoky torched sugar bits. This is Urban Ritual’s greatest innovation: the way it introduces textures other than the classic “QQ” chew of the boba.

And if you want to tell me that some of these drinks are more of a dessert than a beverage? You would be correct — but who is going to complain as long as they know that going in?

Teaspoon

132 Corte Madera Town Center, Corte Madera

Marin County has long been a bit of a boba wasteland, as the big, trendy brands from Taiwan haven’t, to this point, seen the region’s small Asian population as a worthwhile market. It was a happy day, then, when Teaspoon, one of the more well-regarded local (and now national) chains, opened a branch in a Corte Madera shopping plaza. The creamy, caramelly Black Sugar Assam is a well-executed take on the black sugar boba trend. And the “Grasshopper,” which combines lychee green tea and fresh cucumber juice, is fun and refreshing — a nod, perhaps, toward the kind of pepino agua fresca you might find at a local taqueria.

A note of caution: Teaspoon’s drinks were always a bit on the sweet side, but lately the chain has doubled down on the sugar, literally — what used to be the maximum (“regular”) sweetness level is now listed as 50% sweet, which means customers who don’t want a sugar bomb should probably opt for 10%.

Goolu Tea

3646 Village Dr., Castro Valley

A relative newcomer to the Bay Area scene, this independent boba shop specializes in hand-smashed lime teas, a style of drink that’s wildly popular in China and Hong Kong, where it’s often made with green lemons. The name of the drink is self-explanatory: Once you place your order, you’ll hear sound of those fresh limes  getting pummeled — quite literally beaten to a pulp — by the staff, releasing not just the sour juices but also the slightly bitter fragrance of the rind. The end result is one of the most refreshing drinks you can find on a hot day. I’m especially fond of the light, slightly astringent Phoenix lime tea, made with a coveted oolong varietal from Guangdong, China.

Yifang Taiwan Fruit Tea

34133 Fremont Blvd., Fremont

In some ways this may feel like a basic pick: This Taiwanese chain has had a foothold in Northern California for years now, with more than a dozen locations, and it’s been a minute since the brand was super-relevant on the Taipei scene. But what Yifang still does better than any other Bay Area chain is its fruit-flavored teas — whether it’s pineapple teas (made with housemade pineapple jam), old-school Taiwanese tastes like winter melon tea or lemon aiyu or, best of all, the shop’s signature Yifang Fruit Tea, which comes loaded fresh apple, orange and passion fruit, like a beverage and fruit salad all in one.

This is another spot where you’ll want to be careful about the sweetness levels, which vary widely from drink to drink. I’ve ordered the Yifang Fruit Tea at 0% sweetness and still found it to be plenty sweet enough!

Chicha San Chen

20688 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino

This one is for the diehards — or at least for tea lovers who have about an hour to kill. The current title holder in the contest for buzziest Bay Area boba shop, Chicha San Chen touts its award-winning tea drinks, which are individually brewed to order using the company’s patented, very Third-Wave-esque “teaspresso” machines. Is it all a little bit precious? Sure. But it does make for tasty tea. Word to the wise: If you’re going to go through all the trouble of waiting in line for half an hour (and then another half hour for them to make your drink), then you’d better be a person who appreciates the flavor of tea for tea’s sake — and you’d be well-advised to order one of the simpler drinks, so the taste of that tea actually shines through. I love the floral, slightly tannic, minimally sweetened honey osmanthus oolong in particular.

Bonus points for packaging that’s cute and convenient: Every cup comes with a disposable boba tote made of twine. And as the chain has slowly ramped up its Bay Area footprint, the crowds are starting get more manageable too. (During recent visits to the Berkeley location, I’ve snagged my drinks in less than 20 minutes.)

Soyful Desserts

999 Story Rd., San José

One of the joys of San José’s vibrant, colorful drinks scene is the way that Taiwanese, Chinese and Vietnamese influences have fused together to create their own unique, hybridized thing. Soyful Desserts is probably the peak example of that synthesis, with its concise menu of Hong Kong-style milk teas, soy pudding drinks and shaved ice–laden Vietnamese chè. As the shop’s name indicates, the star here is the soy pudding (aka tofu pudding), a silky, refreshing treat equally beloved in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Vietnam. To experience this fusion in all its glory, try the #8 soy pudding combination, which comes filled to the brim with ginger syrup–soaked tofu pudding, shaved ice, basil seeds, pandan jelly, grass jelly, sweet red beans and probably a handful of other toppings I’m forgetting.

I’m well aware that this is a “drink” that’s more solid than liquid — that it, in fact, constitutes a full meal in itself. But that doesn’t make it any less fun or delicious.

Tong Sui

927 E. Arques Ave. #151, Sunnyvale

Also in the realm of good boba at businesses that aren’t strictly boba shops, this popular dessert mini-chain stands out for its selection of seasonally rotating drinks that skew more toward tropical fruit than pure tea. The osmanthus oolong milk tea, topped with tea jelly and an airy coconut cream “cloud,” embodies the shop’s approach: The drinks are refreshing, texturally interesting, sweet but not too sweet.

But the real reason to make a special trip to Tong Sui is the shop’s line of coconut puddings that are so tender and jiggly, they practically melt in your mouth. I especially love the one topped with a double layer of mango (both finely chopped and in soft mochi form).

Heytea

1628 Hostetter Rd. Ste. H, San José

One of the trendiest boba chains to come out of China, Heytea has made rapid inroads in the Bay Area, with locations opening in San Francisco, Berkeley, Milpitas, Daly City and beyond, all in the past two years. During peak hours, I found the San José shop to be more than a little chaotic, with long and unpredictable wait times for drinks — quite tasty drinks, it turns out. The matcha and brown sugar drinks are big sellers, but Heytea’s real strength is its super-refreshing fruit teas. I’m a sucker for all of the grape flavors, including the enticingly named “Crisp Grape Boom,” which is essentially a slushie with chunks of peeled fresh grape mixed in.

Dzui Cake & Tea

2451 Alvin Ave., San José

With its vast selection of durian desserts and hard-to-find Vietnamese pastries, Dzui’s is a lot more than just a boba shop. But the drinks are worth a trip in their own right. Of particular note is the “á đù…rian” milk tea,  which is almost certainly the best durian milk tea you’ll find in the Bay. The salt-cream-topped drink is rich, creamy and apologetically funky, with a true durian flavor that gets stronger and more delicious the longer you drink it. Also excellent: the chè-like hambalang milk tea, which comes loaded with boba, flan, and an assortment of colorful jellies.