My close friends and family know that I always get random milk tea cravings. When the craze started around five or so years ago, I made it a point to grab a cup as either a #treatyourself reward or a stress-reliever—and that was almost every other day back in college. Though that habit of mine has died down, I still have the same mindset.
Recently, I’ve been seeing posts about the long lines at CoCo, which is a franchise from Taiwan that opened in the Philippines a couple of months ago. Either way, most of them are elated that they got their milk tea fix. At the same time, this also brought on friendly debates on social media about the best drinks and other spots people can try.
If you’re a sucker for milk tea like I am and, well, half of our office, check out these places where you can get them.
Macao Imperial Tea
Aside from the usual Pearl Milk Tea, Macao Imperial Tea also offers drinks with cream cheese foam or chestnut cream foam. You can choose familiar flavors like matcha and black tea, or try something new and order osmanthus, rose, or white peach oolong tea. You can also avail of their adorable panda ear jugs that you can use in your next milk tea purchase. Located at G/F Circuit Lane, Ayala Circuit, Makati City.
TenRen’s Tea
TenRen was founded in Taiwan and it started out as a tea manufacturing company. The café has original tea, milk tea, fruit tea, tea latte, and slush. You can find the usual green tea or taro, but what might interest you is the Pu-Erh tea which is considered their strongest tea in the menu. According to TenRen’s site, it’s post-fermented tea that “has a dark reddish color with a strong, full and earthy taste.” It’s also said to be good for weight loss, lowering blood sugar and cholesterol, and boost immunity. Located at G/F Entertainment Mall, North Wing, SM Mall of Asia, Pasay City.
Black Canyon Coffee
If you want a taste of Thai milk tea, visit Black Canyon. It’s the perfect drink for those who are into really sweet drinks. Plus, you can order it hot too. They also have other refreshing drinks like green tea latte, Mexican iced caffee, lemongrass juice, and more. Located at Tuscany, Upper McKinley Road, McKinley Hill, Taguig City.
Serenitea
Serenitea has been around for years now and you may be thinking, “What else can I order aside from Okinawa milk tea?” In case you didn’t know, they now have Burmese Milk Tea. Disclaimer though: This will take around 10 minutes to make so be patient! Located at G/F Glorietta 3, Walkway Drive, Ayala Center, Makati City.
Tiong Hwa Food Products
Tiong Hwa is a soy milk brand that you might’ve seen in supermarkets. But if you haven’t visited their store in Cartimar, Pasay City, you should. Aside from wholesale products, they also sell wintermelon milk tea that’s less than P100. If you want more sweets, there’s taho that you can add sago, peanuts, and mango in. Located at Cartimar Shopping Plaza, Cartimar Avenue, Pasay City.
Wai Ying
If you want something different from the milky consistency, you can go to Binondo and try Wai Ying’s HK Milk Tea. It has a balanced flavor and it’s not too sweet. The best part is that you can pair this with a Peking duck rice plate or your choice of dumplings. Located at 810 Benavidez Street, Binondo, Manila City.
Art by Marian Hukom
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