Kids

10 Best Milk Tea Spots Your Teens Might Love

by Kevyn Gohu
October 28, 2021

We’ve compiled a list of where to get this fave beverage that has a lovely combination of tea, some chewables, and a variety of flavors we know your teens crave.

If not tea, your teens love milk tea for a whole variety of reasons. Whether it’s because they can chew the boba pearls out of frustration with school or they’re satisfying their sweet tooth, this drink has been so popular with kids and teens that it’s probably where 90% of their allowance goes. It’s a somewhat cheaper alternative to the typical Starbucks or Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and, the stores that sell it offer them full control of how much sugar they can put in it. That’s why we came up with this list — to help you help your teens decide what flavor they want to drink.

10 Best Milk Tea Spots

1. Serenitea

Serenitea, being one of the local brands, offers various flavors like the Nagasaki (or the Honey-flavored), the Okinawa (Brown Sugar), or the lightly vanilla Hokkaido milk tea. But what we love about them is that they also offer Chaspressos: these are the milkteas that have an extra shot of espresso mixed in, for that extra boost we need for the day. While they offer Japanese flavors, they’ve added even Thai, Hong Kong, and even cookie brulée milk teas to their list.

On the holidays, they also introduce new flavors such as the Filipino Christmas theme for this year to celebrate their 15 years as a beloved milk tea store. Enjoy the rich yet fresh Ube Pandan Green Tea mixed with some light coconut milk for a more tropical Christmas and for a cooler yet sweeter one, the Yema Mais Con Hielo may just bring back some sweet memories of us sitting on the porch and enjoying the warm weather.

Besides milk tea, they also serve Taiwanese-style snacks like their Salt and Pepper Tofu and their Chicken Popcorn to answer that salty craving after having something sweet.

Serenitea also has various branches, usually in malls. But they also are available on Food Panda or GrabFood.

2. Macao Imperial Tea

First opening in 2017, Macao Imperial Tea earned the nickname among some milk tea connoisseurs as the “Starbucks of Milk Tea” because of their cute signature containers, their rainbow-colored creations, and even their ambiance. Most Macao Imperial Tea shops sport a red and brown interior, kind of like a bit of a diner which the teens and kids love. They were one of the milk tea shops that popularized transforming Cheesecake into a beloved flavor. The rich, saltiness of the cheesecake goes well with the brown sugar pearl, mixed with a black tea base.

They were also one of the few milk tea shops that encouraged vaccination wherein the card that proves that you got your COVID-19 vaccine means they can buy one and get one free!

Macao Imperial Tea has multiple branches including Ayala Circuit Malls, Lucky Chinatown malls, and the like.

3. Cha Cha Go

This Taiwanese milk tea shop is perfect for the teens who don’t have a strong sweet tooth. Cha Cha Go is a Taiwanese milk tea shop so expect that their concoctions cater more to those who don’t have a strong sweet tooth. Like most milk tea shops, they also have snacks like pizzas and fried snacks to nibble on. But their best seller is their Brown Sugar. The boba pearls are swimming in a black sugar syrup which is also dripping from the sides of the glass, making it more fun to drink. But for those who want more bitter flavors, their Coffee Jelly is good, too.

4. Colobaba Café

Located along Timog, Colobaba Café serves both milk and fruit tea. Also, remember those jiggly pancakes you see on Korean or Japanese food videos? Colobaba Café is one of the few places that serve soufflé pancakes. We’d recommend the Strawberry Pancake Soufflé and to try either their Malteser Oolong or their Superfruit Tea which has a combination of all sorts of fruits.

5. Cha Time

Cha Time’s another one for those with less of a sweet tooth. Their teas are quite strong so it stands out even if they put some milk or syrup. Your teens might enjoy their Red Bean Pearl or their Coffee for a change of pace instead of the typical Wintermelon, Nagasaki, Hokkaido, etc. They also serve coffee and even have a menu restricted to pure chocolate if your teens want a drink with nothing but chocolate in it.

6. Moonleaf

For those who stayed around Katipunan, Moonleaf’s held its ground as one of the more prominent milk tea shops. Located along Esteban Abada, Moonleaf has some interesting flavors from Peach and Peppermint. Although they have other branches, many of your college kids who went to Ateneo to study would remember having some study sessions and dates in Moonleaf before the lockdown.

7. CoCo

Unlike the other milk tea shops, Coco takes pride in its variety of sinkers. One of the crowd favorites is the Three Ladies Milk Tea which has two kinds of pearls and pudding. For those not into pudding, your teens will like the Panda Milk Tea in which true to its name uses both white pearls and black ones. They use purely black tea, however, but if your teens like chewing on something while they study, get them a 22 oz. Coco Milk Tea and they’re set for studying.

8. Cha Tuk Cha

Cha Tuk Chai focuses more on Thai milk tea which has a different kind of sweetness compared to the Taiwanese style. Taiwanese style has a barley-like sweetness to their milk tea whereas Thai uses condensed milk and evaporated milk for that extra sweetness, making it creamy. We’d recommend their Nom Yen for strawberry flavor and Cha Yen for basic flavors. Their Cha Khiao is good, too, if you’re feeling adventurous.

9. Taste Tea

Taste Tea made its way up to our list because it’s dairy-free so those with lactose intolerance have no need to drink near the bathroom. They also have a variety of iced, fruit teas such as the Sour Plum Fruit Tea and some Yohgurt Iced Tea if you’re looking for a sour flavor. Among the ones we like, your teens might like their Chocolate Pudding Milk Tea or their Oolong Tea Latté.

10. Taste from the Greens

Taste from the Greens focuses on more modern flavors. They have an expansive chocolate-flavored milk tea menu like their Roasted Cocoa Milk Tea or their Dark Chocolate Milk Tea. But those are the gateway flavors. If your teens are a little more adventurous, they can try some of their signature creations like their Traditional Brown Sugar Milk Tea. They even have some hot teas to help you relax.

Quite a wide selection of the best milk tea spots for your teens to choose from!

Unlike coffee, milk tea’s a little more meticulous because it’s more time-consuming. To achieve that instant chill, most milk tea shops buy the shakers that bartenders use to make alcoholic drinks. So, your teens are probably craving milk tea since it’s the one thing they can’t make at home. And instead of being overwhelmed by the long list on your Grab or Food Panda, we made this list so it’s easier for you and your teens to find.