Where to Enjoy Bubble Tea in Taiwan - Sit-Down Restaurants
May have moved to Taiwan just for the boba
Hey guys! I’m writing about some of my favorite places to enjoy sit-down bubble tea here in Taiwan. If you’ve ever visited Taipei, or Taiwan for that matter, you’ll know that there are boba shops on almost every block, alongside the convenience stores and the arcade rooms with endless crane games.
Boba is usually just a grab-and-go kind of drink, super quick and easy to consume. I love collecting the beverage holders that have become so uniquely Taiwanese. In recent years, companies have introduced environmentally-friendly cups, straws, everything related to boba. I may or may not have ended up in the doctor’s office due to boba, so that makes me pretty qualified to introduce good places around Taiwan, right? Right…? Hah! Let’s all chew our boba thoroughly guys!
On to the recommendations!
Taipei -卜卜商店 Bu Bu Store
My number one is a cute little cafe called Bu Bu Store off of Chifeng Street near Shuanglian Station (red line).
It’s a great space and store selling cute homeware such as dishes, spoons, plates, etc. The only downfall is that it’s so popular now that the time limit is only 1 hour long, so you can’t really sit for very long to enjoy the ambiance. Highly recommend coming on a weekday if possible.
Their waffles and brown sugar milk tea are totally delicious.
Waffles 150 NT - 190 NT ($5-6 USD)
Drinks 50 NT - 90 NT ($1.50-3 USD)
Brown sugar milk tea and waffles with fresh peaches, mangoes and cream
Taipei - Yonshin Tea 永心鳳茶
This beautiful restaurant has two different locations in Taipei - one near Zhongshan MRT and one near Taipei City Hall MRT. I got the Fried Pork Chop of Taiwanese Style (basically tonkatsu) and a pot of hot Sun Link Sea Oolong Tea (my absolute favorite!) with a side of tapioca pearls. Their menu is extensive and their tea varieties and desserts are endless.
Food price range: 300 - 420 NT ($10-14 USD)
Drink price range: 160 - 240 NT ($5-8 USD)
Taichung, around Taiwan - 春水堂 Chun Shui Tang
Alright, we gotta give props to the original creator of bubble tea in this post. Chun Shui Tang. It would really be a disgrace otherwise :)
Chun Shui Tang from Taichung is known for being the (albeit disputed) creator of bubble tea when one of their product managers threw her leftover fenyuan 粉圓 (often used in douhua 豆花 tofu pudding or similar traditional desserts) into her milk tea back in the 1980s.
I once took a class at Chun Shui Tang about the history of their famous BBT and they explained that they choose a very high quality black tea for their base, powdered milk for the taste, and do not allow the pearls to sit for more than three hours. “Bubble tea” itself actually originally refers to the layer of bubbles formed on top when using a shaker.
I usually go for the original bubble milk tea at the restaurants, skip the food. It’s definitely on the pricier side (85-180 NT or so, $3-6 USD) for a medium or large size boba but worth an occasional splurge for higher quality boba.
Taichung - 有春茶館 Wu Chun Tea Hall
A really cute space and a unique menu set at the Wu Chun Tea Hall in Taichung. I stopped by here before taking the train back to Taipei and it was a pleasant last meal! (except a little bit too much for one person) I loved the small details like the train ticket-like introduction of their own little bottle of hot sauce. Check out the cute apple buns too! Approximately the same price range as Chun Shui Tang.
Hualien - 王記茶舖人文茶堂 Wang Tea House
A delicious option for sit-down boba in Hualien! We mainly tried the snacks and boba here for a little pre-meal appetizer. I opted for a more unique Tieguanyin bubble tea this time, but I think I’ll stick with the regular bubble tea next time with black tea ;) Sorry, the photo I took of my boba turned out not so great so I won’t include it. Fried tofu was yummy! The bathrooms totally confused me as they were based off of a traditional folk tale about the lady in the moon. Oops. Similar price range as Chun Shui Tang.
That’s all for now, but I’m sure I’ll have more to add to this list later! Thanks for reading! Look out for the “Where to Enjoy Bubble Tea in Taiwan - TO-GO” segment coming soon!
