This year has been a wild year for milk tea. New milk tea shops seem to be popping every now and then in different locations, each having their own pitch and specialties. But despite having the abundance, there are some people who still choose to line up in their favorite store just to get their milk tea fix even it requires them to line up for hours.
So, we’ve listed down ten of the best milk tea shops in Manila and our favorite drinks. The milk tea shops listed below do not only sell milk tea but also offer a wide variety of drinks that truly captured our hearts.
Note: The list is not in any particular order since each milk tea shops offer different drink specialties.
This milk tea shop opened its first store in Maginhawa this year and they leveled up their game by not just providing delicious drinks but also by taking us to Japan with their Cherry Blossom-themed shop.
Since the whole store is really instagrammable, a lot of people take their time to take photos so, you would be lucky enough to have a seat especially on weekends.
Being a true tea-ta that we are, we instantly fell in love with their hot tea! This is a perfect drink after having a sumptuous food trip in Maginhawa.
And if you are someone who can drink a liter of milk tea, they got you! This 1-liter Lava Pearl Latte is definitely one of the best.
They also offer a regular-size drink for their Lava Peral Latte.
Other Branches:
BES Binang 2nd Bocaue, Bulacan
Malate, Manila
Sta. Mesa Heights, Quezon City
2. Tiger Sugar
With the advent of brown sugar pearls, this one really got our attention and still remains as number 1.
Luckily, the hype already subsided so, we can now enjoy this drink without having to line-up for hours.
3. The Alley
Our 2nd favorite when it comes to brown sugar pearls series which they call Brown Sugar Boba Milk with Cream Mousse.
Despite the long line, this is the only milk tea shop that we observed having a lot of staff thus, making the preparation time faster, and waiting time shorter. Two thumbs up for their very efficient service!
4. Frnk Milk Bar
Everyone has been raving about the pearls on milk tea but Frnk has another way of making our drink even more delicious by adding mochi!
This Dirty Maccha was made with hand-whisked Uji Kyoto maccha, kokoa, blue tea mochi , and fresh milk. Such a delicious combination! We would definitely buy that additional mochi.
We also love other Frnkly Recommended drinks like Pinku Kokoa Chizu, Baked Purple Chizu, and Maccha Kukki. Tall, please!
5. Serenitea
Serenitea has been around for a couple of years now and this one is our go-to milk tea shop. Aside from their Wintermelon and Okinawa Milk Tea, our go-to drink includes the Green Apple Yakult.
Since this one is our go-to drink, we don’t even have a good photo of it. Haha.
Also, we love their planner! You just have to buy any drinks worth Php 1,000 to get it for free!
6. Happy Lemon
This is also one of the first milk tea shops that we have tried and we still love it until now!
Our go-to drink? Their Cocoa with Rock Salt & Cheese! We always recommend this drink to our friends, and it never fails!
7. Tantea
This famous Hong Kong milk tea shop opened its first pioneer branch in Binondo last June 2019 and now, they have 3 branches in the Metro with an upcoming branch in Megamall.
You can choose from their 10 drink categories which made it a bit hard to choose.
We love all their drinks but if we are to choose our favorites… Here it is, Butterfly Pea Rose Peach Gum, Strawberry Dirty Bottle, Watermelon Coconut Milk, Strawberry, and Mango Panna Cotta, Fragrant Chocolate Cream Cheese, and of course, the Boba Pearl Milk Tea!
Other Branches:
SM North EDSA
Tomas Morato
Banawe, Quezon City (Soft Opening)
One Town Central Village Square, Alabang (Soft Opening)
8. TeaMi
A milk tea shop offering selection of drinks from Brown Sugar Pearl Milk, Pure Tea, Tea Latte, Wintermelon Tea Latte, Dirtea, Yogurt, Fruitea, and Macchiato. What makes them special was the use of their very own milk which is also healthier. Hence, the tagline, “Better Tea, Better Mi (me)“.
Our favorite? The Blueberry Dirtea! When they said its made with blueberry, believe them.
Among all the drinks that we have tried, this is the only one that truly captured our tastebuds.
Branches:
University Mall, Taft Avenue, Manila (beside LRT Vito Cruz)
One Southgate Mall (former Alphaland) Magallanes, Makati
9. Brown Cafe
Brown Cafe has opened its first store in BGC just beside Shari-Shari.
What makes them special is their collagen-infused bubble tea which contains lower calories than your usual milk tea drink.
Since they offer over 30 drinks, our favorite includes the Peach Tea with Collagen Bubble, Grapes Fruit Latte with Rainbow Bubble, Anchan Strawberry Latte with Rainbow Bubble, StrawberryShake Shake Series, and of course, the famous Brown Royal Premium Milk Tea.
Currently, they only have one branch which is located at Serendra, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City,
10. Macao Imperial
Last but definitely not the least on our list is the Macao Imperial Tea. Our favorite? Their Cream Cheese Milk Tea! Well, who doesn’t?
This list is limited only to the ones we have tried. Some milk tea shops that trended this year either did not pass or we haven’t tried it yet.
What’s your favorite milk tea shop and drink? Share it with us by commenting below.
Also, don’t forget to check out the milk tea shops that didn’t make it on this list!
Disclaimer: This list is only limited to the products we have tried this year and the reviews are written with the author’s honest opinion.