Once in a while, I have a craving for boba tea and I must have it! I found Asha on yelp and thought it sounded like my kind of place with nice ambiance and quality not-so-sweet tea. For my first tasting, I ordered a hot macha latte with boba. Mmmm, with the first sip, it made my tummy happy. Only thing I didn't like is that it was sweeter towards the bottom because of the sweetened bobas. Next time, I'll have to ask them to make it less sweeter I've been dreaming about their tea for a week, so guess where I'm headed for an afternoon snack? This time, I'm checking out their HK milk tea. read more

I love the interior design of this place, but I'm rating it based on the milk tea I had, which definitely warrants only 2 stars max. I ordered the Oolong Milk Tea, but it was surprisingly bad for a place that focuses so much on tea brewing. I was so sad! The milk tea was too diluted due to the melted ice, so I could barely make out the flavors of both the tea and milk. I was so thirsty at that point that I just drank it like it was flavored water. Sorely disappointed. I only found out after ordering that everyone raves about the macha latte, so definitely want to give it a try next time! But for boba, there's a lot of competition doing way better in the general Cal campus area. read more

HONG KONG ICED COFFEE. That is all! Been craving it since I first tried it. Also loved the ambiance of this place and it is conveniently located right by the bus stop. Great place to study and friendly staff! read more

Asha Tea House - Lavender infused Hong Kong Milk Tea :) - Tea Rooms Near Me - Berkeley, California

Such a modern and home-y vibe! Great boba with a really cool, modern coffee shop vibe. Deff a must try. Cant wait till this whole virus bs blows over. read more

MOST HEALTHY BOBA MILK TEA I HAVE EVER HAD!! Strongly recommend for sugarphobs craving boba!! High quality, freshly brewed, they cook the best boba in town for sure! Excellent place to go with friends for a study break~ Or you can also bring your laptop and books there to study, they have a few single tables and a long one for 6-8 people to share! Vegan milk tea available :) read more

Not impressed! Being a Taiwanese, growing up with alishan high mountain tea - I know my good teas. I feel like this place is trying to go for the high quality tea but its simply not there yet, so it's kind of stuck in limbo. I was very hopeful coming in and we ordered matcha latte with boba and iced chrysanthemum pu'er. The matcha latte looked really yum coming out however thru seeing them how the pu'er was made I already know its not going to taste good. The gal that works in store poured the steeped hot tea into a cup full of ice only to find out its half full so she proceed in adding either hot water or those premade bulk black tea that they use to make regular milk tea to fill it up. To me, that's not the right way to make a "quality" cup of tea. That's why I said they are kind of stuck in limbo. Both drinks didnt end up tasting good. I was surprised about the matcha latte, it just didnt work for me. The boba was good though. Anyhow this is just my 2 cents. read more

4 stars for the boba, but 5 stars if you count the ambiance of this place. Yes.... berkeley is overpopulated with boba places... but I'm not complaining. Asha definitely has its niche as more of a sit-down cafe than any of the others. It's the only one of berkeley's boba places that I ever consider sitting down to study at, and apparently I wasn't the only one with this opinion since they now turn off their wifi on Sundays :( THE BOBA: I think the tapioca can be a little more on the chewy side (compared to Purple Kow) and the black milk tea sometimes feels watery (or I'm just too used to ultra-syrupy concentrated boba...) Jasmine milk tea is my go-to here, it somehow manages to be both creamy and refreshing at the same time :P read more

Tea - very good. Ambiance - very good. Wifi - either works perfectly or not at all. Okay, now I will obsess over this last point: In my past few visits in the evening time, the wifi has been inoperable for many customers around. This has something to do with their router settings only allowing so many IP addresses per some unknown amount of time, but when approached about this problem by customers (including myself and my boyfriend), the staff has brushed off complaints, unwilling to admit that there may possibly be a problem with their wifi. It likely would not take much for them to set up their wifi to be able to accommodate more users (I am not a techie, but some forums I've read on this issue suggest this is not too difficult). I'm mostly frustrated by the seeming lack of belief in their customers' complaints. That said, if the wifi problem were fixed, and I didn't have a 25-75 shot at being able to get online at all during a given visit, I would give this place 5 stars. Their teas are delicious. read more

I was here to visit one of my good friend and we always try to go for boba at different places. Wow. The boba here is really good! Just enough chewiness and sweetness, and I'm from Taiwan I know what good boba taste like ;). I got the matcha latte, substitute the milk with oak milk and it was really good! Beware of the caffeine though, if you're super sensitive like me then you'd have a hard time talking asleep lol. read more

An awesome tea shop. Like, seriously, tea is the star here. My preference when getting a boba drink of any sorts is that tea has to be front and center; everything else - be it cream or sweetener, plays a supporting role. At Asha, it's exactly that philosophy that's applied to their drinks. The matcha shot was like a giant slap in the face (in the best way possible) of pure matcha flavor. You know what you were getting yourself into when you see that it's a vibrant and earthy green within the cup and you gradually sip on it. All the other drinks I've been able to sample were pretty stellar, I've yet to be disappointed. The environment in the shop is great. It's a mellow vibe with a modern aesthetic that's great for hanging out and getting in an awesome drink. read more

This is definitely a long overdue review that I have wanted to do, because I absolutely adore this place and feel deeply connected to the tea shop, which has made me crave its tea drinks even when studying abroad in East Asia for the last year. I've frequented Asha very often while attending Berkeley since it first opened back in 2012. The interior design of the tea house is cozy, but at the same time with its high-ceiling, feels casual and comfortable. I definitely felt the spaciousness of the shop when it first opened. However, with Dave's amazing tea creations, Asha has become a popular studying space for Berkeley students, on or off midterm and finals season-- in fact, it's become hard to even find space to sit during peak hours and weekends due to the volume of customers! But why the 5 stars then? Well, for one thing, to go with the amazing atmosphere created by the lax interior design, there is also free wifi (except sundays?) and accessible power outlets for some of the seats in the back corner of the shop. Moreover, the drinks are absolutely amazing, and as far as I know, there is no other tea shop that is able to make such amazing boba as Asha's! Not only does Asha serve mixed drinks like milk tea (HK, as well as the tea latte selections) and fruit teas (which change seasonally, so it's got to be fresh, right?), Asha also has a fairly wide selection of pure, specialty tea you can select (although I personally have not ordered it yet). On top of all that, Asha's tea drinks are not overwhelmingly sweet, where you can taste the freshness of the fruit teas and the subtle flavors of the teas. They don't taste like powdered flavors or condensed milk found in drinks in many boba places, which is a huge factor in why I love Asha. Another perk to the drinks in Asha is that for the most part, the drinks can be made hot or cold, depending on your personal preference, which makes them favorable drinks in any weather, whether it is swelteringly hot during July, or chilly and rainy in the late winter months. Besides the refreshing and natural-tasting tea drinks offered here, Asha also has a stamp rewards card system for every 10 drinks you buy, you get one free drink in regular size. Best of all, you can file your card in this card box on this center table by where the napkins, lids, and straws are placed as well (that way, you never need to start a new card and combine cards when you forget your other card in your other jeans or bag, etc). My favorite drinks that cannot go wrong during any seasons would be the hojicha latte and the matcha latte, both hot and cold (and of course, with boba). For around $4.25, it's definitely worth the fresh tasting tea or fruit tea drinks and the options that come with how you want it served, especially when you want to treat yourself or really crave boba! Although Asha does not formally sell much food items, they did tend to sell some sweets such as these waffle biscuits and cookies that go well with the drinks (especially milky ones) or sometimes egg tarts (which are always a yummy quick bite as well) in the front by the cashier. Watching Asha go from a shop with barely any customers into a shop with booming business over the last few years has been a pleasure. From the great attitude in service to great space for studying or simply chatting it up with some friends, to the unique and refreshing drinks offered here, Asha is my favorite boba and tea shop by far, along the West Coast as well as the East Coast (where I spent 18 years of my life prior to moving West). Back in my university days, Asha's drinks has been there as a reward for an especially grueling day of school for me on my way hope, or a pick-me-up on my way to school to bring to class-- it was something that just added to my day and made it just a bit sweeter. read more

I ordered hojicha latte and paid for it. 5 mins later they told me my tea won't we available until 11:45 (it was 11:15) but didn't offer to refund. I told them please let me think. They then said ok it gonna take 5 mins and acted like they didn't wanna deal with me anymore. About 3 mins later my tea was ready. When I picked it up I saw big load of black particles on top of the cup so I let them know. The lady took it and said it's just tea leave but she talked to me in a very mean manner. She spooned top of the black particles out and handed it back to me. I took a sip and found out that my drink was full of the black particle and it tasted like dust honestly. I told her again. She dumped my tea very forcefully into the sink and told me that I have to wait. 5 mins later, my second cup of tea arrived and looked significantly less dusty. However, it tasted so diluted this time. I am so upset with everything already so I decided to drink it. Here it is, just a cup of soymilk that costs $5.25!!! what a bad service, poorly made drink. Beware Acha quality and service has gone down to hell. DO NOT COME HERE!!! read more

We went to Asha Tea House for the first time. I ordered 4 Boba teas. 2 black teas and 2 kids flavors. We got 4 rose something. ITS HORRIBLE!! The woman had no idea what she was doing. I told her over and over what we want. Just when I think it was okay we got 4 drinks that we will throw away. I will never go back. read more

I like this place in so many different ways so I'm just going to list them: 1. I really like the concept. High quality boba tea that's made to order. 2. The space is really modern and clean. 3. The teas are not pre-sweetened so you can adjust the sweetness yourself. 4. Stamp cards could be left there so you don't have to add it to your pile or lose it. 5. Boba is kept warm and super soft even in your iced teas. 6. They are able to customize your drink just about any way you want since them make it to order. The only reason why I could not give them 5 stars is that it doesn't taste that great. I love the matcha latte but I've tried their blood orange oolong and it was not good. Tasted very watered down. I've also had their matcha mochi tart that was interesting but not the best when it came to taste. Just sticking to the matcha latte with boba. read more

What on earth.....?? Yes, I was temporarily transported to tea heaven, and had to sadly make my way back to earth as the beverage cup emptied out. If you are a serious tea drinker, this is the place for you. But if you happen to not care what type of tea leaves are which subtle flavors, there are plenty of other cheaper sugar loaded options out there so just get out of here, and out of my way so there is more room for me to enjoy what Asha offers: pure tea for those who appreciate it! The baristas are friendly and hardworking, and their Loyalty program is pretty neat. It's not exactly cheap, but it is a worthy treat. read more

Update to 5 stars! It took me a few visits to warm up to Asha, but I'm officially in love with this place. They use high quality and/or handcrafted ingredients, and you can *taste* it in their drinks. I absolutely love their fruit teas, and their taro-flavored milk tea is so delicious. The coffee and high caffeine drinks are, unfortunately, off limits to me, but hubby loves them as well. The boba doesn't have a chemical aftertaste that many other bobas have. Every drink I've ordered is fresh, natural-tasting, and I don't feel like crap from a sugar crash in a couple of hours. Love Asha!! read more

I came here a couple of times during my visit to the bay area, I thought this was a great find for some good tea. The chai land matcha atte are great as well as all the herbal and green teas. I bought some packaged flavors to take home and can't wait to try them! read more

Asha Tea House - Matcha iced with boba and chai latte =) - Tea Rooms Near Me - Berkeley, California

They have such a nice set up and the decor inside is just beautiful! College students are seen studying here which is cool. It's like a Starbucks but more on the tea side. Although the decor is awesome, I can't say so much about their tea. Their tea isn't anything of the ordinary and I've tasted better in Berkeley, but I do like their tapioca balls! They are sweet and chewy which is what I really like. read more

Asha Tea House - Tea Rooms Near Me - Berkeley, California

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I have only tried the fruit teas, which are delicious and refreshing. My favorites are the blueberry and strawberry. I love how they use fresh fruit puree to flavor the tea, and the sweetness of the tea is just right (not too sweet like a lot of other boba shops). The boba can be hit or miss, but for the most part, it's pretty chewy and soft. My favorite boba place in the East Bay! read more

That Matcha affogato people are writing rave reviews and mad tips about? There's a reason. Sitting from a coffee shop in sunny (today) Louisville with my regular yerba/mint mixture, I'm mostly just thinking about that one matcha affogato I had that one time. Uh, I wish I could say I found five bucks there or something but nope... the end. read more

Legit. Green Tea Lattes. Legit. After discovering this place on a Friday night, I raved to my friends that I have found "home" in Berkeley and came back 3 times that weekend. I am so thrilled that tea houses can mimic the things I like best about coffeehouses, such as the cool ambiance, places to study, good, friendly service, and the foam artwork on top of the lattes. They also pride themselves on proper recycling, dividing up the space for paper and plastic cups. Yay! There are 3 other ways the place makes green tea, such as the affrogato (with ice cream) or macchiato (almost like a shot of bitter green tea without any adulteration from milk). I asked the person at the counter how they differed and all she could tell me was the size of the affrogato was smaller. Correction: she should have said small like an espresso shot. Compared to the green tea latte, the other two drinks were 1/3 of the size for roughly the same price. Taste-wise, the green tea latte is still my favorite. Be sure to mix it up before you devour. I also tried the lavender milk tea which was very subtle, almost that you couldn't even tell it was in it. I do like my drinks on the less sweeter side, so I'll manage without the artificial syrups that other places dump in. Great place to grab your drink and stand around. I don't know how you can sit in those high stools for hours without getting back problems. I wonder what other green tea treats they can come up with -- their Portuguese green tea egg custards are on the greasy side and the mochi green tea inside was not as elastic as I hoped it would be. Kind of like of dark green clump of tapioca inside. Alas, it is a tea house and not a bakery after all. read more

Ordered the matcha green tea latte with boba. The flavor was good -- you can tell they definitely spent time making the matcha and not just use instant... But, they don't sweeten their drinks and we weren't made aware of that and since we were in a rush to go to dinner, I didn't taste my drink before leaving the shop and well, my drink was less than pleasant as a result. We did tell them this was our first time, and I made a comment when I picked up my drink that I forgot to tell them how sweet I want my drink (usually 50%)... They had two perfect opportunities to let us know that the sweetener is self added! read more

Wait this is a boba shop?! That was the first thought running through my head stepping into Asha. This is the first boba shop I've been to that I can confuse for a coffee shop. With its minimalistic decor, exposed concrete walls, and wooden tables this place will have you grabbing your phone for an artsy shot to put on instagram. There's more interesting tea options than milk teas but the thing to get here is their matcha latte and hong kong milk tea. I don't come across a lot of places that serve hong kong milk tea so that's what I had to get here. Hong Kong milk tea in general is milkier than typical milk tea drinks and it has a unique taste, less sweet. I thought theirs was pretty good, definitely reminded me of Hong Kong so it was a worthy $4 cup. My friend tried their matcha latte and it was good but nothing special. They brew each cup of tea, use fresh ingredients, make great drinks, and their service was good... so Asha wins the battle for best boba in Berkeley for me. read more

A Milk Tea house that has fresh tea, fresh milk, the offerings of fresh brewed tea such as Pu'er and Oolong Tea, and more. Elegant atmosphere and friendly staff....a must try for any tea and/or milk tea fanatic! My first try was the standard milk tea; however, it was with Almond Milk. Seriously, what milk tea house allows for almond milk substitution--something that is not milk or soy?! Kudos for such offerings, and then their add-ons...wow! You can add lavender, taro, boba, earl grey and more. It is mind blowing to see offerings of having Tea + Taro as most milk tea houses will deny any request of Taro + Tea. Oolong Milk Tea with Almond Milk, 25% sweet: - The tea was full flavoured and full bodied - Almond milk did not take away from the tea flavour - Staff made my drink incorrectly, apologized and made me a new drink (had a small chat too and was a pleasure) Steeped Tea: - Pu'er tea, washed quickly before brewing and shown how to properly brew this tea by the staff - Cup, water, cup for steeping tea, and small box for tossing out tea (leaves or brewed tea) Lasting Impression: Premium Matcha Tea, Shots, "Affogatto Style"...their menu is small but has some of the best offerings instead of being cluttered. Going to be my new tea house for studying and after work needs. read more

I got a strawberry matcha latte (iced) and the boba was a bit tough, however the matcha itself and the quality of the ingredients such as the strawberry purée and the matcha were amazing and really shined through. Not to mention the space is gorgeous and is a great place for studying or catching up with friends. read more

So I come here for a second visit on Halloween night last week when my boyfriend was once again craving milk-tea. I was excited, given my first experience with the matcha tea latte was good. This time I ordered the iced hojicha milk tea. I wasn't so delighted. It was bland, so having it iced made it worse. Their tapioca is mushy, not firm with a bounce like I think it should be. At $3.50 a cup, I think this place is just a trendy fad and may be difficult to sustain. I'd rather go to J & S Coffee & Tea House in Richmond or Purple Kow on the other side of the bay. Those taste authentic:) read more

I've been wanting to try this place thanks to all my fellow yelpers. I got the matcha affogato, ice matcha latte and mochi egg tart. The matcha affogato and mochi egg tart are a must! The ice cream was sweet and blended awesomely with the affogato. The mochi in the egg tart made the flakey tart fun to chew on and oh so tasteful. I'm sad to say my ice matcha latte a bit of a let down. I don't know if it was the ice but it tasted weak and watered down. Either way I'm a fan and look forward to coming back to try more tea and food. read more

Asha Tea House - Mochi egg tart and matcha affogato are a must! - Tea Rooms Near Me - Berkeley, California

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I heard good things about this place so I decided to give it a try when I was in town. I was a little disappointed though because it didn't quite meet the hype. I got an almond milk tea. I could taste the tea, which is great since many places in Berkeley are too focused on the sweetness. I couldn't taste the almond though. I got an egg tart too. They do them Macau/Portuguese style. They also have some with matcha in them if you're interested in that. The custard was a little bit too runny for my liking, but the pastry part was pretty good and didn't crumble too much as I ate it. This does make a good place for studying though. It's very spacious, has lots of tables, is relatively quiet, and I saw quite a few students in here working despite it being winter break. read more

Love Asha! I don't get the chance to come often but I love it. Asha is known for actual brewed high quality teas and their unique fruit teas. I got the matcha latte hot and the quality of tea and matcha flavor really shown through. I got it hot with boba and the boba was delicious and chewy. My friend got oolong with grapes and although the combo sounds strange, it was a refreshing and very good drink. I'd love to go more! read more

Asha Tea House - Grape oolong and matcha latte both with boba - Tea Rooms Near Me - Berkeley, California

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5/5 for the best tea drink I've ever tried. I ordered the matcha fresco, a blend of matcha and sencha green tea chilled and lightly sweetened. So refreshing. so energizing. I never want a matcha latte, milk tea boba, or any other tea drink ever again. I've tried to reproduce this drink at home (I sadly live 80miles away from the nearest Asha tea house) and it just can't compare to the drink I tried here. Everyone who comes to Asha teahouse must try this drink!! read more

Asha Tea House - Matcha fresco -must try!!! - Tea Rooms Near Me - Berkeley, California

I tired this place twice. First time, I got the regular milk tea, which I thought could definitely be better. Second time, I got the mango green tea, which I thought was worst than the regular milk tea. I'm not sure if it's because I'm comparing it to the places in the South Bay or what...but I feel like its only so-so. Maybe me getting overly excited with the yelp reviews had something to do with it, but I've definitely had better tea. Service and atmosphere was great though. Also very clean, which is always a plus. read more

One of my friends had been raving about Asha for AGES, so I was happy when I finally got the chance to try it! Especially since everytime I'm in the area, it happens to be Sunday, when Asha is closed. Damn fate. Anyways, I was actually pleasantly surprised by this place! First of all, the interior is really well designed and has the air of an elite teahouse. There was definitely a lot of emphasis on the art of actual tea-brewing and a lot of tea equipment for sale. One thing that seemed a bit inconvenient was the fact that the ordering guide was posted near the door, while the actual ordering area was further in and to the right. Consequently, my boyfriend & I stood in the middle of the doorway for a few minutes, ogling the guide before we could walk up to the cashier girl. I ordered a hot regular milk tea without pearls (they were out that day!) and got my order within 5-10 minutes. I was pleasantly surprised that the tea was a nice warm temperature, rather than the scalding hot that Sweethearts typically does (although it could've been a taaad hotter in my opinion). The milk tea also had a nice, stronger tea flavor that more milk teas, which made it seem fresher somehow. Definitely a delicious alternative to the cheap bobas from asian ghetto, so I'm gonna have to swing by more often! read more

By far, one of the best boba places in the Berkeley area. All the teas are so aromatic and sooo fresh. You never have that gross, sugary taste you could get from other boba places. The menu is absolutely huge. You could pick from many different types of teas, hot or cold or types of jelly or boba that you want to have on the inside. The atmosphere is also super hipster and cool - sit at the long black tables and you just feel relaxed with your friends. I personally just always order the milk tea or the thai tea, both or which are very good at this location. Whatever you order is going to taste pretty good, so that's nothing that you need to worry about!! read more

I love getting work done here. The only issue is that a lot of other people do too. Sometimes it's a struggle to claim a spot, and even when you do, it's likely that you're sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with a few strangers. Then again, strangers are just friends waiting to be made! Point being, it can be crowded but the taro milk tea is delicious and it's usually not too loud. Plus the Wi-fi is reasonably fast too, but the password changes fairly frequently so you usually have to ask every time. But if you're up to your neck in things to do, this is the best place on University to get 'er done. read more

Was in NorCal last week for a work trip and craving bubble tea. After some Yelp searches, one of the locals concurred that this was the place to get your bubble tea fix (i was shamed for not calling it boba). So, the recommender and I drove here and got our bubble tea fix. I had a very specific way I wanted my Jasmine Green tea, no milk, lightly iced, lightly sweetened and half a scoop bubbles, bubble tea made. They happily obliged to make the drink as custom as i'd asked for and even checked if everything was how i asked for. I was very happy, it was perfect. This place is always packed with post yoga ladies and students yet its not loud. Pretty fun place to catch up with someone. I liked it so much that i stopped by one more time get a tea. I was a little disappointed the second time with my same drink order. It's fair to assume your drinks taste depends on the expertise of the hands making it, but still no love lost for the place. Must try when in the Bay area. read more

Yummy! Finally a place that I got REAL strawberry black boba tea! Not black tea with hella strawberry syrup and boba. So yummy! I love that there's real strawberries in it. The workers misunderstood my friends drink order and made her a new one right away. They were really friendly and helpful when we were choosing our drinks. I'm so glad we stumbled upon this place during our adventure. I wish more places used real strawberries to flavor their boba tea. So much yummier! The decor is really interesting too! I wish this place was closer to home so I could come more often. read more

Delicious, perfect, real-tasting. Okay, maybe this rating is a little inflated because I have super low standards for boba shops, but Asha put two and two together. They have really great tea and they managed to make it really marketable by putting tapioca pearls in it. I don't know why someone didn't think of this sooner. I had the green tea with pearls and it was really good. It wasn't too sweet, and it wasn't artificially creamy. I'd definitely go back to try their other teas and flavors; their prices were very reasonable. Asha's interior is also pretty trendy. There's a design binder that talks about how the furniture was made. It serves simple syrup you can put in your milk tea. There are paintings/photosgraphs on the walls. I could see myself staying here like I would in an actual coffee shop/cafe (which is odd mainly because it serves boba! That still gets me!) read more

Nice place But little bit too crowded Like the layout and the design Milk tea is not bad , but not outstanding as well Try another flavor next time read more

They can make you a vegan boba tea. The boba has no honey. They offer soy as a milk alternatives. Awesome. read more

This is a cute little tea place! Aesthetically pleasing, you should come into this place just to get some photos. As for the tea, I got the Hong Kong Coffee Milk tea. It's made with black tea, coffee and condensed milk (I believe). I was a little disappointed that I was unable to adjust the sweetness level of my drunk. It definitely could have used a bit more sugar. Overall, a cute little tea spot. Try it out! read more