I did not read the Yelp reviews before ordering from here. I knew something was off when I put in my order and the server hadn't asked for my sugar and ice preference. I ordered a passion fruit juice with jellies. I saw how it was prepared- syrup and no actual natural fruit juice. It was super sweet and tasted like unfrozen fun pops. The jelly was decent texture but the portion could have been more generous. Do yourself a favor and go to a more authentic boba shop or lower your expectations if you have a craving and order from here. read more

Highlights: - Decent boba - Decent price - Convenient location Boba Express wasn't anything out of the ordinary. A large jasmine milk tea with boba (the boba was an extra 60 cents) gets you over the $4 credit card minimum and is a pretty typical price for boba. The tea itself was decent, again nothing out of the ordinary. Not a bad stop if you're shopping at Crossroads Mall and want some boba. read more

Boba Express - Large Jasmine Milk Tea - Juice Bars & Smoothies Near Me - Bellevue, Washington

This place is okay. I can update this review if I come back again. I got the peach green tea with tapioca. They must have used a syrup because the tea was so sweet. It was like drinking straight from the syrup bottle. I guess you get used to it but still. Not my cup of tea (heh). The tapioca was pretty good though. It's also a credit card minimum of $4 but most drinks are around $3.50 or less so they basically force you to use cash! read more

I never thought it would happen, but for the first time ever I didn't finish my bubble tea. In fact I threw half of it away. Ordered a Thai Tea Smoothie and it was straight up bad. First of all, by definition, a smoothie should be smooth. This had baby teeth sized chucks of ice throughout the smoothie. Second, since it was not blended well and there was hardly any dairy, it didn't have that creamy consistency a good bubble tea smoothie should have. The tea goes up the straw and the ice stays in the cup. Finally, the flavor of the tea was not right and whatever they use to sweeten it left a weird artificial aftertaste. After a while, I just didn't want to drink it anymore. On top of the bad bubble tea they have a $4 min for credit cards and their drinks are priced conveniently under $4, so you have to buy something else or pay more. If I'm at Crossroads walking by I might give it another try, but there are too many bubble tea shops that I like in the area to go out of my way. read more

Boba Express - Thai Tea Smoothie - Not good :( - Juice Bars & Smoothies Near Me - Bellevue, Washington

Rude and disrespectful employees. Milk tea was bland and had more ice than actual tea. read more

The struggle is real. I get it, you're in a high traffic mall so you are bound to run out of boba... but when you carry five different types it's a little harder swallow. Before I say any more, the milk tea here is also just a-okay. A bit sweet for me but I guess that is to be expected when you use simple syrup as sweetener. I ordered the black sesame milk tea (asked for less sugar by habit) and it was pretty good, their were actually bits of black sesame in each sip which really sold it for me. She ordered the coconut and like the flavor and had bits of coconut in hers. The service was fast and friendly but it is really unfortunate that they ran out of boba. We did end up with some specialty, golden boba, but they stuck together and made it difficult to enjoy the tea. read more

Don't go too adventurous on your flavors! Boba Express is good for their milk teas, and regular teas! Everything else tastes too fake and powdery. And don't try to be cunning.. and have "popping boba" in your boba tea.. that just ain't right! read more

The asian lady at the order counter has a big attitude. Asked her if there was anything for kids and she retorts in a rude tone - "what do you mean? I don't understand you". I politely said - "This is a place that primarily puts tapioca into drinks which can choke kids under 18 months old. Is there something like chocolate milk or real fruit smoothies?" She responds with "kids drink everything, I drank when I was a kid" and then continues to show attitude. I patiently asked for other options that are fruit based and they didn't have any other than a big attitude and poor customer service to dish out. A place that cares less about customers and thinks they are entitled to treat customers as they please do not deserve to be in business. Karma will get them!!! read more

Our friends were visiting from Taiwan and wanted us to try bubble tea, which was invented in Taichung Taiwan. The four of us made our orders and we were all happy. I had Milk Tea with the tapioca balls and enjoyed it, but the tapioca balls were just OK. But now I know how to order. read more

Boba Express - Order Counter - Juice Bars & Smoothies Near Me - Bellevue, Washington

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This is the best bubble tea! Their tapioca is vanilla-y and great, and they hardly ever have a wait. Absolutely love Boba Express. :)

This is located inside the Crossroads Mall. The small Boba drinks are a great price. Very cheap. Unfortunately, they taste like it too. Very diluted and barely any flavor at all. Kids didn't complain so I guess it turned out ok. Plus, it was probably healthier for them (less sugar and all that). If you want flavored water with tapioca pearls then come here. read more

Drink is alright. I was second in line. I ordered well before the person after me. But I guess the girl after me knows the person at the register so she got her drink way before mine (in literally 2 seconds. I watched her make it for her RIGHT away) and I had to stand there waiting for several minutes while the other guy was refilling ice and doing other tasks that could've waited. He went to ask her about my drink and she still didn't tell him. I had to wait some MORE before I got my drink. Just make the drinks in order. There's no one here. Just do your job properly. It's really not hard. read more

Yum, bubble tea from a food court at Crossroads Mall. Boba Express's food is simply delicious. I enjoyed everything I tried from here. It's nice that their food isn't tasteless like what you get from some similar places. It's just too bad that I kind of get a junk food vibe from this place. I mean it's good, but it's one of those things that you'd probably want to limit to only your snacks. Other than that, this store seems above average and is one of the better bubble tea places I've visited. My first impression is that the prices look good. For the milk tea, it's $2.49 for a regular cup and $2.99 for a large. Okay, so they've managed to get their prices under three dollars. But it's 50 cents to add boba, and that's a bit higher than what a lot of the competition has to offer. They also have popcorn chicken, calamari, and squid ball snacks, so they have stuff beside bubble tea and smoothies. The service I got was okay, not too friendly but not terribly rude either. They seem to just be doing their job and don't appear thrilled about it. Their menu seems to consist of a very short list of tea flavors and that's a bit disappointing. I ordered a Thai milk tea and was impressed both by its speed of delivery and flavor. It came out less than one minute after I ordered it and was super sweet! They also seem to have gotten the ratio of ice to drink perfectly; I like it when they're gone pretty much at the same time and that's what I got here. I also got a popcorn chicken and calamari here because the reviews mentioned them. I imagined they would have these available right away for some reason, but they kept me waiting for a little over nine minutes, so it's a little like a normal restaurant and not the instant food I had assumed. The smell of these snacks immediately reminded me of Taiwanese night markets selling the same things, which I take to be a good sign. This store offers these items with varying levels of spiciness: mild, medium, or hot. I ordered hot and what I got was the spiciest level of food with which I am still comfortable, and the drink did a good job of cooling my mouth down! On top of that, these snacks were very salty and I suspect that they're also caked in MSG. They taste very good, but that's about it. Probably not the healthiest thing in the world. I was also somewhat disappointed with how they gave these to me in small paper bags. Some of the pictures uploaded seem to show the snacks served on actual plates. I don't know whether they assumed I wanted everything to go or just forgot to ask, but it's not a big deal. Overall, this place slightly exceeded my expectations. I was thinking that since there aren't a ton of other bubble tea stores nearby in direct competition with this one (as with the stores in the University District or International District in Seattle), they could afford to slack off, but that doesn't seem to be the case here. The location is rather convenient, and I don't mind it being part of a food court and not its own separate store. read more

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Been coming here for over two years. The quality of the boba is quite excellent. However, be warned -- only a few of their drinks are actually edible. For example, half of the assorted flavors are way too sweet, especially strawberry. Tonight, we ordered honey lemon juice. Oh wow, it's like drinking the AJAX dish soap mixed with 40 bags of Splenda. Net net -- if you pick the right drink, you're going to have a great time. Choose wisely. PS: The employees are good at what they do. This review is an honest assessment of the products, not of the excellent quality of service they provide. read more

Boba Express - AJAX dish soap mixed with 40 bags of Splenda. - Juice Bars & Smoothies Near Me - Bellevue, Washington

The best thing about this place isn't the BOba at all, it is the Calamari. I know it is strange to say, but they have the best calamari I've ever tasted (and I've had a ton). I have had the green apple milk tea and it was very good but that Calamari is worth going out of your way to get it read more

Although it's name is sort of deceiving, this boba place is not bad. I got the mango smoothie with boba. And while the mango smoothie part was alright, the boba was actually a really nice texture. The perfect amount of chewy and sort of bite. I will probably not be back since the drink part is just okay. read more

Boba Express - Mango smoothie with boba - Juice Bars & Smoothies Near Me - Bellevue, Washington

Man, I don't know why it's so hard to find good bubble tea on the Eastside. The place at Factoria is so far the best, but this place just jumped up a notch for me. When I used to come here and ask for a green apple blended, it would be the powder and milk variety, which I really hate. But I have been having a craving lately, so when I stopped by Crossroads to run some errands, I just had to go get me some. BTW, minimum purchase for debit/credit is 5 bucks, or you have to pay a 50 cents fee (which is more than the max that retailers have to pay in the states, so Ripoff!!), so bring your cash! I saw that they have watermelon juice, which I used to loove back in chinatown in NYC, so I went for that with boba. It turns out that they also do have the syrup, so i could totally do a green tea/green apple syrup/blended with ice deal. Huzzah! Cuz their boba are pretty good. Will definitely be back now! read more

This Boba place in Crossroads Mall's food court is simply a convenient spot. It adds and serves as another selection to the already awesome food court at the mall. Boba Express' taste is ok. Nothing too special about it, but it did a good job subsiding my craving for Boba that day. I found the milk tea too sweet, and too bad, they ran out of the regular sized boba when I was there around lunch time. Not too bad though as they still had miniature bobas and plenty of other toppings (like jellies, etc) still. Long wait time though! I probably waited 15 min to get my boba (pretty long wait in my book)...but price wise, they aren't expensive at all. I got my milk tea with miniature boba+apple jelly for just $3.75. Note: they accept credit card only if you order $4++. read more

Meh .... Everything is sugary, mixed with powder and syrups. Yes I understand that's how most bubble teas are made but hardwork cafe does their drinks so much better and it's only 3 minutes away. Boba express also microwave my drink when I asked for a hot one, totally a big let down tbh. Not a big fan. read more

Worst people to be in food industry. No sense of humanity I came to buy food for my children. They laughed and made fun of me for not having enough money for a mask. The staff is very rude! read more

Such a horrible service and rude people working there who wouldn't provide an additional cup to child and gave a used cup when asked for one. When I pointed that out he was yelling back at me. read more

Worst customer service. There is no respect for customers overall and very rude towards me as I have seen it more than a few times. They don't have the right to treat paying customers badly just because they do well business wise. Seems like this is a recurring trend at boba express at crossroads. I hope someone address this at boba express. read more

Peach milk tea with pineapple jelly, dude, you don't even know. So amazing delicious sweetness. Almond milk tea cold with boba (the tapioca) is also delicious! I bet the ladies behind the counter have a favorite drink you should ask them! They were nice, polite, courteous and accommodating! read more

The taro smoothie I ordered was overly sweet. I took a few sips and wondered if: 1. They ever taste their own creations from time to time 2. If it was possible to request less sugar I've ordered from them before and i don't recall it ever being so sweet. Don't think I can consume anymore without having water. read more

When I think of Boba Express, I think of some great bubble tea. This is part of the Crossroads Mall, and for the price, you get a great drink. When the investigation calls for something sweet, bubble tea sounds like the perfect treat. A drink runs somewhere between $3 - $4, which is quite reasonable. They offer a good array of flavors and styles, and the same goes for the Boba. I've tried the Lemon with Mango Boba and am very fond of it. Zach which did you try before? That's right, the Green Apple with normal Boba. I thought it was pretty good as well. You have good tastes, Zach. Must remeber though to bring cash, right Zach? Below $5 and you'll have to pay a fee using a card. Do I sound too thrifty, Zach? read more

This is a nice convenient quick service Boba place in Crossroads shopping mall. I go for the usual order of Boba with Tapioca, and it's pretty consistent. Good price too. Occasionally I will ask for a sample of the tea before purchasing to ensure that it's not too sweet, and the staff are great to give me a sample. They only take credit cards for orders above $4. read more

I came by and saw no one maning the counter...we waited for a bit.. than BAM a young lady who was on her phone or computer comes up and asks for our order. I ordered a small green tea with boba. She rings me up, I hand her my debt card. she says sorry, we can't do a debt under $4. So I tell her, sure, ring me for the Large cup. It comes to under $4 also. So I tell her, can you just charge me the 50 cents that people normally charge when its under the requested amount. She shakes her head no, sorry. So I just walked over and bought a soda from the people across the way. They ran my card for less than $2 AND didn't charge me. So I tipped them a full $1. It's pretty uncommon for me to carry cash but I am use to being able to get by just paying for the extra expense a lot of asian establishments charge when you do not purchase the needed amount they ask for a card transaction. Why would they not just charge you the 50cents and not lose business?? So by having a weird strict no card transaction for purchases under $4 they have lost my business and those of my association. Just go to Drive Thru Boba in Factoria, they have amazing Boba. read more

I had A LOT of bad experiences here in the past where they were consistently OUT of Boba. Which was pathetic for a Bubble Tea Shop. Anyway my past couple times I've been here (must stop at Crossroads because my Daughter and I are both bubble tea addicts), Boba has been on the menu. Anyway, we get the same stuff every time, milk tea with pearl/boba. It's fine. Prices are fine. Service is fast and friendly. There is definitely much better quality milk tea at other places like Drive Thru Boba and ShareTea, but again if you just need some Bubble Tea this place will do just fine. read more

Love it. I've been seriously committed to turning everyone I work with (clients and colleagues) into boba sucking pods. Puahahahaha... Watch out! I always get the jasmine milk tea with boba. Most of my boba sucking pods get that too. They have other good flavors too that are hits with the pods - honey dew, coffee, mint, etc.... It's in the Crossroads mall - park by the Half Priced Books store - walk in the main entrance - walk to the back of the mall and you'll see the place on your left. Need one of these in downtown Bellevue, damnit! read more

Yay for Boba Express! I've been going here with my family for years, and just re-discovered it while getting some supplies from JoAnn's. PROS: -The people who run this location are so sweet. They work really fast and I've always received good customer service. -Although I stick to my usual, thai tea smoothie with boba, they have a huge selection! -I can't recall ever having a bad bubble tea from this place. The boba is perfectly cooked, every time. CON: -Sometimes I feel awkward waiting for my tea in the middle of the food court, but hey what-er you gonna do. In summary, if you're in the mood for bubble tea go to Boba Express and you shan't be disappointed! read more

Boba? Yes please! This place never fails to make me happy. I usually order green tea with honey and boba. Sometimes, the black tea with honey and boba or, if i'm feeling hyper and can't have more caffeine, the papaya milk tea with boba. I've been drinking boba since I was 13. So, believe me, I *know* good boba -- 15 years of solid boba drinking (in Hawaii it was originally called "momi") all over the country. I've had some good, some bad, and some completely awful (Here's looking at you icky boba place in SF!). BUT! This one is great! I highly recommend it. Word to the wise, Cash only! ** Just going to let you know, I *like* my boba sweet. I'm a sugar freak. If you're not into that, you may want to look elsewhere. But its never been *too* sweet. Also, the balls are perfectly cooked. (most of the time). I hate balls of mush. Euw! I also hate flavorless boba, small boba, and HARD boba. YUCK! Yah, the drinks can be on the sweeter side, but believe me, you haven't had bad boba until you tried OLD HARD BOBA BALLS. GROSS! read more

The tapioca milk tea with tapioca was on point except it was a little too sweet for me. The tapiocas were fresh and soft. I would like to try their green yea smooth with tapioca, it looked good. I will return read more

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BOBA!!!!! Hands down best Boba around unless you wanna drive to Southcenter and get boba at Big Orange. Boba Express is inside Crossroads mall, by JoAnn's crafts. No powdered junk will be found here, thank goodness! What I love too is in addition to the regular tapioca balls is they have jelly and juice balls! Juicy balls! Mmmmm. My fav is the Peach Black Tea. Good to note is you can't use a debit card unless you meet a minimum purchase... which I think is like $5 or $6, so bring cash if need be. read more

I don't go out of my way for drinks usually, but if I am within a short distance, I will always stop in to grab a drink here. I really dislike crossroads mall, nothing really of interest except this place. I haven't tried the bubble tea, but for the last 5 years I have been getting a Strawberry Banana smoothie (no tapioca - there is something about balls in my drinks I don't really care for :P ). The only problem with this drink is that it is just too good! I can almost down a large before I make it back to the car. As others pointed out, they only accept cash (no biggie, who doesn't have 3 bucks in there pocket), and the girls are nice and friendly, but the guy does seem a little irritated to have to work. There is never a line more than a few people if there is one at all which is good. price is cheap and their smoothie rocks, overall its a pretty good place. read more

Best bubble tea on the eastside, hands down. I'm going to echo my review for Kent's Boba Express, but this one gets a 5 star. The milk tea is the best I've had anywhere. I love it with and without boba. I've had many other milk teas on their menu too, they are the most consistently good boba place. I can always rely on my boba of choice tasting just as good as the last time I had it. The staff is very friendly. And the best part is, they do listen when we ask for no spice on the snacks (as opposed to the Kent location). So I can finally eat all the delicious snacks. The downside is sometimes they run out of snacks, but seeing as how this location gets busy real quick, it's not a surprise. My favorites are the chicken and calamari. They also accept card, as long as it's over $5. Thank goodness for that. This is my new favorite location~ And they do give you a stamp card, as well as have check-in offers often! It's also a great location, since I can grab some boba and walk over to Half Price Books and peruse the good old' used finds! read more

I usually stop here for bubble tea when I'm running errands at Crossroads. I've only had the regular milk tea so I can't speak for the other beverages. Some days the milk tea is a little too creamy and could be a little more flavorful but overall pretty good. The food menu is pretty limited but if you haven't tried the popcorn chicken, you really should. You can order it mild, medium or spicy and mild has plenty of spice, at least for me. If you like a bit of a kick, I'd suggest ordering medium or spicy. If you go later in the day, chances are they've sold out. Service isn't overly friendly but you get your drinks fairly quickly. Allot about 5-10 minutes if you order the popcorn chicken. read more

Boba Express - Milk tea w/ tapioca - Juice Bars & Smoothies Near Me - Bellevue, Washington

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Okay, I admit I'm not Bubble Tea Pro, but I like to treat myself to every so often. This place in Crossroads surprised me. I ordered my usual Taro Smoothie with Boba and got a good drink!! Probably the most decent one I've had on the Eastside. The staff were very quick (they had handled a 10 drink order before my in a very smooth manner), and seemed to be more helpful than other snooty boba waiters who find themselves having to explain their drink to.. a white person!! Either way it was good, well priced and the best you can pick from 2 sizes!!! I always go for the small since the larges make me feel very very full. read more

I frequent Crossroads pretty often to go to Tanpopo for their chicken yakisoba and I've watched my friends come here but I've never really inspired to actually order anything from there. The other day I decided that since the extra five dollars was burning a hole in my pocket (cash tends to do that to me, i just have to spend it on food) so i gave it a try. It should have been a tip off when my fobby (forgive me, hun) but gorgeously handsome friend David swore by their popcorn chicken and bubble tea. It tastes exactly like the ones in Taiwan, he insisted. Boy, was he right. I have to let you guys know that, honestly, the bubble tea in Taiwan (I think?) is a little different from the ones here. Its not half as sweet (the regular milk tea that is) and it has a weird little kick to it - not sweet but not bitter - just significantly different enough to make you go [ oh! ] I have to agree though, I don't think their tapioca is any good - but I adore the egg pudding and I love even more the popcorn chicken. They package it just like they do on the street markets in Taiwan and smells and tastes exactly like the way it should - the food that is, not the packaging. (oh, its nothing like the popcorn chicken @ KFC just an fyi. Its more heavily spiced and tastes a little more like a mini dish you get @ a chinese restaurant) At any rate, its nothing stellar compared to the likes of Oasis and Gossip in either the I-district or the Ave, but you know its a helluva lot better than any of the other crap they serve on the Eastside. read more

If anyone thinks that the fruit smoothies at Boba Express or any other "Bubble Tea" joint that uses powder is good, then you really need to do yourself a favor and go taste REAL Bubble Tea. I've lived in Tacoma and as far up north as Lynnwood and Everett. Bubble Island in Lakewood and Pochi in Lynnwood are the two best places for Boba in all of Western Washington. Don't believe me, go try it for yourself. Both places uses REAL fruit. Boba Express uses fruit powder and it just takes DISGUSTING! We moved to the Eastside not long ago and have been searching all over the area for some good Boba. Everyone on the Eastside that claims to make Bubble Tea uses powders that give this nasty metallic after taste. Do yourself and your palate a favor and go to a REAL Bubble Tea joint that uses REAL fruit such as Pochi and/or Bubble Island. Places like Boba Express give Bubble Tea a bad rep, and if you do end up liking it, you're missing out on what the real deal is. read more

I went to this place because I saw a bunch of people at Crossroads with orange "Love Taiwan" t-shirts on drinking boba from this place. While being from CA, I am a bit of a boba snob (even after when I use my American standard), this place is agreeable enough with its quality of boba. You can do half sugar, no ice...etc., the same type of boba lingo they have in Taiwan (where boba was invented), and customize the drink to your liking. My other friend from CA and I were discussing about how there are no good boba places in Seattle while we debated what to get. The cashier was really nice and gave us samples of the different tea. I ultimately settled on a regular jasmine green tea boba with half sugar and no ice. I was reasonable satisfied with it as it beats all the other boba-wanna-be places in Capitol Hill. Would definitely go again if I am near by. For every ten purchases, you get 1 free drinks. read more