A fun cafe off the beaten path in Chinatown, London. We had to go up some narrow stairs, so my Dad barely fit. We had Mango Coco Galaxy, Spicy Noodle Soup and Red Bean Balls. Everything was pretty good, but the Red Bean Balls tasted like peanut butter. Lots of great things to try on the menu, but we had BunHouse beforehand. Tasting London. read more

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I ordered the Mango Forest shaved ice and Taro bubble tea. I enjoyed every spoonful of the creamy ice cream, juicy fresh mango chunks, and chewy grass jelly that added a nice texture. The taro bubble tea was one of best I've tried. Otherwise, the decor was simple and service was ok. read more

Candy Café - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

We ordered a mango pomelo dessert! It was delicious and refreshing, even in wintertime. I was a little worried about the mango quality in winter, but it tasted great nonetheless! Also it came out super fast- just minutes after we ordered. The shop itself is really cute, on the second floor of the building but has a doorway and sign on the ground floor. Not sure that it's accessible at all, given that the stairway is also pretty narrow, but it wouldn't hurt to ask about a lift or any accommodations. The menu says each person needs to order an item, but I'm not sure how strict they are about it. If anyone's interested, they also have a karaoke room! read more

This place is a hidden gem for dessert in Chinatown! The menu is extensive - bubble tea (with a variety of add-ins), brick toast, waffles, crepes, House-made desserts, etc. We shared a mango fruit tea with tapioca and mango pudding lo - delicious! The entrance is somewhat hidden between other restaurants. Follow the stairs to the second floor. Seating is limited - less than 10 tables. Credit cards (without a PIN) aren't accepted. read more

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What a gem! Well hidden (through a tiny unassuming entrance and a small staircase leading upstairs). They even have simple (street) food such as beef noodle and fried snacks. The highlights though are their desserts. See the menus and food pictures. Fast, friendly service. Interesting space and decor. Cheesy but cute lights on the window. They have a restroom up a few stairs that requires a key (from the server). read more

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Small boba shop with desserts that is located in Chinatown! A good way to quench your thirst and drink some tea while at it! They have an open window, which makes it quite nice to leisurely sip on some tea! read more

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Good mango patbingsu! Came here for a snack with my family. The only thing we found odd was that they charge everybody individually if they are sharing one dessert. read more

Candy Café - Mango patbingsu - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

Thank you, Candy Cafe, for alleviating my Tapioca/Bubble Tea withdrawal! Having read the reviews on this place, I was eager to go to Chinatown and judge for myself whether this place's tapioca drinks come anywhere close to the ones I've been used to consummate in San Francisco (yes, I am aware of the meaning of consummate...exactly!) And my verdict is: yes, the drinks are actually very tasty indeed...even though I wished the selection was a little bigger. Apparently, this place started off as hang-out place for the workers in Chinatown. Back then the menu was only in Chinese and so only few other people would come here. But according to the legend the reputation of their drinks eventually motivated the owner to translate the menu and thus attracted more customers...like myself and the other Yelpers who reviewed this business before me. As for the interior, it's quite plain but very authentic in that it doesn't try to be a "typical" Chinese restaurant with gaudy decoration to lure in tourists. Even though it's a rather tiny place, there are a few tables where you can surf the Internet (free wifi) while enjoying a drink or any if the other deliciuosly-looking desserts. The clientele is also very non-touristy, thank goodness! I would assume that that has to do with the fact that Tapioca drinks are not very well-known to the average tourist. In fact, I still very much remember the quizzical expression on the faces of my friends, back in San Francisco, when I first introduced them to the art and philosophy of enjoying a Bubble Drink (and not choking, mind you!). read more

Candy Café - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

Nice small cafe which serves mainly Asian dessert. It is usually packed. So I recommend coming here during quiet time and enjoy the area away from the main Chinatown hassle and bustle as it is on the 1st floor. read more

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The mango crystal was good and very sweet. The regular iced bubble tea is sub par, bubble is just slimy and not chewy read more

Candy Café - Crystal mango - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

This delightful little first-floor café, which peddles a vast array of bubble teas alongside Taiwanese light bites, has quickly become my newest favourite spot in London. Its above-ground location makes you forget you're in the middle of the city as you surf away on your portable device courtesy of the free wifi, sipping from the sweet nectar of life and chewing on its gelatinous balls. Things you might see on your visit to Candy Cafe: 1) Asian people wondering who told you about Candy Cafe 2) White, middle-class teenagers who are into cosplay, in various states of costumed dress 3) Me, drinking so many bubble teas that my blood might very well turn to tapioca read more

Candy Café - new façade - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

Ordered Mango Sago with pomello, HK Black Milk tea without boba, and Matcha milk tea without boba. They came with boba. The mango sago was delicious and refreshing. The pomello added a nice texture differentiation to the drink. The milk teas were not sweet at all and the tea flavor was very potent, which we liked. Had difficulty paying with card as they wouldn't accept a signed card, only contactless cards allowed. Ultimately had to pay in cash. And they gave us boba when we asked for our drinks without it. Only minor complaints, but the drinks were still good. read more

This is a small cafe in the middle of Chinatown which is upstairs, so it's a bit hard to find. You have to look for the sign advertising their shop in front of the stairs which lead to their store. They have plenty of seating, which is good, especially if you want to try their desserts. I had the crystal snow with condensed milk, peaches, and ai-yu jelly. My friend had the watermelon smoothie with ice cream. I was expecting my dessert to be more like shaved ice, but it was very very soft and different from shaved ice. It was almost like melty ice cream, since the condensed milk made it creamy. However, it melted away after 5 minutes, which is way shorter than any cold dessert should last. My friend loved the watermelon smoothie, however. We also ordered bubble tea to go. They have lots of customisability and also suggest to mix flavours. The bubble tea wasn't the best I've had, so I would rate this place as just mediocre for bubble tea and their desserts. read more

Candy Café - Crystal snow with peach, ai-yu jelly, and condensed milk, and watermelon ice cream smoothie - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

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My cousin and I were craving some traditional Malaysian kaya toast, so we stopped by Candy Café for afternoon desserts. It was quite empty as we were the only customers apart from another table of 4, however it would be expected for 3pm on a Friday. The kaya toast was good, although a little pricy considering the amount of kaya jam served. We also ordered the sweet red bean soup, a herbal grass jelly, and a kumquat tea. All were very nice and came quickly. The red bean soup was very milky and the amount of pearls and red bean to soup was perfect. The grass jelly came in a generous portion and was served with sweet syrup to flavour the jelly. The kumquat tea was hot and soothing for the chilly October weather. The atmosphere was nice with Chinese MTV playing on a television screen. The decor was okay; just simple wooden chairs and tables, which was good for casual dates and outings. Overall, I enjoyed the food and drink, and the atmosphere was very homely and easygoing. I'd recommend the kaya toast for anyone who hasn't tried it (still doesn't beat the real Malaysian thing, but it's the best you'll get in London!) read more

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If you blink too many times, you may miss the cafe. It's carefully hidden in Chinatown. Walking inside, you observe the limited seating and think about trying to fit your guest and yourself into a booth..similar to a packed and neat jigsaw puzzle. The cafe could give Starbucks a run for its money. The prices are very affordable and the menu selection is awesome. Anyone with an insane sweet tooth should come here. I came here to celebrate and ordered a crepe that had vanilla ice cream surrounded by chunks of strawberry cheesecake. The dessert was finished off with a topping of chocolate and raspberry syrup freestyled on my dish. Most of the desserts have fruit and sweets mixed together. Yes, you have the option of ordering some selections on the menu that are not desserts but I declined. I saw a patron order a shake that had cocoa beans dropped at the bottom of the glass..the portion size was pretty big. read more

Candy Café - Crepe, Ice Cream, Cheesecake, Raspberry & Chocolate Syrup - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

This is a really nice little desert place in the heart of China town. Would really wish there were more of these kind of cafes in central London. Candy cafe can be easily missed, as most have mentioned here, because the restaurant is on the first floor. The restaurant itself is quite nice and friendly looking, certainly welcoming. There is a huge variety of bubble tea, and all sorts of chinese deserts. There is also some snack foods like wings, instant noodles and toasts and the prices are quite decent too. I tried some of the house deserts, it was certainly refreshing and the service is quite quick. It does get busy here, but it just shows that this is a popular bubble tea / cafe hang out. There is free WiFi and they offer student discount and accept card. I would come here again, its different and serves a good variety of bubble tea and chinese deserts. read more

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Very authentic Hong Kong tea place. Good bubble tea, nice jelly cold deserts, and other Asian deserts which are special and nice. On the photo it's crepes with cheese cake and more nice stuff. If you're into special HK/Malaysian mixture of deserts, drinks and vibes - this place is for you. read more

Candy Café - Crepe with cheesecake - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

I had really high expectations for this place but it was real disappointment. I ordered bubble tea and shaved ice. The shaved ice was the worst shaved ice I have ever had! Not sure how they failed to make it, the ice felt like it was scraped from the bottom of a fridge. It was chunky and not refreshing at all, it was more like ice you have in drinks rather than snow. The bubble tea was also bad, they didn't use ice cubes but instead the shaved ice ice. This made it impossible to suck up the bubbles because the ice was too chunky. The cafe it self was nasty, it was not like a cute little cafe you are used to when it comes to bubble tea, it was more like a generic dirty china restaurant in Chinatown. I do not recommend it to you who are a person that loves Asian dessert and eat it often. read more

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Not bad, not amazing. Perhaps I should've tried one of the drinks! To be fair, I grew up in Taiwan and Los Angeles, so I've been very spoiled when it comes to shaved ice desserts. I ordered the Mango Snowy Ice w/ ai-yu, mango chunks, and evaporated milk. The portion was perfect and it fulfilled the craving, but I wish they were able to use finer ice. I do want to come back however and try some of the drinks! Minimum order per person, menu with photos, pretty quick service. Across the street from a delicious smelling bakery. read more

Candy Café - Mango Snowy Ice w/ mango chunks, sago, ai-yu, evaporated milk - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

A cheerful little sign has popped up next to Leong's Legends on Macclesfield Street announcing this 1st floor cafe. It just looks like a happy sign and so attracted me for a closer look. It serves lots of different flavours of bubble tea, which is fast becoming fashionable in Chinatown. However, for the Malaysian in me, my eye was drawn to the fresh soya milk drink and to something I've never seen outside of Malaysia - kaya toast. This is usually only served in little coffee shops in Malaysia. For those who don't know, kaya is a moreish coconut egg jam. Oh and the killer USP (unique selling point) - free wifi Well worth a look for a quick bite, if only to reward the happy sign read more

While searching around for bubble tea spots, I chanced upon Candy Cafe which not only serve bubble tea but Kaya toast too! I was understandably excited as there is nothing quite like having Kaya toast. It can be eaten anytime of the day, having it for breakfast with coffee or as afternoon tea or even for supper. Kaya is essentially a spread or jam that is made of eggs, sugar, coconut milk and pandan. It is decadently rich and aromatic with a slightly grainy texture. After watching a musical at the West End, I went with a couple of friends for some post theatre snack. For a cafe that is discreetly nestled between Rasa Sayang and Leongs Legend with only a tiny entrance signifying it's existence, there was quite a queue and we had to wait for about 20 minutes. The vibe was pretty much of a vibrant youth setting much like a student haunt with music videos being played on a tv in the background. It seems like a perfect place as it offers snacks and drinks for those who are less peckish and slightly heavier meals for those who have not had anything to eat. Bubble tea was ordered by a number of us of course along with a Lychee Mint Tea and Strawberry Yogurt Tea. The bubble or pearls itself was good with a bouncy and glutinous chewy texture. The tea itself was a little lacking though, it was slightly too diluted and milky that you lose that richness in depth and aroma that tea brings into the equation. In comparison, Boba Jam is still the winner for me. The other two drinks were light, sweet sugary drinks that will appeal to those who like them like that. Kaya Toast (single £1.35 double £2.15) Kaya Peanut Butter Toast (single £1.55 double £2.35) A mixture of Kaya Toast were ordered by the table such that we have Kaya Toast on brown and white bread as well as a peanut butter and Kaya combo. My excitement quickly dissipated when it arrives and even furthermore after I took a bite. The toast itself was good, crunchy and toasty but the same can't be said of the Kaya filling, or should I say the lack of it. It was such a stingy serving of Kaya that you have to focus to taste it from the overwhelming abundance of bread. All I could eat and taste was bread. It was so disappointing, this isn't hard to make at all and they couldn't even get the proportion of Kaya and butter and toast right. A friend of mine ordered the spicy Nissin noodles which thankfully did not greet us with the same fate. It was decent and of the standard that you would expect from a snack cafe. Given the lack of options available when one craves some SE Asian desserts, Candy cafe will suffice and I'll be coming back to try other stuff, just not the Kaya Toast! read more

OH SHIT! SHAVE ICE! We asked all around china town, brought up pictures on iphones, called it every name we could think of and no one could point us to a place to get shave ice. I mean, seriously, after you gorge on chinese food what is the obvious next step? BAM SHAVE ICE. But then London was all like "what is that"? Candy Cafe knows whats up. Ice, shaved up, covered in taro, evaporated milk, mango, tapioca, basically everything good in the world. I don't understand why, but no matter how much food you eat there is always still some room for shave ice. If you don't know what I'm talking about then don't be a fool, get up to Candy Cafe and get on that shit. Service, price (~ 3.50 for each person), everything was pretty much what I expected. So, to be fair, 5 stars is largely because its the only shave ice place I've found. If I dig up some more expect more reviewing. Dammit I wish I was in candy cafe right now. Update: Balls, I just went back to try the bubble tea and it was average at best. Boba/tapioca were too soft and it was too heavy on the milk which overwhelmed the tea flavor. Doesn't matter, 5 stars for the shave ice still stands. read more

It's a small cafe with wooden seats and a variety of bubble tea, milk tea, shaved ice, Asian pudding, and even noodles. Had the taro bubble tea and it was A-OK. The drink tasted nice but the bubbles tastes were below-average. It also can get a little cold if you're sitting there for a long time. read more

Candy Café - Hot taro milk - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

Awesome place. I seem to always have good timing and end up there when it's quiet and am served quickly, then manage to leave just as it's getting a little busier. Although it is table service, they can be a little slow to give you the bill at the end of your meal but will write it out immediately from memory if you go up to the counter. The crepes are excellent and I like their bubble teas, despite the fact that their tapioca pearls are slightly on the soft side, I'd prefer that to hard (old or undercooked). read more

Short version: Delicious bubble tea, alternative options to tapioca balls, few food options I have been looking for a quality bubble tea place in London for a while now and after reading a couple reviews on Yelp I thought I'd try this one out. I chose a simple milk tea and traded the tapioca balls for QQ jelly (a sweet slightly vanilla jelly). I was pleased that the waitstaff were polite and knowledgeable about their selections. It was a bit slow for my order to be taken, but once I had placed it the tea came quite quickly. Unfortunately, the food menu is limited to crepes and a few generic snacks (sausages, chicken wings, spring rolls). There were two toast options as well. I was hoping for something more substantial and took to the streets, finding a steamed bun stand just down the street with delicious pork buns. Would have loved to have it at Candy Cafe but this still worked out. Another key selling point - free wifi but you need the password from the waitstaff which will be given only after you order. Note: the sign/entrance is literally just a doorway so keep a sharp eye out or you will miss it read more

I'm quite surprised a lot of yelpers have heard of this place. When it first opened up we thought, what a strange place to have a Chinese dessert place! You have to go to the first floor to eat? The door to this place is a very small door with orange sign? How do people find this place? Well. I found it because Chinese people, being Chinese people, always spread news of openings like wildfire. It was, and still is, a haunt for many university students and sometimes older people like me! The desserts are ok, they had some teething troubles back when they were newly opened because when my group of 10 came, one of my friends discovered her dessert was salty. You read that right, salty. We told the manager and he was puzzled and we asked him to try it. Yes, it tasted salty to him too! He then proceeded to take another 2 of the same dessert out of the fridge and tried them, they were salty too! Promptly the whole lot went into the bin and my friend ordered something else. Strange experience, but perhaps someone mixed up the sugar and salt containers? Even if a dessert went off it would not become salty, unless my mind is not as scientific as I thought. Luckily, I have been back a few times over the years and the same experience has not happened again. The issue I have with this place is the space. There is so little room here and you will usually feel cramped in your little seating area, and it's not very good if you want an impromptu catch up with a huge group of friends, as usually it's really busy at night. There is one toilet only, sometimes they keep it locked and you have to ask for the key, sometimes it's open. Just ask the staff, they are quite friendly. For me though, I still prefer my original dessert haunt, Golden Gate dessert house, unless my companions feel like eating here. I feel like the desserts are more freshly made there than here, and the turnaround of the food is better. There is also more space there. Each to their own though, don't judge until you have tried both. read more

Bubble tea galore, if you're a fan. Me not much, but enjoyed my strawberry/banana boba cha. The Malaysian coffee is also something the curious ones should try, preferably with Japanese style crepes (don't expect a "wow" here, those are just classic thin crepes). Something I've never tried (honestly never had the courage of ordering) is the signature herbal jelly. It looks kind of weird type of desert..., dark coloured jelly, made out of herbs? Not really sure about this, but would try it if my curiosity takes over. Others say there're a few meals options but I haven't tried anything except crepes, so can't comment on this. To summarise it all - good location, quick service and rather good bubble tea. read more

This is the best bubble tea place in London. There are perhaps 6 or 7 all in the same area but Candy Cafe is head and shoulders above them. The perfect sweetness level, the boba are miles better than anywhere else and the tea is really tasty. Consistently produces great bubble tea. The place itself is also a nice cozy little area that feels very homey and easy to relax. The desserts are also excellent and great value. read more

This place is a lovely hidden gem but almost impossible to find it which makes it very hard to direct people there. I been to this place quite a lot and I can confirm what others have said so far: the portions are massive, the quality is very good, the menu has a lot of variety, the staff is very friendly & fast, the tea is very good and they stay open until late. On a cold day I would recommend trying the dessert soups or crepes and on a hot day it's always interesting to experiment with their cold dessert selection. The only reason I am giving it 4 starts is because of the tiny toilet/staircase and the crammed space inside the store but even this can make for an interesting experience On a final note, they also do takeaway on everything which i found a bit odd but they do package things neatly and they are easy to carry without worrying if you will spill them or if they will melt. read more

I was randomly walking pass the street after work one day and saw this sign. Candy Cafe deserts and the sign was pointing upstairs! (I call this place the hidden cafe to my friends) As walk up you will see mouth watering photos of desserts, mango mousse, bubble tea, friend chicken. Selection is drinks are good my favourite is the HK style tea or the tawienese style tea with milk pudding! Yummmmmy! The owner is a lovely guy and speaks english/chinese and mandarin very fluently! I think they should introduce more cakes to their menu! read more

I think Candy cafe is probably one of the better bubble tea joints around and it's unpretentious for what it is. (Unlike Bubbleology!) and it has places to sit in to chat and drink whilst karaoke style music is played in the background. I like that about it, it's what it is and doesn't need PR to drum up hype. Regular customers already FLOCK. I have visited twice in the past week and whilst some drinks are pretty amazing, there are a few that I would never recommend unless you have a super sweet tooth, and greentea vanilla bubble tea is one of those. Just don't even touch it. Greentea lychee juice bubble tea drink though is pretty damn good. We also ordered a matcha milk with red beans instead of tapioca balls. Thats the wonderful thing about this joint, it allows you to change the 'edible additions' to the drinks. if you don't fancy bubbles, then try red beans or aloe vera jelly, or even grass jelly. The possibilities in creating a drink is ENDLESS. There is also free internet to check those all important facebook messages..uh..i mean, emails! My only complaints are that sometimes i don't feel the staff are friendly enough. Service is alot to be desired and they could kick it up a notch. All in all though, I have recommended and will continue to in the future. read more

I loved this place! Literally just a hole in a wall and you go up the stairs. Premises are not that fancy but it gave a very homey feel. Japanese/Korean themed and a very lovely menu. Our fruit ice cream bowls were great and at least my kiwi/black tea bubble tea was awesome. My friends bubble tea choices were not as good. It was a very pleasant experience to visit here! read more

Candy Café - Fruit ice cream 4.95£ - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

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A hidden gem on the second floor next to the Chinatown Arch, this is a favourite haunt for many students and youngsters. Personal recommendations here are HK-style milk tea (though more similar to Tea-C in Malaysia if you ask me), the matcha milk tea, the crepes, the kaya toast, ... you know, come to think of it, you probably can't go wrong with anything on the menu! read more

I simply loove the bubble tea, in fact if there was a word bigger and stronger than love, I would used it. The place is spendid and the personnel very attentive. I usualy come here with one of my best friend and have a great ime. read more

Candy cafe is an amazing cafe .. If u really want to try something new u should visit it .. I took Hong Kong milk tea it's really tasty as well as kaya butter I love it it's delicious .. It's my first time but il come back to try another desserts They have many kind of sweet , shake , coffees .The price was excellent ..staff are really friendly .. Amazing store read more

Candy Café - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

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This is honestly my favorite dessert place in London for Chinese style desserts! My favorite is mango lover. The workers are so nice as well and there is free wifi you just have to ask for the password. read more

Found this place on yelp and decided to check it out while in chinatown. This place is a bit hard to find as it has a small entrance but its pretty decent size cafe upstairs. This place seems to be popular with a lot of college students (maybe because they give student discounts and some other discount- can't remember). We went late at night after dinner as dessert for their shaved ice and some boba. Both were so-so, the shaved ice wasn't authentic shaved ice, but like snow cone shaved ice and not the fresh shaven ice you get in hong kong that is like powered snow. The boba was so-so also, chatime down the street was better. The prices were cheap though. Overall, the items we tried were so-so but cheap so i guess you get what you pay for. Oh, the people working their didnt speak mandarin chinese I think (the guy working their asked me to speak english). Maybe because he was from taiwan or spoke canto? idk lol. read more

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I like this spot it's open late and has shaved ice, bubble tea, waffles and good cinnamon coffee, the only thing service could be better. read more

Candy Café - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

I took my best mate there as he wanted to try pearl tea milk. We were advised to try out the Candy Cafe. It is very busy with a lot of young people (all ethnic Chinese!) - a Chinese Londoner was serving us - he was really nice. We were disappointed they ran out of milk so we had to order ours in green tea. I wasn't a great fan of green tea myself but I wanted to show my best mate what it is like. The food there looks really tasty - I should come back with my Malaysian boyfriend to try out the bubble tea in milk before they run out of milk again! read more

Yes, it's a little small, and sometimes you have to wait on the staircase outside of the door as though you're trying to get into an exclusive nightclub... but it is oh so worth it. After a recommendation from the server, I ordered the coffee milk tea blended with custard. So good! I was literally hooked after that. Crepes are small and delicate, but delicious. If you haven't tried the other desserts on the menu ever in your life, it's good to be adventurous :) You'll be pleasantly surprised, as I was several times. read more