Drink: 4 Ambience: 2 Service: 4 Overall: 3.5 This place is pretty good compared to their surrounding competitors. I wish there was more seating, but it's understandable since the space is limited. But it does defer me to visit other establishments with seating in the winter. This is the first place in Chinatown, from my knowledge, that has cheese foam! I recommend trying cheese foam at least once. Sounds gross, but tastes soooo good. The hype right now is black sugar boba, I personally don't see/taste much of a difference. Sugar is sugar. read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Our boba tasted great. Also, I ordered two large drinks and the worker made the mistake of making mediums and ringing it as mediums. He made it to the larger size and did not charge us the extra price for the larger size :) read more

This place is always packed with a long line. I finally got a chance to come. I had taro milk tea with pearl. It's made by powder and tasted very artificial. 30% sugar level was so sweet, probably the sweetest 30% I've ever had. Pearls were cooked well. Price is on the high end. Won't come back. read more

My 14-year old wanted bubble tea, and this place had the best rating and was not questionable health wise from the exterior appearance... lots of teenagers to 20 something's pouring in. Menu is pretty big. Seemed to wait quite a while. Comes in a sealed top cup, you poke a straw through. I got the black foam coffee, large, no sugar or ice. It was just okay - the liquid part. The foam was really good. Wife got a passion fruit slushy and said it was good. Daughter got a strawberry milk tea and said it was really good, an enthusiastic five stars. Maybe I am too old to appreciate these cold tea and coffee drinks. I'd give mine a three, so we will split the difference, four overall. read more

Gong Cha - The counter - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

See all

Boyfriend got the strawberry matcha latte with boba. He felt it was too sugary but I liked how sweet it was when I tried it. Unfortunately, they don't let you adjust the sweetness for that specific drink. I got the lemon aiyu with white pearl and it was super refreshing. I personally didn't like the candied lemon peels in it. Next time, I'll see if they can make it without it. Other than that, it's the perfect drink for a hot summer day. read more

Gong Cha - Large Strawberry Matcha Latte - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

See all

This was the first time I tried gong cha. Tiny little place in China town but filled with people. Mildk foam was recommended by my friend so I got the oolong tea with milk foam with bubbles. Initially I enjoyed it but then the milk foam tasted sour. Not sure why. I would probably try it again but I feel it is a bit overpriced for what you get. (Although somewhat trendy)... read more

Gong Cha - Oolong tea with milk foam - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

I was in Boston last year in November and tried a few bubble tea shops throughout the city. Gong Cha in China Town was by far the best one! The line looked intimidating (started from outside the store), but the wait was surprisingly short. The store itself is quite small, it's not a place that you can sit and sip your tea after you order. There are a variety of drinks and toppings to choose from in the menu. I had the Taro Milk Tea and it was delicious! Recommend trying as many shops as you can while in Boston (especially if you're from somewhere that has few, if any, bubble tea shops), but definitely Gong Cha if you can only go to one. read more

Gong Cha - Taro Milk Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

A solid 4.0 for taste and expediency with order Note: Price is slightly higher than neighboring tea competition such as Kung Fu Tea, or Sweet Kingdom Desserts, Tea Do etc. + Credit Cards accepted Time arrived: 7:45pm Monday evening with 1 friend - no line, but probably 5 other patrons sitting on the bench in the restaurant. Ambience: Clean, small trashcan, bright vibrant colors, 4 servers behind the counter, short line (although in passing by here frequently this past month, typically Gong Cha has the longest of any tea places I have witnessed on average). Good Chinese Pop hits music playing in the background that was not overly loud to interrupt flow of conversation between my friend and I who happened to be the only 2 sitting down on the limited bench seating with our orders for a solid 20-30min. Service: Quick - within 5m both my friend and my own orders were ready. Interesting side note: A customer after us literally said: "Hi, I've never done this before, but I think I'd like to try ..." - and the staff were receptive to this and welcomed her to order. Order: original milk bubble tea - 30% sugar, regular ice I believe the best judgment of desserts and bubble tea is the most classic flavor, in this case the original milk bubble tea. At $4.55 with tax, I find that the size of the bubble tea is satisfying (typically my fill of tea is complete after 1/2 of the smallest size at most establishments). Taste: Not overly sweet (with my reduced (30%) sugar request), which did not oversensitize or dissuade me from continuing my drink. The bubbles themselves were soft with a good ratio of bubbles per sip. My friend commented that her hot wintermelon drink was indeed QUITE hot (fyi). Tips/Takeaways: -Price point might be 20-50 cents higher than the cheapest options in the area -Reduced sweetness is satisfactory -Service is quick when the line is short and the music/ambience is nice, although seating is limited -I personally enjoyed this taste and vybe better than the neighboring Kung Fu Tea down several blocks (both historically at other locations and now this being my first time trying Gong Cha, locally as well). -I think I personally preferred the bubble and SIZE and PRICE of tea at Sweet Kingdom Desserts down the street -Would recommend return 1x / 6-8 weeks for bubble tea for a variant in taste/bubbles read more

Gong Cha - Original milk bubble tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

I come here every weekend to get my milk tea fix, the aroma of the tea is unique that I've never came across anywhere before. As soon as I step inside the door, that delicious smell just hit up to my nose. Wide selection of tea. The boba is perfectly sweet and chewy. Line is long most of the time, but it goes fast and worth the wait. It's currently my favorite bubble milk tea. read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

As far as milk tea goes, this is a pretty standard place. I wouldn't say its the best milk tea ever, but it definitely isn't the worst. I did enjoy the brown sugar ginger milk tea, as it definitely was a first for me. I think if you enjoy ginger, it would be a good drink to try out and see what you think! read more

See all

Wondering what the "milk foam" is?! TRY IT! Got out of my comfort zone to try the matcha milk foam green tea and it was BOMB. The tea itself is sweet and the foam at the top is a little salty..but when you mix it together, it tastes amazing! 10/10 would order it again read more

Gong Cha - Matcha milk foam green tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Line seems to always be super long which is a downside but the drinks are always good. Chewy soft boba and they tend to give a lot. The flavor is always really good - tried the earl grey latte today and loved it. read more

Gong Cha - Milk foam earl grey - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

This place is a smoothie / boba machine factory. It hardly needs review with how consistently busy it is. Be ready for an average waiting line any time of day. I visited and stayed close by so I was here every day at different times . The wait is worth it. Maybe like 10-15 minutes to place your order. I think I saw some folks coming in and out after placing an online order? Anyways! Drinks are fantastic, I'd recommend the mango slush with milk foam on top! read more

After trying many many boba places around Boston, this is definitely my favorite out of all them. Although I think there are a couple things on the menu that aren't the best, I'd say that 75% of the things are a hit and 25% aren't. My newly discovered favorite is the milk foam brown sugar oolong tea 50 or 75% sweet. It isn't sweet like some of the other milk teas and doesn't feel heavy to drink. The milk foam is a bit salty and compliments the slight bitter taste of the oolong. read more

Gong Cha - Milk Foam Brown Sugar Oolong Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Not the cheapest for bubble tea in Chinatown, but quite good and they do seem to have more staff and thus faster service than Cha Time across the street. The key here is to ask for 30% sugar; any higher and it's too sweet, any less and it's too bland. Best value strategy, especially during Covid19 lockdown conditions, is to order size large with no ice for takeout, then go home and add your own ice. read more

The establishment is extremely small but makes up for it with the drinks -- at least the ones my friend and I had ordered. My friend ordered the Strawberry Oreo Chocolate Drink and I ordered the Dirty Brown Sugar Milk Tea. My friend swears hers reminded her of a Duvalin (type of Mexican candy). I was caught off guard with the strong flavor and thickness of the milk foam from my drink but enjoyed it once I had mixed it with the rest. The rest of the menu didn't catch my attention but I would definitely come back for the Dirty Brown Sugar series. read more

Perhaps I went on a very bad day. The store is absolutely tiny and there is no enforcement of social distancing, nor do they use the system that the corporate branch set up for contactless pickup. The first thing you see when you open the door is a QR code asking you to order online for contactless pickup, so I did. I had to reenter several times into the extremely crowded store to see whether my order was ready and after I waited 20 minutes past the pickup time, the cashier told me to repurchase it in person since they did not check the online platform. She claimed she would cancel the order so it wouldn't charge twice. I left with my order, which tasted par for the course. My card was charged twice and when I called back to request a refund, they hung up on me. read more

I went here earlier today to see what the hype was about. It's unfortunate that the actual space of where it's located is so small, there was a line which I wasn't surprised about that was out the door. There literally was only 6 or so people inside the actual building itself, it's definitely a take out, not staying in to drink kinda place. I got the roselle drink with basil seeds which is one of their personal mixes. It kinda reminds me of the hibiscus tea, sour, fruity lemonade kind of taste. The basil seeds gave it the extra pop. Summary: Typical, chain tea place like kungfu tea and cha time. I think once it gets later past the grand opening, lines will die down and it'll just be a regular tea place like all the other chain ones. read more

See all

Definitely get the brown sugar boba. Wow. It was so tasty and made perfectly. Brown sugar soaked tapioca pears nestled happily below my cup. The bold tea flavor is enhanced by the brown sugar adding a richness to each sip. MUST GET! read more

See all

One of the most highly talked about bubble tea places in Boston, Gong Cha lives up to its reputation. They have a wide variety of drinks, teas, smoothies, shakes etc. Of course I am not a big fan of actual bubble tea, but rather I enjoy drinking the slushees/icees in particular Taro. I love that you can request that your drink here be less sweet (25-75% of its actual sweetness). You can also add on special ingredients but have to pay per item such as bubbles, or jello. I like the consistency of the drink, the temperature and how cold it is. read more

Gong Cha - Taroslushie - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Finally got to try the Dirty Brown Sugar Milk! It was exactly the type of sweet drink I needed after a savory meal. The brown sugar flavor enhanced the drink as a whole. Definitely recommend this to those who prefer a sweeter type of drink! Gong Cha has been my go to places ever since Korea. It tasted just like how it does in Korea. The store is really small so the line went out the door around the corner. Considering the number of people there the service was efficient and we got our drinks relatively fast. read more

Gong Cha - Dirty Brown Sugar Milk - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

This is probably my favorite place to get boba in all of Massachusetts aside from the other location in Burlington, MA and the Kung Fu Tea near Newbury Street. The drinks are made promptly, the boba is soft and sweet, and there are a plethora of options on the menu. An indicator of Gong Cha's quality is how long the line is at the store--often, it goes out the door and onto the sidewalk. My favorite orders: - Brown Sugar Oolong Milk Foam with 50% sugar and boba -- this drink can get a little sweet, but the milk foam balances the brown sugar flavor out and adds a lot of depth. There's a perfect mix of sweet and a little salty. Brown Sugar Oolong Tea isn't available at KFT so I'd highly recommend it at Gong Cha. The Dirty Brown Sugar series is also quite good, albeit expensive. - Oolong Milk Tea with 50% sugar and herbal jelly -- this drink is my go-to, especially when scouting out a new boba place. You really can't go wrong with this one, unless the shop doesn't offer herbal jelly. In that case, I just go for... - Green Milk Tea with 50% sugar and boba -- a classic. A tip would be to get a drink with 0% ice, but that honestly depends on whether you want your drink to stay cold for a very long time. One downside of this location is that there is no room to enjoy your drink -- there is only one window-side bench to sit, and most people wait there for their orders. This store is very small and in that aspect, I would say Kung Fu Tea wins out. read more

Gong Cha - Strawberry Milk Foam Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

With the influx of bubble tea shops opening all over, it was a matter of time before Boston saw another big name spot open up. I attempted to go on grand opening weekend but drove by and saw a line of at least 50 long at any given time. Eventually I waited for the initial hype to die down so I didn't have to wait more than maybe 10-15 minutes in line. There is a good amount of selections but to make it easy I ordered off of the top 10 drinks menu. My favorite drink so far would have to be the milk foam green tea. Most other bubble tea shops, the flavor of the tea get drowned away by the overpowering of sugar/sweetener. At Gong Cha, you noticed right away the taste of tea in the drink. I also tried the Taro milk tea but was disappointed by the fact of tasting small chunks of powder in my drink. Service is good but the inside is very small and everybody is packed in there like sardines. With another option for bubble tea in chinatown, ill most likely only go to Gong Cha if the line is on the shorter end and I prefer not to wait out in the cold during the winter months. read more

See all

Gong cha, my new favorite boba place in Boston! I first discovered Gong Cha when I visited Hong Kong years ago. I literally had Gong Cha every other day! Ever since, I have been constantly on a search to find a boba shop comparable to Gong Cha until a few franchises started opening in New York and California! I was forever satisfied but New York and California is still far from Boston which means I can only get this occasionally! They are having their grand opening week this week and are doing a buy one get one free special on 5 featured drinks! They also have an extended menu of different drinks. There is definitely something for everyone. The milk foam green tea is my fav! The tea is fragrant and with 50% sugar level, it is perfect! One thing I like about them is they are super quick with the drink orders. At other boba shops nearby, I have to wait for days for my drink. Sometimes it makes me wonder if they are still picking the tea leaves for my drink up in the mountains. The boba is perfectly sweetened and chewy! The boba is a little smaller than other places, which I prefer. I am so excited that Gong Cha is finally in Boston! read more

Gong Cha - Milk foam green tea! - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

3 stars based on quality and service- The tea itself is actually very good; I could actually taste the tea which is great. However, the boba isn't the best and reminds me of TeaDo pearls. It's not sweetened beforehand. Service is also just okay. My friend had to repeat her order 4+ times since the cashier had trouble finding it on her order system. I asked for white pearls in my drink and just got regular pearls instead. The wait was already long and knowing that they'd just charge me more (white pearls cost more), I didn't bother asking them to remake my order. I want to give them a second chance but hopefully they improve the next time I return! read more

Same excellent consistency as with Gong Cha in NYC. I always get their coffee milk tea (0% sugar/0% ice) for my caffeine fix while I travelled with my family last summer. Short walk from the T in Chinatown is definitely a big plus. read more

I've never had Gong Cha but heard it was supposed to be really good so I was really excited for it to open! I went during their BOGO event and got the regular milk tea with boba and green tea with milk foam. I got regular sugar levels to test out how sweet their drinks were (I think their regular sugar levels are 70% sugar). Their regular milk tea with regular sugar is pretty sweet and I think 50% or 30% would be good. Get the milk foam! The milk foam with 70% sugar was JUST right. It wasn't too sweet but it also wasn't too bland. I also loved the hint of salt in the drink! I tried my friend's green tea milk foam with 30% sugar and you CAN taste the difference! They really follow through and give you the percentage of sugar you requested. I've been to a couple of places where 30% is the same as 100% sugar so I was happy that Gong Cha actually makes the effort to follow through your requests. read more

Let me start by saying I've given this place SO many tries but it never fails to disappoint me and waste my money. I love Gong Cha, but I would rather drink the other boba shops around Chinatown at this rate. Last week, I ordered 3 drinks. I clearly said exactly what I wanted from all the drinks. Even used hand motions in case my words were lost. They were all messed up. Literally was given lukewarm bubble tea (did they even shake with ice??). Asked for ice but didn't even give me ice, alright fine. Asked for boba and didn't even give me boba....that's just crazy. So they added boba after and resealed it. When I finally got to drink it, it literally had ZERO sweetness. This has never happened before. I was literally in shock. Water would've been better. Like how did it have no sweetness if it had no ice to dilute it. That was a huge waste of almost $6 for ONE drink. Speaking of dilution, literally 75% of the times I've ordered from here, they don't mix the ice with the drink to get it to the same temperature, so the ice ends up melting quickly, making the drink taste watery, diluted, less sweet, and lukewarm. The first thing I learned when I worked at a drink shop was to properly shake the drink and ice to make it cool and in the same temperature. It's common sense. I think this was the last straw for me. This may seem extra but IF YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW. read more

After the craze of the Buy One Get One dissipated, the lines at Gong Cha are slowlyyyyyyyy disappearing. I can't tell if it's the weather or the hype that is causing this but anyways... I have tried the lemon aiyu, pearl milk tea, green tea with milk foam, and taro milk tea. Of the drinks, I do have to say their teas are of a high standard (I come here for the green tea with milk foam alot) and my first choice for grabbing bubble tea in Chinatown. Funny story: One of the old owners from Juice Bar told me when they were closing up shop in May that a mainlander purchased the location for a chain. I guessed Gong Cha took up the spot. Boy, was that a lucky guess. IG: Mood4foodeatery read more

It's my second time in visiting this place, first time I got some fruity tea and this time I tried the caramel milk tea. And my friend got the coffee milk tea. My caramel milk tea was fine, wasn't really impressed about it. But my friend was disappointed of her coffee she tried it back in Vietnam and she said it was good but in Boston she said it was gross and super watery and they didn't give her ice on her drink so she had to go back and ask the lady for ice on her drink. We might have ordered not so good drinks but maybe someday we'll come back for something else. read more

See all

Ordered lychee green tea and coffee milk tea. Both were water down and have no tea taste at all. They used to have strong tea flavor but now, it has gone down hill. Disappointed. read more

Gong Cha is a super tiny place tucked into a corner with super long lines on weekends!! So it's hard to miss this place. But don't worry the line moves very fast as there is no seating area inside and everybody gets enough time while waiting in queue to know their fixing. My 2 favorites here are the Lychee slush with basil seeds, coconut jelly and the Taro milk tea with black pearls. I like the fact that they let you pick your sugar level (Max 70%) and the ice level. The quality and consistency of this place is what brings me back here. read more

Gong Cha - Taro Milk Tea & Lychee Slush - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

One of the best tea places in town, try their milk tea with red bean at 30% sugar and/or their winter melon drink with ai-yu at 30% sugar! So, so good! I just wish the line can move a tad faster with the consumers knowing their orders before being at the register... or open 2 registers! read more

We headed to Chinatown after picking up breakfast sandwiches from Mike & Patty's nearby. There were a lot more bakeries and Vietnamese restaurants than we expected. Gong Cha was one of the better bubble tea chains in NY so we decided to go there. The line went out the door so it was about 5 minutes waiting there. After ordering, we waited another 8 minutes for our 2 drinks. Service was really nice and spoke perfect English. I ordered pearl milk tea with pudding with 70% sugar and less ice. They got everything done correctly for the most part! The price was typical (4.25$ for one drink) but there aren't any seats except for a small bench. read more

I've been a couple of times since opening but not any time recently. I have tried Gong Cha in NYC, Cali, and Canada and I think it's just this specific store that I'm iffy about. The only drink that I liked was the panda milk tea but it was just okay. The milk foam wintermelon was very weak and I couldn't really taste the milk foam. I have tried my friends drinks too and they were either way too sweet or lacked flavor. I really don't understand why there is always such a long line out the door for subpar boba when there's plenty of better boba places nearby. I think in the 2-3 times I've actually been inside to either get something for myself or wait with a friend, the wait is close to 20 minutes and they are ALWAYS out of something. Out of Thai tea, out of boba (like what... you're a boba shop?!) - it's ridiculous. They also misheard my friend on several of her orders and my friend was just so frustrated with it that she just kept the order as is. Lastly, they double charged me on a large order and when I called about it they were just like "oh... just come in and show us your statement and we'll give you your money back. We can't see old transactions." I just didn't bother going back so I disputed the transaction on my card but, jeez, this place needs better service. read more

Gong Cha - Milk foam wintermelon with boba - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

There's always a line here, so you just gotta bite the bullet and wait in line (this is what I tell myself). Things I've tried: QQ Passion Fruit Green Tea - light and refreshing, goes well with coconut jelly. Pearl Milk Tea - it tasted off, like too much cream or something. They also gave me a large instead of a medium, which would usually be a good thing except the proportions of milk/cream to tea was not right. They were busy so I guess the mess up was understandable? Then again, a bubble tea place should not mess up the classic bubble milk tea? Yeah, I'm torn. Milk Foam Green Tea with White Pearl - I liked that I could taste the tea. The milk foam was interesting - creamy and a little salty. Not really my thing, but worth a try. The white pearls were "crunchy" (kinda like coconut jelly, but in ball form?), I would get it again/recommend it. All in all, I wasn't impressed and honestly have experienced more consistent drinks from KFT. I would give Gong Cha another try and their dirty brown sugar milk tea seems popular. read more

Mango yogurt drink was great! Glad the lines finally died down so I could try it out.. read more

Gong Cha - Mango Yogurt - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

I was visiting boston for the weekend and craving a sweet milky after a long day of sightseeing. I'm giving Gong Cha a solid 5/5 stars for delivering exactly what is promised. The service is quick and the line moves really fast. The bubble teas are delicious and you are able to customize (less sugar, less ice, milk substitution) if you want. It's a solid, no frills place and I would highly recommend for bubble tea. read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Was excited to try a new tea location but honestly Gong Cha was incredibly underwhelming. Got a Pearl Milk Tea with less ice and half sugar. Tea itself was quite bitter - and you may say it's because of how I ordered but at other tea shops and even in Taiwan, my milk tea would not be that bitter. I will give props to the good texture and plentiful boba though but that's about the only good thing of my entire drink. read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Food: 4/5 Ambiance: 4/5 Service: 5/5 Got the milk foam strawberry tea with white pearl and a strawberry milk tea on two separate occasions. Both were very good. The ambiance is typical of a small boba store, but the layout is logical and very easy and comfortable to walk through/wait in line. The service is fast and friendly. Despite its famous good boba tea, the lowered food star rating is because I always get slight stomachaches afterwards. I'm not sure if the ingredients aren't fresh or I'm especially sensitive - but points docked for that. I normally do not have that reaction at other boba stores read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts