The two young girls are nice, but most of the employees always make me pay before they are even done making my food.

Was looking forward to grabbing boba in DC, but the workers completely ruined my experience. We tried to order an Earl Grey Milk Tea with boba and coconut jelly and a Caramel Milk Tea with boba. The girl told us about 4 times that it would take 10-15 minutes for the tea to brew, and we said ok, we still wanted the drinks we were ordering. Then, we proceeded to tell her our preferences on sweetness and ice levels which she couldn't get right after confirming twice. She then forgot to put boba with the Earl Grey, so I told her we asked for boba with it AFTER we had already paid. She said "I only charged you for coconut jelly, so I'll have to charge you for boba." Like, really? Your mistake for not charging us for it, and you now want us to pay that extra little $.50?! Cmon. So I said fine, I'll pay for it. Oh, well it's a $1 minimum for credit card. Like she really had us going through all of this. We ended up paying for it. I'm disappointed that for their mistake, they NEEDED that 50 cents and couldn't just throw a scoop of boba in our drink. The drinks were good, but this was ridiculous. read more

My friend and I decided to stop by Gong Cha after dinner because we were craving bubble tea. It was one of the only spots open after 8pm on a Thursday. I ordered the grapefruit ai-yu with regular boba and it also came with white pearls (crystal boba which I've had at other bubble tea spots). I got 50% sugar which I felt was a good amount of sugar. My friend got the black milk tea with 0% sugar and red beans which he enjoyed as well. The service was fairly quick and easy, although we were there at a slower time of day. I would recommend Gong Cha if you're on New York Ave and craving bubble tea! read more

Disclaimer: 3/5 bc I think my expectations for Gong Cha were super high because everyone raves about it on the West Coast, and it's fairly new to DC/VA... Pro: This was only a short walk away from the DC hotel the convention I was attending for the weekend was at, and I was hankering for a bubble tea. I got the green tea milk tea boba with 50% sugar, 30% ice because I saw some people say less sugar was still too sweet. However, my drink wasn't super sweet as others claimed, yet still had a good concentrated (read: real, NOT powdered artificial) matcha flavor. Thumbs up to that. The boba pearls were fine, nothing to write home about. I think overall I would stick with the suggested sugar. The drinks came out fast, and the service was good. TLDR; Only 3/5 because I expected too much from CA people raving. But, if you enjoy milk tea and even other sweet or unsweetened teas give Gong Cha in DC a try!! read more

So the brown sugar fresh milk tea was amazing - I recommend it with pudding ; 70% sweet and 70% ice . The milk foam was actually adequate ( only place in the dmv that comes close to LA standard milk foam) it's light and refreshing and creamy and can be sipped, strawed or mixed. Lancet was awesome and so helpful as a server. Definitely helped with recommendations. That said - the purple potato latte was a no go and the reason this isn't a 5 star review. It was watery and tasteless sadly. read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

A 'very' nice place to sip a nice cup of bubble tea! However, the drinks are a bit pricey. Also, I suggest playing oriental music in here 'instead' of rap or r&b or soft rock or whatever. It really really kills the authentic oriental vibe of this whole place... So please really consider changing the music, and maybe add a few more bits of decor as well (if you can). Otherwise, the decor that's already here is also nice! read more

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When I heard this place was opening up on New York ave I was so excited because that's not too far from where I work. So I finally ventured over for a mid day snack a couple of days ago. Ok the first thing I have to say is WHY is their address listed as being on New York ave??? Because IT'S NOT! I mean maybe through some technicality (I'm no map expert) they sort of are on NY ave. But no, their entrance is on 14th street. So FYI in case you're like me and could get QUITE confused by this. ANYWAY, on to the tea (lol tea because obv that's what they sell and also like I'll spill the tea with my review lolol). This place is great! They share space with a poke place which made me also want poke. Gong Cha has SO many options. Every single aspect of your drink is customizable, which admittedly is more control than I need. I like your standard black milk tea. They asked me what level of sweet or what % of sugar and I asked what's the regular and he said 70% lol so I say let's do it! Haha I like it sweet what can I say? I chose the traditional pearls and I opted to try this milk foam and everyone seems to be talking about. My tea was DELICIOUS and perfect. Definitely check them out, specially if you're a bit more adventurous than me, they really have lots of options! Will def be back and venture outside my black tea bubble (get it? Hahaha). read more

My friends told me about this chain, so we dropped by during lunch to pick up a quick drink. The building is shared with another business selling poke bowls, but we opted for just the boba this time. The staff are patient and friendly enough, and we were lucky to have no one else ordering aside from us, so our drinks were prepared very quickly. We got four drinks total, my friends having two milk teas and one taro tea. I got myself a "Strawberry Chocolate" that was listed in the creative mix section with no added sugar and topped with adzuki beans. I could not have ordered better. Turns out, the strawberry chocolate drink is the perfect sweetness as it is, no sugar needed! The adzuki beans paired really well with the drink as well, giving it a more earthy taste that complimented the slight bitterness of the chocolate, as well as a nice velvety feel in my mouth (I would definitely buy this again!). The only lacking element is knowing exactly what I'm getting. There aren't any descriptive words or sections within the menu that help explain in detail as to the taste, ingredients, or flavors used for the drinks. It's mostly assumed that the customer knows how the different teas or boba components taste. My friend even admits that they rarely choose anything aside milk tea, which is a shame. Maybe a helpful guide recommending drinks based off of preferences might even be helpful ("if you enjoy green tea, try this!" type of advise). Granted, they do have their top 10 most popular drinks posted up, so I guess that helps. Overall, this is a decent place to drop by and grab some boba if you ever need to! read more

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So yummy + fast, they also just added self service kiosks so you can just tap to order! This time I got the passion fruit tea with pearls and star jelly which was so cute omg. a more expensive tes shop but always good and consistent across locations! read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

YES! There's one near my job now! This is the best thing ever, especially since it's combined with Poki DC, arguably my favorite poke bowl place in the city right now. The boba tea line is consistently shorter than the Poki DC line (at least when I've went, and it's pretty easy to tell which is which. The tea I chose was the Chocolate Strawberry tea with 30% sugar, no ice and plenty bubbles. It was the perfect balance -- like eating a chocolate-covered strawberry! While waiting, they call out the numbers of the orders and ring a bell in case you're not paying attention. If it gets loud and you aren't close it may be difficult to hear, but otherwise it's a sound system. Move on over Kung Fu Tea! You just came to town yourself, but you've got some epic competition! I can't wait to go back. read more

I'm very excited that a Gong Cha has opened up in DC! When my friend and I went here she said that she's never going anywhere else for boba. They have a great selection of milk teas and fruit drinks. They also have set combos that you can pick from. They also have a wide selection of toppings ranging from regular boba to white pearls to custard to aloe! They also let you adjust your ice and sugar levels. I tried the peach lychee oolong tea with white pearl boba. I liked how knowledgeable the servers were when I was trying to pick a drink. She informed me to not add sugar since my drink would be very sweet. I appreciated her honesty and was impressed by how well they know their product. They also are very attentive. The boba place is connected to Poki DC so you can get both boba and food. It's not too far from Metro Center and is very accessible. There are tables and seats available if you want to do work. I recommend folks to try out this new boba place! read more

Gong Cha - Store front - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

I might like Sharetea more (their pearls are softer) but gong cha boba is still tasty. You also have the option between medium and large (Sharetea has one size). The Poki dc (poke bowls) shares the space with gong cha and is quite tasty. I love their sauces. read more

Sharing a space with POKE DC, but separate ordering/cashier area. It is conveniently located within walking distance of hotels & the White House. Nice little place with very limited seating. PRICEY, but REALLY GOOD! One smoothie/boba tea costed $7! The mango smoothie was the best smoothie we've had, highly recommend it! Taro boba was also good. I like that u can choose the sweetness level. We picked 70% & it was just perfect for us. read more

Favorite boba chain by far!! The milk foam just elevates every drink, and some of the people that work here are SO NICE. The first time I stopped by, I mentioned that I was trying to be sugar-free for a month but I really wanted milk tea. So they spent a good five minutes trying to come up with a drink that I would still enjoy without adding sugar to it. I was really impressed by how friendly and accommodating they were, especially because my request was a little silly. I've been back multiple times since then [my sugar-free month is thankfully over] and every drink has been delicious. My personal favorite is the oolong tea with milk foam and boba, but I'm definitely planning on trying more of the drinks! It's a short walk away from the metro center stop, and it's located inside of Poki DC. read more

Gong Cha - Oolong tea with milk foam - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Excited to see a Gong Cha finally pop up in DC! I've visited the one nearby in Rockville before, but it's always a bit of a drive. I've been to many Gong Cha's before, mostly in HK and love the selection of drinks. I came here with a bunch of friends on a Monday holiday afternoon and it was a little bit of a walk from the Metro Center metro. I was surprised by where it is located, not really close to any other restaurants and shops in a more corporate area (so pretty empty area on the weekends). It's co-located with a Poki DC and it's a cute small-ish place. Drinks: I ordered a earl grey milk tea with boba. It was good earl grey milk tea and I adjusted the sweetness and ice level. I also got a black milk tea with milk foam and white boba to-go. However, they forgot my milk foam and I had to ask for them to put it on, but they thought I was making an ad-hoc request even though it said milk foam on my receipt and my drink label. One of my friends ordered a taro milk tea and definitely got a black milk tea instead (it wasn't purple or taro-flavored at all) Definitely some kinks to work out in this new Gong Cha since it's pretty new, but hopefully they can work through those. read more

Love that this has both Poki DC and Gong Cha! It's like a mini mini Asian food hall which is the closest we'll get to the ones in our neighboring cities. I see this as a starter for more of the like to come. While this is the second Poki DC location here in the district among a few poke options, Gong Cha is the third boba chain to King Fu Tea and ShareTea so I'm happy to have the options. There are local places that have boba but to have these options in the city is nice so I don't have to go far for them. I mainly get boba because friends (or the hubby) wants it and so I'm happy to say "hey, we have it in DC too :)" read more

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Very reliable, no complaints! I just had their Earl Grey Milk Tea with boba, and it totally hit the spot. 30% ice and 50% sugar, otherwise I think it's way too sweet for my liking. read more

Gong Cha - Outside building - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Gong Cha is a small bubble tea shop that shares a space in downtown DC with Poki DC. There's clear signage once you walk in and Gong Cha has a helpful menu walking through how to order. They have suggested bubble tea items or you can build your own by choosing the size, milk level, type of bubbles, percentage of ice, and sweet level. For just under $5, you can get a large milk tea and I recommend 30% ice so you get more tea and 70% was the right sweet level for someone with a sweet tooth. read more

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Good bubble tea, fresh boba. Ordered the brown sugar oolong with boba. It's not too sweet (70% but next time I'd do 50%) and perfect balance of brown sugar, creamy tea, and warm boba. Good service, chill atmosphere, a little small. read more

As someone really picky about my bubble tea I found this to be really good. I got the black milk tea with boba. There are self ordering kiosks which are user friendly and the service was quick. Plenty of sitting space as well. Will return! read more

Got the passion fruit green tea with bubbles! They unfortunately messed up my order and I paid for a large when I ordered a medium. The tea wasn't that great either but my friend got this peach lycee drink which was good and a mango drink with pudding. I liked both of those more. It's also a bit pricey at over 5 dollars. Maybe I'll have to try something else next times read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

I have come here quite a lot recently, and have always been satisfied with my service here. It's a nice spot to grab some boba and then grab some poke. Gong Cha also has a very wide variety of drinks, including a pretty good selection of drinks for people who do not like tea or boba in general. The Gong Cha line can get pretty long, and the orders can start to take longer and longer to complete, but when it's not busy, they usually fill orders pretty quickly (5-10 minutes). Sometimes I do not see employees waiting around at Poki DC, but don't let this deter you from ordering food from there. Whenever I stood there, an employee would show up pretty quickly. Also PSA, if you use the bathroom, lock the door! I've seen so many people unlock the door with the passcode just to walk in on someone who didn't bother to use the clearly labelled lock. read more

My wife and sister-in-law love this place, after having a taste for the first I'm a fan as well. Since COVID19 hit DC my wife and sister-in-law haven't been able to walk there during lunch so they miss Gond Cha! I'm not a fan of the makeshift window for pickups but I get it. I'll be back for more soon! read more

Gong Cha - Gong Cha Boba - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Excited that a Gong Cha has opened near my workplace! Gongcha is one of my favorite bubble teas franchise! The bubble tea here is consistent, or even better, as the ones I used to have back in Vietnam (brings back memories). I was a bit shocked at first that they shared their location with PokiDc however to my delight poke bowls and bubble tea in fact make a really good combination! The cashier were really helpful by giving me recommendations on the drinks, size, sugar and ice levels, and toppings. Everything is great about this location!!! Great drinks with adjustable sugar levels, great fresh poki bowls, and great service! However one thing they can improve on is how popular and crowded this place is during lunch time on weekdays! Can't be helped though, this place is too good! Love this place! I come here almost atleast 2 times a weekand will be back! Some quick tips to keep in mind: 1) Know what drink you want before you get to the cashier, including the sugar and ice levels! (70% is their regular amount, and drinks can be made hot!) 2) Gong Cha and PokiDc each both have their own loyalty programs, every 10 bowls/drinks you get a bowl/drink for free! Just make sure to check in at PokiDc or Type in the code into the clover app! 3) PokiDc offers gift cards which can be found online. These can not only be used for all PokiDc locations but also at the D.C. Gong Cha location as well! Great gift for bubble tea lovers read more

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Finally some good boba tea in DC! I stopped by Gong Cha yesterday after walking around the national mall and was very impressed with my milk tea. I really like how you can choose how much ice is in your drink and the level of sweetness. A regular milk tea with boba is less than $5. Also, the boba is the perfect consistency. I will definitely be back soon! read more

I am a big tea enthusias, so naturally I would be drawn to tea of all types. I really enjoy bubble tea, but some places don't offer warm options in the cool winter months. I tried my first moochi anything here and the moochi donuts are amazing!! (had to have the full experience and make it a ube moochi donut, and you should too ). Pairing my donut with a warm milk foam tea, helped me to better understand their motto of "Brewing Happiness" since they are doing just that! If your are having a dreary day and need a change of pace, having some tea from the brewers of Gong Cha will give you just that. Okay, rant over . read more

I wish this place was closer to work! This place is a boba tea place and a poke shop as well. My favorite order is the sweet potato smoothie with 50% sweetness. Also if you want to spice things up try the white tapioca pearls, i like them better than the traditional type I will say I'm not a sweet fan so 50% sweetness is the perfect amount for me. If you have an option between Kungfu tea or Gong cha, I would go to Gongcha. Also for my lactose free fans, there are lactose free options (like the smoothie that I got!). read more

We hit up this Gong Cha near the White House after an event in Center City. Found out the poke place shares the spot. I had a taro bubble tea with no boba. It was ok. Not as good as the one in Rockville. Still, it's cool to be downtown and get decent bubble tea. Unthinkable not too long ago. read more

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Stopped in for some bubble tea, we were decided between the peach greens tea or the mango smoothie. We ended up ordered the mango smoothie with boba at 70 percent sugar levels. It was good and I love the new trend with decided how much sugar you want in your drink. I think the smoothie had some sort of dairy in it as the consistency was thicker than what I'm accustomed to. Either way it was a cute spot and they had a beautiful green wall perfect for photos! read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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I've been here a few times and never really enjoyed my experience. I always found the staff to be a bit cold or maybe just inexperienced. Although there is seating here, I prefer to get bubble tea at Sharetea in Chinatown. The amount of bubbles here always seem slightly fewer than their competitors or their drinks a bit too sweet. I've gotten into the habit of just not asking for sugar at all. Once I ordered an avocado smoothie that was super bitter, and they just blamed it on me for not adding sugar-- and definitely didn't offer to remake it. The sparkling series is quite sweet and we ended up taking it home and adding more sparkling water. For a caffeine kick, I prefer their traditional pearl milk tea with bubbles and no sugar since the bubbles are sweetened already. read more

I ordered a large Dirty Brown Sugar Milk Tea after work and tried it when i got home. I was shocked when it tasted rancid/sour, so I opened it to find clumps in the drink and it smelled weird. Just double check that none of the products used in drinks are expired/rancid, and hopefully no one will get sick. I called them and they will be giving me a refund for the drink. Just check that your drink is good before you leave the store! Really disappointed that I couldn't get my drink as I wanted, but glad that they gave me the refund with no issue. read more

Gong Cha - Dirty Brown Sugar milk tea had some rancid clumps/curds in it :( - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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Gong Cha is my favorite Bubble Tea shop!! the pearl/bubble/boba have the perfect taste!! And also the Grass/Herb Jelly!! I don't know how to describe their perfection, except that they are neither too soft nor chewy. I've tried a few different drinks on their menu now, including the lychee oolong/green, peach lychee fruit drink and lemon aiyu with white pearl, etc. almost all the drinks have tasted. I love them all!! The drink is smooth and has good consistency. No high glucose tolerance levels, and found that 30% sweetness hit me here. The price is also reasonable. And on Saturday, there is a guy who is responsible for cashier and was so nice and cute! read more

We got the brown sugar boba and it was quite sweet but the others I came with seemed to love it. A little too sweet for my taste but you can always lower the sugar level! read more

Love this place so much! Always fresh, clean, and very yummy! Also love that it's next to Pokibowl. Highly recommend !!!! They're so nice too. read more

Great little boba shop near McPherson Square. I really liked the sweet potato Taro with green milk tea and Boba. It's not as sweet as I expected but still good. I got mine with 50% sugar and "little ice" but I got no ice in my order for some reason. $6.16 regular size with boba. read more

Gong Cha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

My first time at Gong Cha was in New York City. Fell in love with their Lemon Wintermelon with Basil Seed drink and have been craving it since moving back to DC. Well to my surprise, a Gong Cha was opening right near my place, so you can imagine how excited I was to have this establishment within walking distance! Especially since DC is a city that lacks a good boba tea place, lots of opportunity to grow this business in DC as more and more people are becoming accustomed to the popular drink from Taiwan. Gong Cha has a wide selection of teas, milk teas, slushies, and toppings. If you are one of those that likes the original boba (bubble) milk tea, this place has mastered it! Tea is amazing, I get it 70% sugar which is the right sweetness for me, and I always add both boba and pudding. So good! The boba is cooked perfectly and has a sweetness to it, just the way I like it. And it is always fresh, cause you know you can taste the difference with day-old boba! Staff are really quick here and will help you decide on a drink if you need help. Highly recommend coming here! I come at least once every week or two to get a drink, bad habit, but so delicious! read more

Best boba ever silky smooth mT and add one with just the right sugar I definitely recommend it to you

Good price, good boba. Service was also very good and efficient. I would recommend it if you're a boba person.

Pretty happy with this Gong Cha opening. The quality is usually consistent across the chain (except for a few random ones I've been to in NYC) but this location meets the standards. Reasonably priced, good quality tea, and all the options even though it shares its space with Poki DC (which I think is owned/operated by the same person) Bubbles are a good level of chewiness, but my favourite combo is Oolong Wintermelon with Basil Seeds and milk foam -- they also do the proper removable cap for the milk foam (which not all places do!) so you can opt to sip the milk foam directly from the top (or through the straw) FYI Basil Seeds are basically like chia seeds (where they get slightly gelatinous on the outside from soaking in liquid), and wintermelon is good for your hot/cold balance. There is some seating in the space, but it's definitely more of a stop and go place. I'm glad to finally have bubble tea in this office area instead of more coffee shops. read more

Really surprised and happy with Gong Cha. I'm not familiar with the chain, but Gong Cha is close to my work and the gym I frequent. I decided to treat myself by stopping in and grabbing my favorite bubble tea - good old black tea. I firmly believe that bubble tea should be tea-based and not a fruit-based smoothie, but for everyone else out there, know that they have both. I appreciate the signs letting you know how & what order you should make your selections. If you arrive around lunchtime, make sure to find out what the long line is for; if you don't want poki, you can sometimes go around and go straight to the Gong Cha counter. Folks were nice and service was quick. Lots of options and pretty comparable pricing. read more