Cancel

    Open app

    Search

    Initial Tea

    4.6 (71 reviews)
    Closed 12:00 pm - 6:00 PM
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Order Initial Tea Takeout or Delivery

    Initial Tea Photos

    Business Info

    You might also consider

    More like Initial Tea

    Recommended Reviews - Initial Tea

    Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
    Yelp app icon
    Browse more easily on the app
    Review Feed Illustration

    Reviews With Photos

    Strawberry Fruit Tea
    Jailine D.

    For my bike ride yesterday, I decided to set this shop at the destination. If you e been in New York, you know the weather has been horrifically muggy and hot! Once I arrived I was in dire need for something replenishing. The shop itself is small but cutely decorated. There was a giant boba in there. The place was clean and had around 3-4 chairs for indoor dining. There were no outdoor dining seating available. I got the strawberry fruit tea with rainbow jelly. It was refreshing and exactly what I needed. I got the spicy salmon rice ball as well. It was the perfect amount of spicy. Overall, good experience and will be back in the future.

    a hand holding a cup of iced coffee

    This place was really nice and cool! I basically ordered a brown sugar pearl latte,(remember to mix with the brown sugar before drinks) and the takoyaki , it was awesome and so good. And I love this service It was really nice.

    WARNING BEFORE YOU GO!! (Re: Photos #140-144?) So the wife and I brought our son for a quick stop here before heading home since we were hungry after a show for my son's birthday. We found this spot on google/yelp on a whim and saw that it closed at 8, so we figured there's plenty of time to sit and eat just for a bit. Arrived at around 5:40pm (Sunday night), the lady was getting something done so she apologized for the wait and that was the only good part of the experience and customer service that ever existed during our exchange that night. Once she took our order which cost us $40, we sat down and there was another lady there already eating before we came. As we waited for our food after maybe 5-10min another couple came in and before they even looked at the menu the lady NOW came and said something along the lines of "just to let you know we close at 6 today so...(silence)," after which the couple left without ordering. IMMEDIATELY after they left one of the ladies followed and CLOSED the shop gate halfway so no one else would come bother them and delay the time they got off work. CLOSING AT SIX PM??? YET YOU CHARGED US FIRST WITHOUT SAYING ANYTHING?? We were dumfounded and eventually asked if that meant we couldn't eat there. She simply nodded. We said but we saw they closed at 8. Her explanation was that it was the weekend and they changed their hours. No apology. Nothing. All that with a blank stare, and knowing that she had charged us $40 before letting us know that they were CLOSING IN 15 MINUTES and seeing that we already sat down and got settled waiting for our food (which was not ready until after 5:55), that was absolutely unbelievable. Not to mention the credit card machine automatically showed tip options without the option to decline so unless you were tech savvy and knew the system one wouldn't even know how to decline. Now, hour changes happen, fine. Don't expect everyone to know your store or your hours and that is NOT how you do business. Ever. I figured maybe the hours didn't change on google, but boy was I wrong. Today MARCH 5th I checked their WEBSITE and it STILL states they close at 8pm. This review is for FEB 26th. PHOTOS ATTACHED FOR PROOF. And if you thought it couldn't get any worse, KNOWING they wouldn't allow us to eat there they STILL packed the ramen WITH THE SOUP in the same container, which turned into DRY SOGGY MUSH with spam on top by the time we got home (see the photo). We had to add a bit of hot water and the taste was nauseating--SO soggy and salty all at once. Also the cake was so poorly packed it was basically the fallen tower of paper layers by the time we opened it. Also nauseating taste. The ONLY food that tasted and looked ok was the Takoyaki. Period. OH and once we got our food and got out of the store the lady followed us and locked the door right behind us without even a greeting or thank you. WHAT???????????? That was the last straw. Their menu also recommends the scallion pancake? It's more like a wrap but definitely tastes like krap. Giving them a dollar tip would be worth all the food we got. Absolute worst food experience anywhere, ever. Period. Do better, or please close this place as soon as you can. I want my money back. My advice? Even though I haven't had their tea, maybe resort to only selling tea. And be more considerate to the customer, not just make money however you can with this type of absolute horrendous service and, just the audacity. Whatever dialect you speak, you made the worst impression possible and never tried to correct your grave error or even consider that spending $40 was maybe enough to allow the customer to eat for 15min? There's three of you at least and all of you had to leave but still wanted the money. Filthy thieves.

    Menu
    Tommi A.

    Adorable tea spot! Very cute and clean with so many options for your tea desires! The owner was very patient as I looked over the menu and made my order perfectly to my specifications. The tea was delicious and the pearls and jelly were all very fresh! Definitely will be back!

    Rose Milk Tea, 0% Sugar
    Jo C.

    Growing up in Hong Kong, this cafe hits close to home. The food and tea were nostalgic and just delicious by itself. We ordered the Rose Milk Tea with bubbles and no sugar and it was the perfect sweetness with a good chewy to the bubbles as well. The Egg Bubble Waffles came in several flavors but we got the Pork Floss and Original flavor and they were amazing. It was crunchy on the outside yet soft and chewy on the inside, and the pork floss flavor was surprisingly very enjoyable. The Matcha Green Tea Crepe Cake was also great! The layers held together well and the flavor of the buttercream seems to stand out. The space and atmosphere is also simplistic and cozy. There are various different snack and small treats to try! Can't wait to come back.

    Zumiko L.

    Friendly shop, friendly service, I would definitely recommend the egg waffles and takoyaki, the egg waffles was really crunchy and not too sweet, just same as the one I tried in HK last time. I love the takoyaki too , there was full amount of octopus inside the ball, super tender and fresh. Fruit tea was rich, rice ball made by fresh, and the new product fried onion honey chicken wings, really yummy and crispy If you are looking for some Japanese/Hong Kong snacks or drink in that Barclays Center area, that's a good choice!!

    Grapefruit Tea
    Catharine C.

    After receiving our grades from a monster of an exam, my friends and I NEEDED and place to rewind. We decided to give Initial Tea a try and it did not disappoint. This place is ADORABLE, with hand written chalkboards and really really nice staff. My friends and I ordered a variety of items including their waffle with ice cream, milk teas and fruit teas. I had the Grapefruit Tea and I enjoyed it. My one suggestion would be to have it be a little less sweet. I asked for 0% sugar and for rainbow jelly and I think that the drink definitely was like a 50% sugar drink. I wanted the drink to be a bit bolder in flavor, but the sugar took away from that. My friend, who ordered the Rose Milk Tea, also said that her drink was a little too sweet for her liking. The waffle was gorgeously presented and my friend thoroughly enjoyed her sesame ice cream. The staff here are also exceptional. As other yelpers have mentioned, the manager came out to make sure we were happy with our orders. You can tell he really cares about his business. The employee making our drinks was also really patient and nice as well! One thing worth noting- if you are wearing shorts or a skirt and sitting on their chairs, you will walk out with an abstract design on your behind. The imprint lasted through the hour train ride home. That aside, this place really is adorable and I definitely would come back (and to also try out their rice balls!)

    Lychee Yogurt, Honeydew Milk Shake
    Jay L.

    Honeydew milk shake is very flavorful, tastes so good with lychee bubble and coconut jelly. Bubble waffle is the best waffle I've tried in US, the dough is crispy outside and chewy inside; unlike the ones that are sold in street cart, the inside is only airy and had no contents. Takoyaki tastes sooo good too, crispy outside and gooey and chewy inside. very satisfied with the food.

    Bonnie L.

    We got the Premium Milk Tea, Rose Milk Tea and a Plain Waffle. Everything we had was superb, especially the waffle. It was made to order and the sweetness level was just perfect. The Milk teas were rich and well balance between the flavor of tea and milk. Will definitely visit again soon!

    Cute signs in front of their toppings
    Jenny L.

    Great customer service and good boba for a reasonable price. In college all the students wanted a boba place near by Pratt and it's finally happening! This place has a clean sleek interior design with a very easy to read menu. Basic boba teas with 3 bases, black tea, jasmine tea, and oolong tea. Then you can pick your flavors from there. And they have Fruit teas,milk teas, slush, and latte. Haven't tried their desserts or food but will be back to try them out. I got the grapefruit jasmine tea (large)with boba & a strawberry matcha latte (regular). I love how big the portions are and the prices are definitely cheaper than any manhattan boba shop. ALSO, they give you free toppings if you bring your cup back! Using less plastic to reduce waste! Definitely washing my cup to bring it back ^^

    Premium milk tea with bubbles

    First of all, I just want to mention how grateful I am that they are open during this time! I am truly impressed with the changes they made to the store to make sure that their staff and customers are safe. There are many stores that I am hesitant to go into but this definitely is NOT one of them. This place never disappoints. I've been coming here for over a year now and whether I'm getting a snack or a drink, there is always something new and exciting to try. I love how they are constantly updating their food and drink menus unlike other shops that just stick to the same few items year after year. When I stopped by today, I noticed that they added new types of rice balls. I normally get the spam rice ball but decided to try the karaage (Japanese fried chicken) rice ball with spicy mayo and I'm so glad I did! The flavors work really well together and the spice is not overwhelming. I liked that the chicken was crispy and that there were large pieces (I was actually able to see the chicken inside my rice ball!!). This karaage rice ball along with an iced lychee oolong tea with tapioca is so worth it and makes a perfect weekend treat. I'm looking forward to coming back soon to try their shrimp tempura rice ball along with another refreshing drink.

    Lemon mint slush. Delicious
    Ben L.

    Amazing food. Nice environment. The owner is very friendly and will work fast to get your order finished. Drinks are super tasty too! It must be hard to operate during covid-19 but they do it right.

    Caramel Milk Tea

    AMAZING. everything on the menu is delicious. Love the caramel milk tea, crepe cake, and dumplings so far. To top it off, the owner is super kind. My new go to spot. Thank you Initial Tea!

    Mango Fruit Tea

    See all

    4 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 1
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    The shrimp tempura onigiri was warm and delicious. With a waffle ice cream, it was the perfect snack

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 1
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0

    5 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Ray H.
    0
    17
    7

    3 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 1

    5 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Jo C.
    98
    24
    86

    6 years ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 3
    Thanks 0
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Jay L.
    293
    5
    14

    7 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Jenny L.
    542
    37
    46

    7 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    6 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Ben L.
    45
    8
    3

    6 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    6 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    6 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of H C.
    398
    579
    314

    7 years ago

    Helpful 4
    Thanks 0
    Love this 3
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 5
    Thanks 0
    Love this 8
    Oh no 0

    6 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    6 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Business owner information

    Photo of Initial T.

    Initial T.

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Benji C.
    189
    26
    3

    6 years ago

    This place is great. The food and drinks are both good. I met a man in the lobby who said he goes here a couple times a week for the tea.

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Jen W.
    17
    35
    12

    7 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    6 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    5 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    I enjoyed the strawberry slush and rice ball I got! It also feels good to support a small business :) It's a cute place with good food.

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Geno F.
    258
    29
    18

    7 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Ching H.
    3
    235
    68

    5 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Olivia A.
    393
    40
    22

    6 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    6 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    7 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    6 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    Page 1 of 2

    Initial Tea Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - Initial Tea

    Do they have non dairy/lactose free milk options?

    We have non dairy milk powder and almond milk options for milk tea. Thank you

    View All 2 Questions

    You might also consider

    Chihiro Tea

    Chihiro Tea

    4.7
    (26 reviews)
    1.4 mi

    Clean small boba shop, no wait to order via kiosk on a Friday evening. They were doing student…read morediscounts, as well as a free drink promotion if you leave a google review! I ordered a Cheesy Grape, which came out quick and was delicious. They're playing music in there, but it's relatively quiet, there are four small tables, with outlets and Wi-Fi! It could be a good place to study if you're able to grab a table in time during the day. We'll probably be coming back!

    My quest for more bubble tea attain continues which a Yelp search takes my travels to Brooklyn…read more This business is very accessible via MTA NYC Transit A, C, R trains at Jay Street Metrotech station in Brooklyn, NYC. Willoughby Street has been bombarded with bubble tea businesses in recent years. Chihiro Tea is a very quaint little adorable tea shop with a Shiba theme. This business name in Japanese means "a thousand questions." Chi 千, thousand hiro 尋, search, seek Momoka Lemon 青柠桃桃, $8.50 Jasmine green tea with fresh lime and special peach sauce 茉莉绿茶配新鲜青柠和特制桃子酱。Chihiro Tea offers my favorite default topping grass jelly loeng4 fan2 涼粉 for $0.75 which was good and served chilled. The grass jelly was very minimal for paucity - total dismay. The entire drink was embedded with lime, lime pulp and fresh pieces of peach fruit. I wanted the supporting cast to be grass jelly and the lead to be Jasmine green tea, but this lime and heavy lime pulp were aggravating annoyance that stole the spotlight. I decribe the amount of herbal jelly topping to be scant, conveying insufficiency or minimalism. There were absolutely nothing alleged special of this peach sauce. I have chosen my default 30% sugar which highly counteracted with the lime. The lime and lime pulp were very strong. My drink tasted intensely sour, albeit refreshing. A lime drink is not my desideratum. Lime is not my interest. The woman cashier/ server Mattie was attentive, friendly welcoming who served with warm hospitality and patience for customer service. She permitted me to take a lot of photos for this review without any complaints as I could not resist this very cute adorable Shiba theme. If I could suggest to the owner for change of this drink ingredients either to remove of this lime and lime pulp, or significantly decreased the amount inputted. If I could, I could. For $0.75 as a paid topping it is my prerogative to have one quarter quantity of the drink size. The full ice melted entirely, but my drink sustained its coolness and was still chilled during my long-haul subway ride home. Disappointedly, there are no takeout drink menus.

    Photos
    Chihiro Tea
    Menu as of 5/2024
    Menu as of 5/2024
    SOFT ($9)

    See all

    SOFT ($9)
    Jooy Tea Shoppe

    Jooy Tea Shoppe

    3.9
    (62 reviews)
    6.3 mi
    $

    As of lately, this has become my more frequented place for boba. Tonight, I was craving the…read morepomegranate burst so I went to give that a try. It comes already with crystal boba which is my favorite. So it's supposed to be a combination of pomegranate juice and jasmine tea. However, I don't really taste the Jasmin tea that much. It was also ordered at 30% sugar but still tastes pretty sweet. All in all, I probably would not get this drink again but there are other drinks that I enjoy a lot

    Before HeyTea came along on 86th street, Jooy Tea Shoppe was top tier. And maybe it still is. Their…read moredrinks - not all but some - are comparable to HeyTea's, especially the matcha and mango drinks. I've been drinking their watermelon slushee often because it's free when you spend over a certain amount on one of the food apps. I get the least amount of sugar and it kind of tastes like watermelon juice. It's very refreshing but I wouldn't send it out to compete with the other popular tea chains. This place not only sells drinks but sandwiches and small bites. Their crispy chicken sandwich is recommendable. The sauce is yummy and the chicken is usually juicy. I usually get the combos so I can takoyaki or curly fries with the sandwich. Recently, I tried their egg waffles, which seems to be a newer offer here. They have very enticing flavors, but it's kind of pricey considering it doesn't come with ice cream, like some other egg waffle shops. I tried the pork floss with seaweed but it tasted too fishy. I also tried the mochi biscoff flavor but the biscoff is not very obvious. It is softer and chewier than the pork floss and seaweed, and I think it's because of the mochi. I prefer my egg waffles crispier

    Photos
    Jooy Tea Shoppe
    Inside
    Inside
    Menu

    See all

    Menu
    Hey Tea

    Hey Tea

    4.3
    (20 reviews)
    4.6 mi
    $$

    I've been wanting to try out Hey Tea and it caught by eye when I saw it just so happened to be…read moreacross the street from the dim sum place we were eating at. My sister has the app, so she was able to order for pick-up. The order took 20 minutes, so we went to pick up some groceries in the area before heading to pick up the drinks. When you first walk in, you are hit with the lovely and fragrant smell of tea leaves, and freshly brewed tea. I went with one of the more popular drinks - Coconut Mango Blue. I don't normally love coconut flavor but you couldn't taste it too much here. You taste more of the mango flavor, which was refreshing. I had never had blue spirulina before and it didn't really taste like anything. Again, you just taste more of the mango. Hubby had the Green Grape Boom, which was a little melty by the time he drank it so it would have tasted much better if it was still slushy. I think next time, I would try just a plain Jasmine tea, so that I could really taste the flavor of the tea.

    This is my go to HeyTea. Even when it's busy with their BOGO promotion, they still maintain a…read morepretty consistent quality on their drinks. My favorite from HeyTea is still the Triple Supreme Matcha Latte and the Mango Grapefruit Boom. I also love how their app timing is almost accurate and even when they're extremely busy they still maintain a clean environment. Would highly recommend.

    Photos
    Kale Boost Tea
    Kale Boost Tea
    Green Lemon Breeze
    Green Lemon Breeze
    Hey Tea

    See all

    Initial Tea - desserts - Updated June 2026

    Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...