Finally another boba shop in Hayward! And thankfully not a chain! With all the foot traffic, and high population of Asians in the vicinity, the market has been ripe for the taking. Other than T4, there has been a dearth of dedicated boba shops in downtown Hayward, save for a few that have rapidly come and gone in the space now occupied by Susie Q's. Speaking of occupants, Once Tea now takes over at the location formerly known as "TikTok" (which I'm sure eventually received a cease and desist order, thus having to rearrange some letters to name itself "iKot"). Refreshingly, Once Tea is not another one of those "hipster" milk tea shops either, but instead more traditional, with a Chinese menu, and an all Chinese staff. Call me old fashioned, but when it comes to milk tea, I usually prefer the more "authentic" shops. Furthermore, unlike many other places that kick me out for bringing my little furry friend, Once welcomes him with open arms... err, paws, I should say! As a matter of fact, once you enter, you'll notice the canine theme plastered all over, and even on the logo! The only other similarly themed boba shop that I can recall is the now defunct Westea in Pleasanton. The interior is wide and spacious, with a long standing desk/counter on the left, and a few tables with a bench and stools on the right wall. Lastly, the bobaristas are decently friendly, although I wouldn't necessarily say they are super nice or anything. Oh, and I almost about the most important thing... the drinks! I've honestly only tried the Red Bean Milk Tea with added Egg Pudding, 25% sweet, no ice, and it is pretty much spot on with my expectations. I'll definitely order this again, but I'm certainly down to try some of their other concoctions. In closing, I'm just super elated that I no longer have to traverse all the way to Union City or Castro Valley for milk tea after dining at one of the many options in downtown Hayward. Slowly, but surely, things are shaping up in the area. Now, if only someone would take over the former Buffalo Bill's site... read more

ONCE Tea - In the spot once occupied by TikTok in downtown Hayward! 09/13/22 - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

My friend and I came here for some boba. We found via Yelp and it was near where we had lunch. We arrived and no one was inside. The doors were open. We walked up to the kiosk for ordering. We had some questions and the two staff were helpful. My friend and I felt 'old' because we were asking about the drinks, which I feel like are beyond the typical scope of milk tea, lol. I was most curious about the mochi topping. I grew up eating mochi and was curious if it was chunks or something different. It was described as being slippery and gloppy, very technical terms. It wasn't entirely appetizing, but my curiosity remained so I decided to order the mochi milk tea, ha! My friend ordered the Oreo Crème Brûlée milk tea. Note: I almost ordered the crème brûlée, but decided not to because it didn't have a crunchy component like other stores have. The drinks took a few minutes to make, we chatted on the benches. I popped open my drink and thought it was made well. The sweetness and amount of ice were as requested. The mochi was interesting and I think I liked it. It was gloppy and slippery. It was thicker than puff cream, but gloppier than pudding. I'd say more elastic than pudding? If it were thicker, I'd try to blow a bubble with it? My friend enjoyed her drink and had quite a bit of crème brûlée leftover--she was going to take it to pour more tea over at home. Anyway, I think I'd order it again bc I obviously didn't hate it. Hahah! I wouldn't make a trip here just for milk tea, but I would visit this place if I'm already in the area. read more

ONCE Tea - A11. Oreo Brulee Boba Milk Tea (Large) A7. Mochi & Boba Milk Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

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IM SHOCKED! It's actually pretty good!! Brown sugar boba milk tea 10/10 100% sugar 50% ice - don't let the light color fool you...the tea flavor is there! - light and perfect sweetness - boba is kinda old?? Creme brulee boba milk tea 10/10 100% sugar 50% ice - my favorite!! - creme brulee topping tastes super good mixed into the milk tea - tea flavor is very good - boba is old :( This place replaced the beloved iKot ice cream. I'm glad it did! The drinks I got were good and definitely is competitive to the surrounding boba places. I hope this place lasts because their tea flavor is high quality. The staff are still training during this soft opening so be patient! (There's a BOGO 50% drinks right now 9/2 - not sure how long this will last). You'll definitely see me coming back here! read more

ONCE Tea - A1. Brown Sugar Boba Milk Tea (left) A10. Creme Brulee Boba Milk Tea (right) - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

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Cute shop with satisfying boba drinks! Got the Mango Pomelo Sago. Do be aware that their regular isn't one of those larger one-size regulars--it's a regular 16 oz cup. Super cute and yummy but I wish they made the drink in the larger size. Got it at 0% sweet it was still sweet from all the fruits added! read more

ONCE Tea - B9. Mango Pomelo Sago (Regular) - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

We love how soft the boba is compared to others. The sweetness is right and the price is reasonable. It's way better than T4. read more

ONCE Tea - The sweetness is right, price is reasonable - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

3.5 overall, probably will return and get something ~better~ I saw that they had a creme brûlée boba and of course I needed to go. The place is nice and clean, veryyy big. They are 50% BOGO still, so make sure you come and try with a friend or if you wanna save one for later Anywho, I got mine with ice cream & pudding. It tasted like milk lol like straight milk! My boyfriend got the Thai tea and the flavor was on point. Like strong but not too strong, very yummy & he added like three scoops of ice cream & some cheese topping idk what that meant The price point is more than fair, that's why I'd like the return but definitely try out something new. The wait time seriously took forever like 15min just for two drinks & no other orders except for us. I'm guessing because it's a newer spot? The menu is extensive, so you'll definitely find something you'll like. read more

ONCE Tea - A10. Creme Brulee Boba Milk Tea & A4. Thai Boba Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

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There was no parking, so we had to park at the movie theater parking lot. When we walked in there was a family trying to figure how to use the online order system. When they couldn't figure it out, then they ordered with the cashier that was standing there looking at them the whole time. We ended up doing the same thing, because I wanted to make my drink hot, ( the online order system won't let me edit it). I asked the cashier if there were dairy-free alternatives. She looked confuse, and said "no." Once I look up at the menu, and read in the milk tea selection it said "diary-free." I ended up ordering it, but the crème brûlée had dairy in it. I only knew this, because I asked the barista and she confirmed this. The menu need some work, and the online system need to reflect the actual menu( hot/cold), then I should be able to change it. If the crème brûlée had dairy, then it should not be under the dairy-free section on the menu. I think the cashier was new and nice; but uncertain when she told me there was no dairy alternatives. I almost left, and walked away. But I wanted to give this new place a try. The drinks ended up to be really good, and the tapioca were super soft. read more

ONCE Tea - A11. Oreo Brulee Boba Milk Tea (Large) A10. Coco Nutella Milk Tea (Regular) - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

This place is quick and easy. A little hard to get to because of all the one way streets but once you are here you are good. This place replaced an ice cream joint. I hope they last longer than the last place that held their spot. They have oat milk super happy! And no up charge for the oat milk. I had to write it in to get it in my rose milk tea with lychee jelly. Would not recommend the rose milk tea but then again it wasn't on the menu. Also order E3 - passionfruit & mango green tea with boba instead of aloe. The passionfuit is fresh and has the seeds/pulp. Very sweet. Most boba spots it's artificial NOT HERE :) Have to type in all your substitutions no easy minus button. Boba and Lychee was only $.50! Prices for boba are decent. $.75 to make your regular a large. No real customer service might as well be robots. Manual ordering the baristas never even acknowledged me. Only when handing my drink and offering me a bag. They have competition with T4 on the same street a few doors down. Would come to try another drink. read more

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4.5 Despite the limited reviews, I decided to give this boba shop a try, and I'm glad I did. The drinks took a little bit longer to make, but you could tell the baristas wanted to ensure the drinks were great. I really enjoyed the Brown Sugar Boba Milk Tea and Crème Brûlée Boba Milk Tea. Both were very delicious and one of the better boba places in the Bay Area that I have tried. If you don't like super sweet drinks, I recommend adjusting the sweetness level. Even with the adjustment, it was still sweet enough for me. read more

ONCE Tea - A1. Brown Sugar Boba Milk Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

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I've seen ONCE Tea on all the food apps and have passed by multiple times. I FINALLY got to try it during this year's May Day festival. Because of the festival and the fact that it was a hot day in May, they were busyyyyy! The shop is small so there wasn't a lot of seating, and a lot of people were just standing waiting for their drinks. The line was long and the employees were all making drinks/snacks. They had 2 kiosks available (one was the regular register/POS system I think) so we could all put in our own orders and pay via card. Even with the nonstop line of people, they were getting those orders out quick! From the time we entered the tea shop to the time we walked out had to be max 15 minutes. Since I was in the mood for something refreshing, I ordered the Pineapple Sparkling ($4). So perfect for a hot day! I liked that it tasted like the sweetness primarily came from the fruit rather than a syrup. I'm on the fence about how I feel about the crushed pineapple in it - on one hand I think I might like it more without it, but I also like that it shows it's fresh. My fiancé got the passion fruit green tea lemonade with crystal boba ($6). He doesn't usually like toppings in his drink but he said it worked really well here and that the drink was super refreshing. All in all, a great experience on what must've been such a hectic day for them. Will def be back on a calmer day to try other items! read more

ONCE Tea - D8. Pineapple Sparkling & F5. Passion Fruit Green Tea Lemonade with Crystal Boba - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

Came here on a Friday evening and parking was a bit crazy. Someone was double parked in front of the business blocking the street. Finally found a spot in a lot across the street and made the trek. Turns out, the very rude people blocking the road with their hazards, turned out to be inside the tea shop ordering food. The walk was a bit far but I was pretty surprised someone would do that. The store is open and spacious, however there is little or no seating; just a bench along the wall. Also, the floor was quite sticky and there were marks on the wall and dirt; just overall not very clean. You order at a kiosk and the drinks only took about 5 minutes, which was good. The thai tea was just ok and the boba was tougher than we like. We also got milk tea with pudding, red bean and boba. I would get it again (hold the boba) but it was more like a meal than a drink. I was really excited to try this place because they have a unique menu, but based on my experience, I don't know if I would return to try more. read more

ONCE Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

New boba shop in downtown Hayward by the movie theatre. I believe this used to be an ice cream and desserts shop. It wasn't busy at all on a Saturday afternoon so service was really quick and there was plenty of space inside. The theme and decor of the shop is based around dogs, as seen on their signage, cups, and cute seat cushions. Order using the Snackpass kiosk at the counter or the app. Drinks here are on the sweeter side so I would adjust to 25% next time. I ordered the Pineapple & Passion Fruit Green Tea With Crystal Boba which was way more sweet than I expected and missing the tartness of the fruits. read more

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I've only been here twice, but it should've been ONCE. Awful joke aside, my experience here has been subpar. The Green Tea Lemonade w/ Tea Jelly (E2) had a weird aftertaste. Not good. The Special Mango Green Tea slush with tea jelly (E6) is basically mango syrup and ice, not very tasty. The Brown Sugar Boba Latte (B1) and the Brown Sugar Boba Milk Tea (A1) are good. I've also had the takoyaki, and it was cold in the middle. read more

Yessssss! I finally got the chance to visit this place! All I gotta say is I fell in love. Employees were great with the order I like how they ask questions with the substitution or something it can not be accommodated which sometimes I make my order completely complicated LOL Place was really roomy I loved the shiba inus cushion I wanted to take it home :( Avocado & Mango Smoothie with Crystal Boba added Crema and Ice cream because I am extra I even wanted to add all toppings teeeheeee I was excited to try out this boba! Never knew Avocado & Mango can be together and it turns out to be absolutely the yummiest I really recommend it! with 75% sugar LOL with the added ice cream don't over do it.I was bummed when they didn't add my regular boba since I added a note in the comment section so it made me kind of sad but not a biggie I moved on. Strawberry Blizzard with Sago was perfectly done it was also 75% with added whipped cream ahhhhh I couldn't get enough of it! Too much boba in one day but overall it was worth it! Definitely will come back until I see you guys again! ;) read more

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4 stars. Once tea has a good selection of classic boba drinks and it satisfied my tea craving. My drink was not too sweet, yet still retained the mango passion fruit flavoring. The tea didn't feel too watered down, which tends to be a problem for a lot of boba shops, so I appreciated that. But it was still overall nothing super special and it felt like a standard boba shop. The branding was cute and the interior was clean. The service was fine, my drink came out in a timely manner. Considering the proximity of this shop, I think it's a solid boba spot to go to. I probably wouldn't go out of the way for it, but if I'm in the area again and just want a solid drink, I'd come back. read more

ONCE Tea - Mango and Passion Fruit Green Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

Always on the look out for different boba shops & had Once Tea bookmarked. While their teas are fresh & well made, the cup size is small for the price you pay. Interior: This spacious shop had the left & right back walls available for sitting. Although their health score is good, their floors were a bit sticky & dirty, so when I walked you could hear my footsteps. Orders: Peach Sparkling Drink - Peach syrup,sparkling water with fresh slices of orange & lime. This was amazingly refreshing with the infused orange & lime slices, it definitely gave this drink a boost of vitamin C, a feel good sense after you drink it. Mango Pomelo Sago - You first sip the plentiful sago infused with mango & if you like sago you won't be disappointed. Another fresh taste of the tropical islands that is very satisfying. My only disappointment is for $6.25 the size. This is by far the smallest drink size I've had for the price, so as much as I like Once drinks, I'll pick locations closer to home. read more

I love once tea, the green tea peach lemonade always hits, it is so sweet and refreshing and love the mix of tea and lemonade my favorite, they have a big variety of drinks and the milk teas are good too. A very good boba spot in my rotation will keep coming back. read more

Ordered: Brown sugar milk tea (comes with boba) When: Sunday evening around 7pm Where: B St. next to Hayward Theater Pearls were a little too chewy, not fully cooked but the flavor of the drink was so good, I'll accept it. I called in my order but i was supposed to give a size and I didn't. So when I got there the lady said she forgot to ask for my size. So while I was paying with the cashier, the lady who took my call made my drink real quick. I never left the counter, I was in and out on a Sunday evening (7pm). I would come back here again since it is closer to me than U-Cha my other fave local spot. read more

ONCE Tea - A1. Brown Sugar Boba Milk Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

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Decent bubble tea shop in Hayward. My friend and I met for drinks here yesterday. We ordered Boba milk tea with oat milk and French fries. The drinks were good and snack made fresh. The only complaint I have is the seating. Not convenient at all. I had to almost stand and struggled sitting in the high chairs. It would be good to have few tables and chairs. Would amp up the experience. read more

ONCE Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

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Tried their Thai boba tea+creme brûlée and fried chicken. Both were good! Will be back. Nice to have good a good boba spot in DT Hayward. Hopefully they stick around. read more

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It's OK. I got two drinks, Mango Passion Tea with Crystal Boba and Strawberry Blizzard. I asked them to substitute the crystal boba for grass jelly- they did not do it. It's quite annoying when drinks come with set toppings, that are not substitutable.... The fruit tea was 75% sugar, but tasted strongly of passionfruit, which was very tarty and sour. The strawberry blizzard was good though, but still pretty sweet at 50% sugar... sweeter than my 75% sugar green tea? Maybe it varies between drinks, but that should be noted on the menu. Their regular boba portion is not very generous. My drink had double the crystal boba and barely any regular boba. Strawberry blizzard 8/10 Mango Passionfruit 4/10 read more

ONCE Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

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Honestly, the San Leandro and Hayward area is very lacking when it comes to good boba/fruit drinks places. The hubs and I typically just go to iTea because they have my mango sago but it never hit the spot. I always enjoyed Ume from Dublin. Now we got ONCE on a Friday night and I was so happy. The mango sago pomelo really hit the spot. I got it with 50% sweet and it was just right. The hubs got the mango blizzard and it tasted super mango-y with a creaminess to it. It definitely wasn't coconut creamy tho. Will definitely come back! Pro tip: there are parking lots around the corner of the place because you can't double park on that one way street. read more

First time to be here and try the drink. Just not satisfied with the mango pomelo sago. Never seen a whole piece of pomelo put inside. It's shown regular size when we placed order. We added extra crystal boba. It's not worth of $7 for this kind of drink. read more

ONCE Tea - Mango B9. Mango Pomelo Sago (Regular) not recommended. - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

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I tried ONCE Tea in downtown Hayward, and I'm not quite sure if this place will end up making it or not. Only time will tell. I ordered 3 different drinks, and 2 of them came as a large, while one came as a small, weird. The cashier didn't ask us what sizes we want, so I thought it was weird one came as a small. A.11 Oreo Brûlée Boba Milk Tea (Large) E3. Passion Fruit & Mango Green Tea with Aloe (Large) A5. Boba, Pudding and Red Bean Milk Tea (Regular) I will say the drinks are okay, they are decent at best. Nothing special at all, and the regular sized drink was not worth $5 + dollars it costed. I'm not entirely sure why it wasn't made as a large as well, like the rest. Again, the cashier didn't ask what sizes we wanted. Also, being in Downtown Hayward, you would think they would try to offer discounts for students who attend CSUEB, but they don't offer any discounts. It's nice that there is a new milk tea shop down here, but I think in this area, T4 down the street takes the business. read more

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New boba place in downtown Hayward. Parking on streets along with public parking lots. Came on Monday afternoon for boba. Indoor seating available. No one inside so no wait. Ordered the strawberry blizzard 50% sweet which came with small sago. Around $7. Pretty good drink, very creamy with bits of fruit chunks. Would try other drinks too. read more

ONCE Tea - B5. Strawberry Blizzard - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

Y'all need to come and check this place out because it is a solid 10 out of 10. I saw that this location opened up in the heart of downtown Hayward. It's a very simple shop with an aesthetic of black and white. I do suggest taking a look at the menu earlier and picking what you want, before you get to the ordering tablet it might be a good idea for the business to purchase another tablet, because it takes more time to order than to receive your drink. I absolutely loved the peach lemonade with lychee jelly and a passion fruit mango with lychee jelly. I highly suggest making the sugar percentage zero since it is already very very sweet but if you don't get any toppings, I suggest making the sugar 25% Solid and delicious spot for Boba in Hayward. This is definitely the best spot in the Hayward Castro Valley area. read more

Very good drinks! There's not many great boba places near me in San Leandro so I'm happy this place opened up! This place reminds me of Sunright tea and Ume. The boba and the mochi topping were good and perfect consistency! I love my drinks sweet so enjoyed all the drinks we ordered! We ordered the Strawberry blizzard and it had sago in it with fresh strawberry fruit at the bottom. I LOVE whipped cream on smoothies! We also ordered a Strawberry Green Tea with Cheese topping and we added mochi topping as well - it's a similar drink we would get at Ume and it's on par. Lastly, we ordered a Oreo Brûlée Milk Tea with boba - my husband liked this drink the most. I'd definitely come back! Lots of great options on the menu! read more

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Located in downtown Hayward, the shop could still use some effort and interior design work getting the ambiance and environment right as it's lacking any real character. Drinks are good, especially for the area but are on the sweeter side. Spacious interior but dirty tables and seat cushions will probably turn any sit-ins into to-go orders. Drinks for to-go orders really should be capped too as standard practice. read more

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I stumbled upon this place while waiting for my husband after work. I've only tried the Peach tea lemonade and it was real good. You walk in and are greeted by the friendly staff. They have these 2 big screens with the menu items. When you're ready, you place your order on an IPad and pay with card or cardless (gpay/Apple Pay). It's all drinks but they had tons of options. Service was super fast since all the workers are just focused on drinks. If I wasn't in such a rush that day I probably would've tried some other drinks to share with family but I will be back! read more

This place is okay if you need a boba pick me up! Typical Bay Area pricing but I find their drink quality is average. Milk tea flavor is relatively flat, plus the texture of their boba is inconsistent. read more

Tried a new boba spot and it was pretty good! Had the traditional Thai tea, just wanted to try it so didn't deep dive this place too much just yet. But based on the results I think I'll definitely be a return customer! read more

ONCE Tea - A4. Thai Boba Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

Our company ordered a bunch of drinks for all the employees today. The four options were brown sugar milk tea with boba, peach green tea with aloe, milk tea with boba and the strawberry matcha with boba. I picked the strawberry matcha with boba and it was so deliciously good. You can taste the fresh strawberry purée and the sweetness was just right. Surprisingly I couldn't taste much of the matcha but the color was on point. The boba was very soft and chewy and it complemented the drink well. I'm actually quite surprised that this place opened up in Hayward and i never got a chance to try it. Anyways, I will stop by in the future to try their other drinks. read more

Their boba was not clean, one had plastic attached to it and another had was a small white plastic

Love this place......... from the first time I was here I couldn't believe all of the different flavors and styles of boba tea, milk tea I definitely recommend this place go and try it out New Years new milk tea and boba plus they have appetizers like popcorn chicken sesame balls ,shrimp tempura read more

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I like coming to ONCE. The flavor of their tea is good and their boba is normally cooked perfectly with a little flavor. Service is usually quick as well. Parking here can be tough so you have to park in the garage or farther down the street as this is downtown, but overall would definitely be back! read more

My family and I decided to check this place out last night since we were in the area and wanted some boba. We ended up getting the classic boba milk tea, the avocado and mango smoothie, the strawberry blizzard, and the Oreo brûlée boba milk tea. All of the drinks were amazing. There was a little bit of a wait since only two employees were handling everything but honestly it was worth the wait. We would definitely return when we are in the area again. read more

Ok, I've been back a few times since the first. Because the drink was amazing! I usually get one of the strawberry ones with boba. I end up just ordering online on the way there and picking up. That ends up being much more efficient. But I still would not go in and just order because of the long wait I experienced the first time. read more

I visited Hayward and saw this boba shop. The lady working there was really nice. I wanted to order a classic milk tea first, she told me it's not fresh milk and fresh tea, instead it's made with powder. That's actually a huge red flag for any boba shop that I should have walked out at that time knowing that this place is for sure not authentic. But somehow I decided to try a brown sugar latte made with fresh milk. I ordered hot and 25% sugar. When I got my drink, it was way over sweet, it felt like it's not 25% more like 125%. I can't imagine how a regular sugar drink would taste like from this place. I threw the entire cup after two sips. read more

ONCE Tea - Over over sweet brown sugar latte even at 25% sugar - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California

Friendly service, clean store, it's on a busy street in downtown Hayward so it's hard to find parking... There's no milk substitutes.. soo if you can't have milk, gotta opt for their fruit teas. I got 75% sweetness and it was still very sweet.. Overall, this place was okay. Tried it ONCE and I think I'm good. Lol. read more

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I had Strawberry Blizzard it's was delicious !! but special mango green tea smoothie was ok. I would definitely come back. Staff was very nice read more

ONCE Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Hayward, California