I recently picked up a small Lemon cake and a Strawberry cake from Morning My Day in Silver Spring…read more I was expecting a decent dessert; I wasn't expecting to be reminded that most other bakeries have been lying to us for years. The first bite was a bit of a shock to the system. It's one of those rare "Ratatouille moments" where a flavor profile manages to bridge the gap between Maryland and the legendary sponge cakes of Phoenix Bakery in LA. It's a bit of a trick, really--making something taste like a childhood memory without being cloying about it. The Breakdown: * The Sponge: It's exceptionally light. Biting into it is less like eating a dense dessert and more like biting into a sweetened, high-end pillow. It's airy, delicate, and possesses the kind of structural integrity that only a professional (or a wizard) could manage. * The Icing: A triumph of restraint. Instead of the usual sugary plaster one finds elsewhere, this is a light, white cream. It's sweet enough to let you know it's there, but it doesn't try to dominate the conversation. It's icing with a bit of dignity. * The Verdict: This is how cake ought to be. It's exquisite, technically brilliant, and far too easy to eat in a single sitting. If you appreciate a dessert that relies on craft rather than a massive dose of corn syrup, do yourself a favor and stop by. It's a legit bit of baking excellence right here in Silver Spring

I've stopped by this tiny bakery twice now! The first time I got a mochi and red bean bun, which…read morewas pretty good - soft bread with a comforting filling. The cheese and pork sung bun I had this last time didn't really have any flavor - normally pork sung is really flavorful, so I was surprised. It was also a bit dry. However, I like the space and the range of offerings. I don't know that I would get a bun again, but I'm very curious about the milk tea! Staff is very nice and the prices are reasonable. There isn't much seating, so plan to take your order to go.

Introduction to another part of my in-town runner-ups from my alphabet series:…read more Finished my prior to 2018 to 2024 alphabet series, but before continuing onto my 2025 picks, I realized when choosing 2025 picks, I had more that were out of town on vacation than in town, and I wanted to support local places (even if they are chains in some cases) in central MD & DMV. For example, my original K pick representing 2018 was in Wilmington, DE. I didn't have a runner-up replacement for 2018 representing O, which was a restaurant in Lancaster, PA or V, one in Tempe, AZ. So, K is for Kung Fu Tea is the only business representing 2018 for the runner-up business. Kung Fu Tea experience: I first discovered Kung Fu, I think in the early part of 2018. From 2017 to 2020, I lived in Wheaton, so downtown Silver Spring wasn't far. I went to this location a few times in this time period. In summer 2018, I took 2 or 3 dates to this location after dinner or what have you. We drank our boba tea outside. This is a very small location with perhaps a couple of inside benches but mainly for to go. I guess if the weather was bad, you could hang in Ellsworth Place, the mall connected to the Kung Fu Tea. Boba tea is solid here, but there are some better places. In 2024, I was down here for an advanced movie screening at Regal Majestic, and I had a 20% off at Kung Fu Tea. The cashier couldn't figure out how to redeem the deal, so I walked out because the 20% off was the catalyst for going there in the first place. So, I wasn't impressed with the staff that day. I like some other locations better.

Great bubble tea shop here in Downtown Silver Spring and in fact the only one here. It is part of…read morea large chain but staff and tea is great. There is no seating inside but that is okay.

I was craving some boba and this spot was one of the spots that opened late. The menu offered a…read moregood variety like milk teas, fruity teas, fruit smoothies, and even acai bowls. I decided to get the aloe grapefruit tea with 75% sweetness and it definitely hit the spot. The fruit did not taste artificial at all and I like how they put real fruit in the drink! The drinks also came out pretty fast.

Literally the only boba place in Rockville opened past 10 PM on a week day. My sister and I decided…read moreto swing by last night after dinner in DC because mainly she wanted something sweet. I opted for the taro milk tea (0% sugar) with white pearls. The pearls itself were sweet enough so you truly don't need to add any unnecessary sugar, it'll be too much. It's a self-serve location where you order on a device . They made our drinks pretty quickly. Not the best boba I've had in the area but I can't complain cause it wasn't bad either. Very small seating area with a few card/board games. Would recommend take out primarily for this place.

Teazzi is a small tea shop in "Bethesda Row". They have a a lot of variety, but I opted for my…read morego-to Matcha Latte. This was my first time visiting and it was a pleasant experience. I walked in, was greeted and directed to a kiosk where I could order. I like that there were multiple options for sweetness including 10 and 30%. My order came up fairly quickly and I enjoyed my matcha on my walk home.

This shop focuses on tea with oats and with oatmilk. I was a tad surprised there weren't any cherry…read moreblossom specials on (yes, I know the cherry blossoms aren't Taiwanese; all sorts of businesses have seasonal specials), but they were out of even some basic stuff. However, the oat milk and tea combination I was able to get delivered an impressive flavor, with a nice contrast of sweet and bitter. Adding some freshly waffle pieces was okay, but the sauce they came with was a little light. The overall selection wasn't huge, but it doesn't bother me too much as you get get the same things in a bunch of generic boba shops. What they offered here was more distinctive and interesting.

LOVE. I got the…read moresuper fruit green tea with 70% sugar and leechee jelly. It was light and tasty. Had enough green tea to pick me up for the afternoon. Shoutout to the staff! One of the staff members answered all my questions and offered me a sample. One thing for FYI, if you are lactose intolerant, all of the milk teas are made with regular milk (unfortunately). I was a bit disappointed but I was pleased with my fruit tea.

There's quite a few boba options in College Park! I stopped in this one while waiting for food at…read morenearby Eastern Gournet. My go to boba is usually one of the milk tea series. I switched it up and went with a fruit tea. The "super fruit four season tea" was very refreshing! I did 70% sugar, 50% ice and a mango jelly topping. I placed the order on the kiosk and it was ready quickly! There's alot of seating available. Next time I'll try a milk tea which I'm sure I'll love.

The pho is okay, nothing special. The service was not good--an older man was rude and did not speak…read morepolitely to me as a customer. They charged extra for a bag and to-go box without informing me beforehand. Also, the prices charged were different from what was listed on the menu. Overall, not a great experience.

The food was decent. I got the beef dish, the sauce was good but the beef had a lil gamey taste to…read moreit. When I mixed the rice with the sauce that tasted good. We shared fried chicken. That also had good sauce and it was crispy. Overall it had decent food. The staff were friendly but took a while to take our orders. That could be cuz they were busy and not enough staff. Also we did order in 3 different phases so I could understand if it was confusing. But they were nice.

Pretty cafe over in College Park. Get their Hong Kong Style hot milk tea with no toppings and…read moreyou'll get your drink in this niiiice glass bottle to-go! Pretty good drink, not too sweet. Smooth. Cozy vibes here perfect for an easy morning coffee/tea or study sesh. Plenty of parking in the back. Honestly will go back just for these glass containers. Recommended!

Ive had more than my share of milk teas here in the US, overseas in the land of boba, Taiwan, and…read morein HK and this place sadly fell short of what it could be. First, their location is very inconvenient unless you are on foot, which may be great for U of MD students, but if you are in a car, its a disaster when it comes to parking. This business even has a sign saying ask about a parking pass and they are not responsible if your car is towed. This alone makes this place already super unattractive. I fought my instincts and gave this place a try, but honestly, felt like I wasted $12. They have a digital kiosk where you can order your drinks and I chose a HK style milk tea (hot) with less sugar and also a jasmine milk tea with boba. The ordering for the jasmine tea was weird because it has an option to choose $1 extra for boba but if you scroll a little further down, you can get boba, no extra charge. I thought that was a bit sneaky, which I didn't appreciate. I waited about 15 min and then my order was ready. The HK style milk tea was supposed to be in a glass container but I only saw the sign after I ordered that they didnt have glass containers. That really sucked. The other issue is that when my HK style milk tea (hot) was ready, it was barely warm, which also was disappointing as it was a bit cool outside and I wanted something hot to warm me up. The HK milk tea also wasn't that great either, nothing special. I've had HK milk teas for about $2 elsewhere and they were great, but this was overpriced and lukewarm. I wont be ordering this again. The other drink seemed OK as I ordered it for someone else. I also thought this place was kind of dirty and could have been more clean. Not sure why the windows looked so dirty. I found the place kind of gross and it just didnt feel as clean as I like businesses to be. Overall, a pretty underwhelming experience. You get one chance to make a good impression especially when there are so many boba options available. I definitely wont be coming back here again.

Mi La Cay totally hit the spot!! Their pho has such a clean yet deeply flavorful brothz Another…read morestandout for me was the banh mi -- the bread is definitely on the harder side, but the pork is seasoned SO well that I've been craving it ever since. Prices are super reasonable, especially for the quality and portion sizes, which makes it an easy go-to. Service is quick and straightforward; nothing over the top, but efficient. I'll definitely be back to work my way through more of the menu!

I have a friend that lives in the area, and we visit her for a meal every time we're in DC to visit…read moremy in-laws. She recommended Mi La Cay and it was such a great choice. They have parking in front and we were able to grab a table for the 4 of us no problem. It was 11:30am on a Saturday. I had the pho with everything and it was great. The price was right, the broth was light and flavorful, not too oily or greasy. I also had a Vietnamese iced coffee, which hit the spot. No notes. Food was great, we were left alone to chat for a long time, and they were so nice. I would definitely come back here the next time we're in town.

Representing 2020 in alphabet series, K is for Kokee Tea. I first had Kokee Tea at Fair Oaks Mall…read moreof all places a few years earlier and remembered it was way better than Kung Fu Tea. I had it a couple of times in Wheaton Mall when I lived in Wheaton. One of the times that was noteworthy was in January 2020. I was in the office that morning in Columbia, and my girlfriend of that time had called or texted saying that she was really sick, she was struggling breathing, and to take her to the doctor. I'm like I'm at work, but I have Montgomery County (Rockville) work travel I happened to be able to do this afternoon. So, I can swing by Wheaton to pick her up to go to an urgent care by the mall. I waited with her at urgent care. The doctor gave her pills or something and commented that it's been a particularly bad winter with bad colds that have come in. Afterward, we went to the mall to get a bubble tea at Kokee Tea & maybe eat lunch too in the mall. We enjoyed the Kokee Tea. Staff is nice & efficient, prices are comparable to Kung Fu Tea, but better quality in my opinion. We didn't realize it at the time, my girlfriend likely had Covid, which wasn't diagnosed in the US until late February 2020. Her work was interesting. In early January, they had people who had work travel in the office from China. Her work was furloughed not long after that. Then, she had symptoms of Covid not long after that. Anyway, it was an interesting time. If in Wheaton Mall, I'd be back at Kokee.

Never noticed this location before. It's a stand right before the food court on the second level of…read moreWheaton Mall so it's easy to miss. I've tried the Columbia location which is a brick and motar. I got the brown sugar milk tea with boba (of course). They don't do different sizes which is fine because this standard size was perfect. There are options for the milk choice and at an extra cost. My tea was good and service was quick.

This is a great little grocery store specializing in mainly SE Asian groceries and I enjoy coming…read morehere when in town. Owner is a nice guy and always very helpful and chatty with his customers. Today I came in and saw fresh mango with chili available, so I picked up some. There was also papaya salad in the fridge, so I grabbed one of those too! The sliced mango with chili was $5.50 and the papaya salad was $7.95 and both were excellent! I also picked up some incense sticks, vermicelli, some Asian drinks including pennywort and Mr Brown coffee, preserved plums, and soy sauce. I was disappointed that no buffet style food was available and I guess they may not serve it on Sundays but hoping to try some next time I am back. I love this place as they have so many ready items and most have been very good! Give this place a try, you might just like it as much as I do!

Everyone was so nice and helpful and prices were 1/3 less than Whole Foods for sauces and frozen…read morefood. I was a bit underwhelmed with the produce section though. Half empty and sort of sad looking.