After reading some recent reviews, I was afraid it would be a disappointing visit. It actually turned out surprisingly good (probably b/c I lowered my expectation to begin with). We went there during the lunch hour on Thursday, and it was not busy at all. Only 3 tables were occupied. Similar to most of Taiwanese Cafes in L.A., it played sad Chinese songs. I'm fine with that. (more excited to see comic books and Chinese magazines!) I ordered hot milk tea and spare rib rice. It was done quickly. The spare ribs was tender and flavorful. The portion size was about right. The milk tea was okay but nothing special to me. It was made by milk powder. My friend had milk tea with boba and she said it's not bad. Since we don't have that many choices of similar cafes here comparing to California, I think I'll definitely go back when I crave for Taiwanese food and drinks. read more

Tapioca Express - stewed mince on rice + milk tea with boba - Taiwanese Near Me - Redmond, Washington

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I tried their food today, and was impressed! Their popcorn chicken was, for the most part, comparable to what Oasis serves. However, they added tea leaves to the chicken, which was a nice touch. I also had a pork rice with tea leaf egg, which was also yummy. The pork and egg were marinated nicely, but not too salty. At $4.50, it was a very good deal! I decided to give their milk tea another chance, and it did not disappoint. I ordered my usual jasmine milk tea with boba, except I got it hot today, and was happy with it. Strong jasmine flavor like last time, but not overdone with the condensed milk. Overall, a good day at Tapioca Express! read more

If you live on the eastside and need to grab a quick bite late at night, this spot is probably your luck. It opens late, and like many other bubble tea places (if you are familiar with the Ave, you know what I'm talking about), it has a typical looking seating area with couches and chairs. I had my doubts at first considering I'd been spoiled by the abundance of bubble tea places in Seattle. So I tried their avocado chocolate shake since it looked interesting, and it was surprisingly good. We also ordered popcorn chicken and yam fries. One of my friends got the chicken steak meal. They weren't like mind-blowingly delicious but all tasted very good. One quick tip, keep your receipt before you get your food. They call out the items instead of order #'s when food is ready, so it can get confusing when other people order the same things as you. read more

Food: Decent food. Tried the pork belly here which was good but not anything super amazing. Portion was good for the price though. The best food item I've had, and which I'm surprised many haven't spoken about, is their spicy fish cake! SO GOOD! This is probably the one thing I keep going back there for. Drinks: Boba is decent. I once ordered a coconut milk tea with lychee. When I received it, the milk tea was a mocha color which had me a little worried but the girl who made it assured me it was coconut. However, it had tapioca balls instead of lychee, which I pointed out to her and she quickly made me another one. The drink was good once I got it. Did not taste like it was made out of powder which I hate! Service: This is probably their downfall. The times I've been there the service was quick but you don't always get what you ordered. I do want to say that when we were there, there was maybe only a dozen people at the most in the cafe, so not too busy. The worst part is when you first enter the cafe and if you aren't really sure what you want yet, the waitresses can make you feel uncomfortable while you decide. The menu of drinks is HUGE too. They've said hi but it's not very genuine and you can tell they are impatient even though I probably took only two mins to decide. All in all, I go back for the yummy fish cakes and occasional bubble tea but don't expect a friendly welcome. read more

My order usually consists of a cold bubble tea drink and a savory snack. My sister and I frequent this place because it's open pretty late and has nom noms that really hit the spot. I would go as far to say that the following items are amaze-balls: honeydew icy, canteloupe icy, lychee icy, Earl Grey milk tea, black tea (with or without milk...both are the yum), popcorn chicken, fish balls, pork belly, chicken katsu curry, and any of the railroad bentos. Oh! The tofu pudding is good and the meatball soup. Really, there is something for everyone. They even have fries. read more

I'm only writing this review in hopes that the owner reads it and makes some changes. I have been to this place at least a dozen times and EVERY time I go some bad experience happens. I would stop going back but the fact that they're open late is their only saving grace. -On multiple occasions I have arrived anywhere from 30 min-10 min before closing and was refused a blended drink because it was "almost closing time". The staff is always in way too big of a hurry to get out of there, it's uncomfortable. -The cashiers usually don't speak English so you can't ask them much and when you do they kind of just stare at you. The girl staff has always been very snotty and rude. -They are usually out of small tapioca bubbles even though they advertise them on the weekends, and they have also been out of regular bubbles on a few occasions. YOU'RE TAPIOCA EXPRESS, maybe you should prepare more Tapioca. -The drinks are pretty decent, but the wait is at least 10 minutes per drink. Sooo slow. read more

UPDATE: Been coming to this place for about 2 years now since my girlfriend brought me here and introduced it to me. Never knew there was a Bubble Tea place here at the Eastside that opens this late without having to drive all the way to Seattle. Giving it a 5 star now (up 2 stars from my previous review 10 months ago) because: 1.) The bubble tea is STILL pretty dang good. Everytime I come in I try different flavors. Cuz man, their flavor menu for it is a lot. 2.) Their meals are epic and cheap! Try their famous popcorn chicken! 3.) They got a couple of new staff now who works efficiently and swiftly and gives better customer service! 4.) Great place to hang out and/or have a little chat. Not a place for homework or studying though, it gets really loud here especially on weekends. Overall, this place. Good bubble tea, Average service, and a good place to chill. read more

I got the taro icy with boba and it's takes like ice and water with little taro flavor, I had high hopes but not that good. read more

Tapioca Express - Taiwanese Near Me - Redmond, Washington

One star for service, an extra star for decent food The service was RUDE. We ordered a popcorn chicken railroad bento to go and waited by the pickup to get it. When there were a bunch of bentos piled up without any numbers called, I asked about my number and the cashier proceeded to call out another number and just stared at me blankly. When I heard a number that was 2 after mine get called for a bento, I asked why mine wasn't ready yet. The cashier gruffly said they are making it and just wait. After six more numbers I asked another cashier and they took 5 minutes to find out that they stuffed my bento in someone else's bag earlier. This is after I was standing there and asking about my number the whole time!! Another 10 minutes later the original rude cashier finally shows up with a sheepish apology and tried to use the excuse that someone else grabbed my food. Uhhh Noooo-- it is apparent that the cashier stuffed it in a different bag because they couldn't be bothered to do a decent job. tl;dr - TERRIBLE SERVICE, WILL NOT GO BACK read more

Gave this place many chances. Constantly messing up orders, low quality bubble tea and running out of ingredients. Can't speak for the food but something has happened every time I have come for bubble tea. read more

The drinks are like any other bubble tea place in the area the thing that makes this place stand out is the popcorn chicken. The spice is what makes it. Hot and freshly fried with a spice level to your liking. The other thing is that this place makes a yogurt Frost, don't forget to tell them the kind of fruit or you'll just get a blend American yogurt flavored drink. (Since Asians have a different yogurt flavored beverage the small frozen drinks is what I'm talking about) read more

The yogurt frozen drinks are THE BEST. Wow the fruit really complements the drink and the bubbles weren't too sweet or too squishy/ too hard either. Definitely coming back! read more

Tapioca Express - Taiwanese Near Me - Redmond, Washington

WORST SERVICE HERE! DO NOT GO WITH LARGE GROUPS. Me and my friends were around the area and decided to stop by to grab some boba around 10pm. We order our drinks and waited by the pickup area because we assumed it wasn't going to take very long. The place wasn't even that busy. But it had took them AN HOUR to get ALL of our drinks (we only ordered 4 drinks total). We had waited for so long to get all of our drinks that one of our lychee slushes had started melting to the point where it was just liquid consistency. Everyone else who had ordered before us had gotten their drinks much quicker than us. They had also ran out of certain toppings and didn't notify us until we got our order. Also even after waiting for one hour, they still manage to forget one of our drinks because the person before us ordered the same drink as what I had ordered. Overall, rude and forgetful service and I'll be never coming back here again. read more

I saw there are a lot of died bugs in the bottle of vinegar. Apparently they don't check or clean it for weeks.

I've had the Tapioca Express multiple times. Its a decent bubble tea place with pretty good popcorn chicken. You can adjust the spice level of the chicken which is pretty nice.The bento boxes and pork belly over rice also hits the spot when you need a quick pick-me-up. I think there are better bubble tea places but if you need something quick it will do the job. read more

I tried their winter melon boba with pudding and loved it! Also tried their hot ginger milk tea. It wasn't overwhelmingly sweet which is how most of the boba shops make them. And the servers were very sweet and accommodating! We reached literally 5 mins before closing but they still served us the beverages. read more

Great place for drinks and Taiwanese style smoothies/shave ice. Railroad bento box is a good deal, comes with a drink and extra Taiwanese sausage. read more

+Bubble tea, wonton soup, fish balls -No negative experiences My favorite bubble tea by far. I thought 'fish balls' sounded like the weirdest thing until I tried them. So freaking good. Also their wonton soup and popcorn chicken is delicious. If you're in a hurry for lunch, they're happy to take calls in advance so you can schedule a pickup time for your food. read more

What a rip-off! Ordered a large taro milk tea with lychee jelly for $4.60 and $1 tip, and it didn't take long to finish. Found out that more than half the cup filled with ice. Shame on you greedy business! read more

Tapioca Express - Ask for easy ice or you'll be ripped-off! - Taiwanese Near Me - Redmond, Washington

Came here for an impulse stop to pick up a snack and a drink since traffic all around was not the best. I grabbed the green tea milk tea with boba and some fried tofu. Tofu was good. The boba tea was sweet than I would have liked. If you like sweeter drinks then maybe this place is your style. I'm not sure what it was. Maybe the consistency of the drink and the boba was not the freshest. It's not necessarily bad, just expect it to be different than your typical stop if you already frequent a place. read more

Friendly environment and great music! Amazing wifi connection as well. The staff is always friendly. read more

This is one of the only bubble tea shops in the Redmond-Bellevue area that's open pretty late! Not the most consistent with their products but I'm pretty satisfied with what I get most times! I just recently tried their house kumkuat green tea which was very strong but I actually really enjoyed it! They have a wide variety of options from icies to Thai tea. I LOVE their popcorn chicken too, I'd definitely give that a try if you happen to stop by! read more

I was so excited to discover a bubble tea joint close by, and love that they are one of the few places in the area that are open late! They have a huge variety of drink options and every drink I have tried so far has been fantastic. I haven't had a chance to try the food yet, but it always smells delicious! I was recently in with my sister and we forgot to ask for soy in her drink. I fully expected to pay for anther drink since it was our mistake, but the employees were super friendly and offered to remake the drink for no extra charge! I was already a dedicated customer, but I really appreciated such kind customer service! I might have to start cutting back on my Starbucks addiction in favor of Tapioca Express! read more

I have been here many times and every time I come here it takes at least 30 minutes for them then to make milk tea, every time I have came this place was not busy but it still took a while to make it. I will definitely not come here again read more

The shaved ice tastes weird and I don't know if its crossed flavors from something else in the kitchen. Gave it another chance and kept tasting weird. read more

I went to this location looking for the Brazilian coffeehouse, Kitanda, that used to be there. I was disamyed to discover Tapioca Express occupying its place, but being dazed and hungry, I shuffled in anyway. It was a clean, well lighted place, with light colors all around and most notably, tons of people: students, office workers and one very large family sitting around a table near the front. It was a complete contrast to the dim espresso bar, with its dark walls and isolated couples, chatting in Portuguese. The menu was very extensive and was supplemented by a flat-screen T.V. displaying the specials, something I found enormously helpful as I wasn't quite sure what to expect with some of the items, such as fried squid balls. I ordered the pork belly lunch bowl. The kid working the counter asked If I wanted to add a Taiwanese sausage, and If I'd prefer the "tea" egg to a fried one. I said yes to both and also ordered an avocado bubble tea. That particular flavor stuck out to me because a Brazilian friend of mine had (in an instance of tragic irony) recently recommended that I try an authentic Brazilian avocado milkshake, so I ordered it as a forlorn farewall to my long gone coffeeshop. My order was ready promptly; three generous cuts of roast pork belly, a tea-soaked hard boiled egg, a sliced red sausage, and slices of pickled cucumber all resting on a bowl of rice. The pork belly was sweet and tender, each slice with a layer of jellied fat attached to it that easily gave way to my (poorly manipulated) chopsticks. The sausage was savoury and snappy and I was glad I'd elected to pay the extra $1.25 for it. The egg was just that, an egg, hard boiled. But being soaked in tea, the white was brown and the yoke a sort of sickly green, appearance aside, it was a good addition to the meal. The bubble tea was the best I've ever had. It was rich and creamy with big, satisfying tapioca pearls and subtle avocado flavor. It was more like a bubble milkshake and one that I regret discovering because I know I'll be back more often than I should. I walked in very perturbed and walked out a very satisfied customer. I can faintly recall there being another business there before Tapioca Express but it's difficult to think as I'm very full. read more

One of the best Bubble Tea places I've been to as far as Taro flavored Bubble tea goes, but the service is terabad. Note: I have never tried any of the food here. Slow - Last visit I waited 30 minutes for my drink on a Sunday night (~8:30pm) Wrong Orders - Whenever I order a hot drink, they make a cold one. 100% of the time. I have tried so hard to help them get this right. Poor Service - Very condescending attitude from most of the staff. Maybe I smell bad. Clueless Frontman - The guy (always a male) taking your order always seems to be aloof and/or lethargic. No matter who it is, each time I go there. Oh, and I hope this was a one time thing but... my hot drink came out cold again today. When the lady took it back, she scooped out the ice, heated it up, and added water/milk to make up for the amount lost. Needless to say the drink was very watery. I didn't have the patience to ask for another one be remade. read more

I've been going here ever since they opened a location in Bellevue/Redmond. Not only do they serve bubble tea but amazing Taiwanese food. Being in the food industry myself, I understand how stressful it is when the whole store is packed with hungry costumers and the staff handles it very well so be patient waiting in line or getting your food. The two girls working at night are always friendly, polite, respectful and have a smile on their faces. In general, the service and the food are always on point. read more

The drinks are good, with a lot of variety in both flavor and texture. I cannot speak to the food quality, as I've never eaten here. Where this restaurant falls down is service - I've always felt either rushed or like the person behind the counter was only half listening to what I said. read more

This is my most favorite restaurant in Redmond area, especially when u need some snack at night. It opens until 12am on the weekdays and 1am on the weekend. Drinks were really extremely amazing especially the Honeydew Snowbubble. Popchicken has always been my favorit as well. The Bobarista were all very friendly and funny. There's nothing negative I can say from this place. read more

Go when it's not packed. It's the only option for late-night tapioca on the Eastside. Excellent popcorn chicken, too.

This is a review of the boba only. I typically come by on my way home from work or on my way to run errands. The tapioca is always perfectly cooked, and I'm a big fan of their avocado snowbubble. The servers tend to seem a little short, but I chalk that up to them being busy and trying to get orders out as quick as possible. The cafe has lots of seating and some board games, and I often see school kids hanging out with friends or young adults catching up over some of their tasty-looking food, which one day I plan to try. read more

Bubble tea tastes ick, tapioca texture seems artificial, men's bathroom DISGUSTING and hasn't been cleaned in at least a month (reminded me of one of the worst gas station bathrooms). Music playing includes explicit lyrics, so not family friendly. Second time I've been here and won't be coming back. Dumped my drink and went down the road to photai. read more

Good boba and bento boxes ... could be cleaner but the taste is good. Ask for the float cream green tea ... you won't be disappointed.

I love Tapioca. The staffs are superb. They are always polite. I am a fan of their snowbubble. I love their popcorn chicken;It is the best. Their service is really fast as well. The place is neat and clean. I enjoy the songs which they play on their TV. read more

Customer experience is bad. Taste doesn't match the price. The design of outer packaging needs to improve.

Their tea is OK, but what impressed me the most was their RAILROAD BENTO BOX. Got the popcorn chicken bento box to go and when I got home 10 minutes later it was still hot, crunchy and moist. Would definitely come back again for a quick, cheap late night bite. read more

This place has really good popcorn chicken, but service is horrible. My order was given to a different customer and I was asked if I wanted a completely different order that was made for another customer. The expectation is to remake the order the customer asked for. Not to give a different order from a different customers order.... Step 1 at getting returning customers is have respect. read more

Food and drinks are pretty consistent but management isn't consistent when it comes to bubbles with their included drinks when you order a railroad bento. Pretty annoying when you place an order and tell them the drink order, they accept the order and then charge you extra (without telling you) for the boba and enlarged drink. read more

Bubble tea is meh - doesn't taste horrible but definitely doesn't taste good. We tried their bubble waffle (gai dan jai) as well. They were crispy but the taste was definitely underwhelming. Overall a "meh" for us and wouldn't come back. read more