Tapioca Express is your average boba spot with a wide drink selection and food as well! I have mixed reviews for their drinks. I usually get the Thai Tea Snow Bubble with boba which is always pretty good. However, one day I order a Guava Icey and the guava flavor wasn't as good as I expected it to be. The do have a lot more different flavors I have yet to try. They have a pretty good selection of food and snacks to choose from. I recommend the crispy chicken in Medium heat. The rice dishes are fairly priced as well. The location of this Tapex is crammed inside of a tiny plaza with small parking spots. It gets really hectic at rush hour times and finding parking can become a pain. Overall, I'd definitely still come here for their drinks and snacks. There's a good amount of seating inside as well for hanging out with friends. I still have yet to try many other drinks here! read more

I've only been here once but would return again. I ordered peanut better and Oreo I think. The good thing about this place they have soy milk. I don't have dietary restrictions but just my preference. The staff is very nice and will be more the gracious to answer questions. Yes, I had a few to ask since this was treat day. The parking can be a bit of an issue during those lunch times. But it's constant moving of cars if not then just a block away around the corner you maybe able to find luck on a spot. The store was clean and not dirty. The employee are also wiping tables constantly. It has a perfect location in the corner so you really can't miss the place. It reminds me of Starbucks as far as the inside. read more

Love the drinks!!!! I've never been disappointed. Never ordered the food there but, there were plenty of people on a Tuesday night having dinner. read more

Tapioca Express - Mango frosti and jasmine milk tea - Coffee & Tea Near Me - San Diego, California

OK--walking into this location I am blown away by how modern it looks in comparison to its other establishments. The woodwork on its interior is a step up from IKEA, and they have electrical outlets at every table. The service is very fast. However, the food here is a hit or miss. For some reason, my drinks would sometimes taste too powdery, like a typical taro milk tea. The other night I had the guava variant of their snow bubble and it tastes like water. Their coffee is well prepared, and their Vietnamese coffees are strong. They have some board games here and TV for people to lounge around. It seems to be a necessity for those who're waiting next door to get into their crab house restaurant. In addition, parking in this complex is a nightmare. If you're here just to hang out, there are better places where that can happen. read more

Tapioca Express has been one of my favorite franchises for a very long time, and this one has great drinks and fast service. Only huge complain is that parking is terrible at all times. My favorite is coffee milk tea. read more

I've been to a lot of milk tea babo places. So far this is my favorite place there tapioca balls is just right there and drinks are just blended perfectly nice and smooth and creamy read more

Tapioca Express - $4.50 roughly #taro - Coffee & Tea Near Me - San Diego, California

They have poor customer service. You say hello they just look at you to order. You say thank you dead silent. Otherwise the food is pretty good. read more

It's a good place to grab a drink and snacks to hangout with your friend. This place has a decent bubble tea and good selection of snacks. Their bubble tea is okay, there are better places around (e.g. Kungfu Tea, Dingtea, Sharetea). However, I really like their popcorn chicken. It's crispy, juicy and full on flavor. read more

Lots of drink options, boba itself is pretty good. Nice place to chill, location surrounded by Asian food. read more

Tapioca Express - Durian snow bubble - Coffee & Tea Near Me - San Diego, California

Tapex has a lot of potential. It is not bad, and the spaciousness of the shop is nice. I found the Thai tea a little bland, lacking flavor, but I loved the rice and wontons. It is quiet at night, a great place for studying. My only complaint is the customer service. Maybe I'm asking for a lot here, but I don't think it's too hard to smile at your customers when taking the order. I work in customer service, so I know sometimes customers can be real jerks, or maybe you're just having a bad day. But you represent the business.. good customer service can make or break a business. Every time I come, the customer service is lacking. But the ambiance is great, nice seating arrangements and entertainment. read more

FOOD: 1.) Regular Pearl Milk Tea = It was good, normal. 2.) Strawberry Milk Tea = ew, they use regular black milk tea. It's better with Green milk tea! *it's a dollar cheaper than in Bay Area! SERVICE: normal ATMOSPHERE: Has nice interior design, but it would be nice if the seats were clean!! Hella dirty. But the background music is coo, and they have free wireless. read more

This place has its pros and cons.. Pros: Awesome hang-out place for teenagers..oh wait but I'm not a teenager..so what am I doing there? LOL. This place is an awesome hang out place PERIOD. Aside from being a cool hang-out place, it opens pretty late, midnight on weekdays and 1 AM on weekends. Cons: Can be really loud..and no its not the kids that r making the noises..its the loud music. I just hate having to repeat myself to my friends so that they can hear me! Another disadvantage..there is only one bathroom for both sexes..FYI to Tapioca Express..while we're hanging out drinking our milk teas and listening to your overly loud music has it ever occurred to you that having too much fluids in our body makes us want to dispose them every 30 minutes??? Moving along..my favorite drink is ice jasmine tea with green apply jelly!! read more

Boba is my one true love! This place is always popular especially at night time, don't know why but everyone always comes out at like 11PM or so. There are a TON and I mean A LOT of choices of different drinks and food you can get here. There are all kinds of combinations you can get here, and there are different bobas as well, such as worm boba, jellys, etc. Now I am a simple person, and ever since my very first visit to Tapex, I have only ordered Milk Tea with boba, and I still love it after at least 100 times. I have ordered a different drink only once in my life, and that was to get Thai Tea with boba, and that didn't taste so good, so went back to Milk Tea =) For food, I usually get the Crispy Chicken meal, man it's so good. I also get the Fries; be warned, the spice here is really powdery, but it's still really good! All the workers here are really friendly and very generous. Is something is wrong with your order, just politely tell them and they will make sure to make a new one with no hesitation. You can tell they're great people cause they're Tip Cup ("Pond"?) is always full of money! I have tried countless drinks from friends, and everything is great here. Even though I stick to one drink, I recommend you to try a different drink every visit, just to see what you get! Interesting fact: Every little boba ball has like 10-20 calories in it, so imagine eating all those bobas in the drink? But you know what, it's not stopping me from drinking my Milk Tea!! read more

Rough parking, hot, noisy, a little dirty, but they still get four stars for HAVING THE BEST BOBA IN THE WORLD! ;) read more

Whenever you feel like having a quick snack, tapioca express is a good place to go. Tapioca Express offers an extensive beverage menu, with prices for all drinks ranging around $3-$5. There are teas, juice, flavored milk, snow bubbles (smoothies), milk teas, ices, and more that have the option of coming with pearls, jelly, or fruit. They also sell snacks and combo meals that include spicy popcorn chicken, calamari rings, fried squid balls, and other small snacks. The restaurant also offers specials in addition to the regular menu which are written on a chalkboard in the front of the store. Although the boba is just okay, I still come here a lot because of the warm environment and the food. Recommended! read more

If this place is the reason why Green Tea House that was a few stores down is no longer in business, that makes me sad. But aside from that, this place had good service, fast service, the drinks are made consistently the same. I preferred Green Tea House boba... After visiting the Tapioca Express down in National City, it makes me appreciate this location even more. Although... the parking at this location is really bad. read more

Really clean and large location! Cool vibe! Quick and friendly service! Quick warning that shopping center looks like crap and the parking lot is very small and jam packed with cars. It is very hard to navigate around this parking lot. You can park on the street I recommend doing so. Note - that it looks like there are some interesting places to eat in the shopping center read more

Love this place, i usually go for their crispy chicken rice combo; comes with crispy chicken, rice, egg, and steamed veggies =BOMB! Also comes w/ jasmine green tea or black tea or water as a drink. Around $8. Unfortunately parking is limited, the structure of the parking makes it hard to maneuver yourself through the traffic and turns. But that's not tapex' fault, but their food is definitely worth it! read more

Poor customer service. Order fried tofu snack during my lunch break but instead, they gave me tater tots. I was very upset.... I wish I could've checked my food before leaving the place but I have to work. read more

The staff here is really rude. Seriously, there is one guy who is at the register who always has a mean look on his face. He has an attitude as if he never wants to serve you and would rather not be there, it just came off as it is really rude. I don't even know why he is still employed because if this was my franchise, I would have fired him immediately. The food has gone way down over the years. I always order my crispy chicken but this time it was too much breading and not enough chicken. It tasted like it was fried for too long. The drinks are still good. read more

We come here for the spicy chicken combo not necessarily the drinks. The combo always comes with rice, fried egg, steamed vegetables (i.e. broccoli), and a pickled vegetable. Service is quick and the staff is always friendly. I think this is one of the better Tapioca Express locations. Parking sucks; parking anywhere on Convoy sucks. read more

Tapioca Express - Spicy Chicken Combo with green tea - Coffee & Tea Near Me - San Diego, California

I've been going here for YEARS. Shrimp rolls are my ultimate fav. The parking situation could be better but I won't take away stars for that. read more

Small and cozy with amazing food. My icy with boba was fantastic. I'm in love y'all. I'm not easily impressed.

Love this store and location so much! One of my favorite local chains. When I've been in during COVID employees are attentive and there is good social distancing in store and people are respectful. Remote card readers are good new addition read more

Their bubble snows are incredibly bad. They just like water and ice blended. I don't feel any flavor or milk. I tried few times with few different flavors, but they are still same shit. Never come back again. The tapioca express in El Cajon Blv is so much better. read more

Oh Tap. What can I say other than what everyone else said so far. The Good: Nice hang out type atmosphere, drinks are good, food is good, and once you know the staff, they are hella cool. The 'Eh': Don't come here planning to study much during peak hours. With the convergent noise of blenders, random chatter, and order shouting...good luck. To the people who actually do that, respect. Also it does get a bit crowded. Okay, just plain crowded. The Bad: Parking is a grade A frustration. Your best bet is street parking during peak hours (Opportunity Rd./Ruffner Rd. is a good bet) or get into the lot during the slow hours. And lets hope that nobody parks in "spots" that aren't really parking spots. Overall, I would still recommend this place to friends looking for boba, snacks, and a place to just sit and hang out. read more

I love their crispy chicken and Hong Kong Milk Tea!!! It's always busy, so sometimes you have to wait for awhile to get your order. read more

I should just make out an allotment to them, because I always find myself driving there. I live in Chula Vista and it is 22 miles from my house. Amy, Jay, Charles, and everyone there are great! I don't think anyone goes there more than I do, but if you do, you have a problem :)))) I am hooked. Tapioca Milk Tea w/extra Boba Moca Snow w/Oreos Mango & Strawberry icy/snow bubble BBQ Beef Combo Crispy Chicken Combo Chinese donuts Fried tofu snack read more

Nothing compares to this Tapex! It is simply amazing. Lots of delicious boba drinks I always get the avocado snow bubble and I ought to start trying other delicious drinks they have. Not only is it one of the best Cafe's I have been to but it is an amazing place to hang out and chat with your friends do her or come for a gathering. I'm a regular at this place (although I never have time to check in :() My favorite and MUST TRY'S!! Crispy chicken!! I don't usually get the rice combo but I just get the crispy chicken and you can have it mild, spicy, super spicy, etc. to the beyond that any guy would cry eating. How bout make a challenge? Order hey can I have the crispy chicken extremely spicy plz. And I'd bet at least 1 out of 5 will cry eating it xD..I usually get mild or medium :) A MAJOR CON!! PARKING :((( HUGE PROBLEM. BUT IT ISNT TO BLAME TAPEX FOR IT SO 5 STARS!! ITS NOT TAPEX's FAULT THAT ITS ALWAYS SO CROWDED AND AWESOME!! Amazing place. read more

I dont know why I have not written a review for this place yet I have been going here for years! I love their drinks. Although I honestly think almost all boba places are super expensive for tea. I think this restaurant in particular has the best tea in san diego. I only get their green apple green tea with boba. I used to get a lot of their smoothies here for instance the matcha green tea with boba or the thai tea with boba also. I think they both are very delicious. My husband Loves their fried spicy chicken here and I enjoy it myself but a lot of my friends get the fried calamari which is also good if you like seafood. I like how this place also offers flavored jellies. I like their lychee or I believe it is coconut? or maybe apple? I love chewing on them while i drink my tea. If only they had more boba places in my area I would be super happy. This location is in a great area with other great surrounding restaurants But unfortunately the parking lot SUCKS. I do my best to avoid parking here just because the spots are so tight and everyone is looking for a parking. read more

I used to come here in high school all the time and I still get what I always order. One of the workers always recognizes me as a regular and sometimes gives me a discount. I always get a large passion fruit milk tea with baby boba. Sometimes I get mild spicy fish cakes or french fries. Those are my favorites. The fish cakes are crunchy just the way I like it, and on a good day they're even in perfect triangular shapes! I love my drink and it's ALWAYS good when I go there. I eventually switched to baby boba because I like the texture and how I don't have to chew so much AND it's much easier to have with liquidy drinks (no chokes!). I've been here recently and noticed that there are some new workers there and they make my drink with too much syrup.. but I suppose that's only because they're still new with the recipe. This place always satisfies! read more

A small little place that I found when I arrived early in San Diego. It's nestled into the corner of a small shopping mall. I have never been here before, but based on my first impressions, it is pretty cool. The interior definitely caught me by surprise. I wasn't expecting the sleek and dark tones of the furniture when I came in. In a way, it was pretty much like a modernized cafe. There isn't many places that sell boba drinks near where I live. The few that do are restaurants where I can only really buy some if I'm eating out with my family. As such, a Jamba Juice-like set up is different than anything I've seen. I didn't take the time to get any of the snacks or food that they serve, but I did try the taro snow bubble with boba. They serve so many different kinds of drinks and flavors, but I decided to go with something familiar. On the counter is a small rack of all the things that you can put in the drink as well. The drink was the best I've had. The drink itself was refreshing and was very smooth to drink. It was nice a cold, but didn't have many large chunks of ice that I commonly find elsewhere. The boba itself was smooth and chewy, the right way to do it. I loved the creamy taste of the taro and it was just the right amount of flavor without it being overwhelming. I've only been here once, but it does have really amazing drinks and boba. I'm not from San Diego, but by the amount of people getting drinks, it must be one of the best places in town. read more

For people saying this place is clean, is a huge lie! Whenever I go, which is like once or twice a month, there is always dirty tables everywhere! Besides that, LOVE tapex. I come here with my boyfriend a lot! It's open late, which I love. But if you're planing to get food late, make sure to call and ask in the kitchen is open because they close it about a half hour or hour before they close. All drinks are good, just depends on what you prefer! Crispy chicken: Simple but good! Fried pork dumplings: Delicious! Cream cheese wontons: Pretty good, if you ask me. I'm not to picky! Calimari: My favorite, but kind of chewy sometimes. Pros: Open late, good food, good drinks, love the music and vibes. Cons: Dirty, service is okay, kitchen isn't open till close. read more

Good boba, good food. I usually get the pineapple mango icy with mango jelly. It's fruity and refreshing and doesn't taste too sweet, tastes perfect. Their crispy chicken is amazing and all their food is amazing. Calamari and fries and wings, everything. It's gets pretty crazy on the weekend so prepare to be down to really look for parking. read more

The dirtiest place on Convoy. Tables are always covered with gunk and the floors are sticky. These people are pigs! Update Nov 2017: All new hires are nicer and more polite. When asked to clean up and sweep, they did it promptly and even apologized about the mess. Changing One star to Two stars. The next step, as I see it, would be to clean up before a customer has to ask. Just an idea... read more

This tapioca has always been my favorite out of all of them in San Diego. I would say that they are the most original one. Everything else taste so different! I was so satisfied with the Calamari combo here. Everything was perfect! I know it's not exactly a sit down restaurant with servers but the quality of the combo looked like they sort of took their time. At other places they just throw everything in there. There's been times where my veggies would still be cold. But TapEx on convoy is absolutely my favorite! And the cashiers are very nice and so helpful. I was happy with my lunch today! read more

Love the boba drinks and food in general. Parking is a nightmare so try and go off peak times. Service is usually fast but don't expect any over the top customer service but it gets the boba drink craving job done. read more

i love this place is really swag and delicious i love it and the workers are ok but the food and drink are bomb so it makes up for it

This place was actually pretty good! We got a combo, which came with a free drink of black tea, green tea, or water (you can also choose a different drink and upgrade it, and simply pay the difference). I wish the food came with warning signs that they would be spicy, or small descriptions underneath of what they were, because I was almost crying from the jalapeños. However, I also have little to no tolerance for spicy foods, so your experience might not be as bad. It was still delicious despite the spicy taste. The drinks were a little too sweet for my taste, especially considering that they were teas, so it tasted like purely artificial flavoring. The employees were also kind of rude, as well, and seemed to be irritated when we were asking questions. The food was Philippino with ethnic names, but they didn't come with descriptions. For someone who isn't of the same ethnic background, I had no idea what some of the foods were, and asked what they were since there were no descriptions on the menu. We received attitude and the employees laughed at us right in front of us, so I was disappointed at our treatment. The 3 stars was purely for the good food. read more

Tapioca Express - Coffee & Tea Near Me - San Diego, California

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We have been coming here for years!!! We love the crispy chicken snack. The only thing that is a hit or a miss is the calamari sometimes it is crispy some times it soggy. But over all this place is good. We have personally never had their teas but we hear good things about it, I just wouldn't know what to get. One thing you have to keep in mind is that this place is very popular and very busy so we like to call our order in ahead of time just so we do not have to wait in the long line and still wait for your food to cook. Oh also parking is hard to come by because of all the other little shops in that area. Just an FYI! read more