I went here for a Groupon deal and the worker was able to take it! I read some reviews of how some workers will "pretend" to not know how to accept it, but she asked me to be patient as she had to manually type in the barcode number. I didn't mind waiting as I can tell she was the only staff at the time. I ordered a strawberry blast and it was delicious! I also got add ons of mix boba and they were chewy and not stale. I'm glad she was able to make sure my drink was delicious and asked if I needed adjustments before I left. The interior was a bit on the empty side, but I guess the spot is mainly for those who lived in the apartments to just come down for a boba run. I live about 15 mins away, but if I was in the area again, I would come here again! read more

Tea Maru - Strawberry Blast - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Was craving mango matcha and this was the only place in the area I was in that served it. I'm highly disappointed because my drink was basically just milk. The portions for the mango and the matcha were very little compared to the milk. With tax, the total came out to be $7.37 which is on the pricier side but the quality doesn't reflect it. I'm assuming their other drinks might be better though. read more

Tea Maru - Mango Fluffy Matcha - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Tea maru sweet potato ball is always a favorite. Chewy in a nice way. I usually get it with a refreshing flavored tea drink. The hubby usually gets the taro storm drink. It's always a good choice. He says this location didn't make it as good as the san gabriel one though. read more

Tea Maru - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Tea Maru is a cute spot nestled in the apartment building. Don't freak out, parking is free for visitors visiting businesses in the structure. We got a Jasmine Tea with aloe and a Maru Milk! I will say both were delicious! The Jasmine Tea was not overly sweet and the aloe pairing was good for the hot day. The Maru Milk was more of a specialty that came with boba. The drink was good and I appreciate how the boba was perfectly soft and chewy without being overly sweet. Service was also nice and quick! If you're in the area, check this place out. read more

Tea Maru - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

This location is kind of easy to miss as it's within an apartment complex but there's a good amount of retail parking within each garage and outside as well. I typically get their honey green tea or their mango jasmine both with 100% sweetness as their drinks don't run on the sweeter side. The store itself isn't very big but it is kept clean so it's good to just grab and go and the workers there are all really nice as well. Overall this is a very convenient spot for me to grab a quick drink and their drinks overall have been pretty consistent for me. Would recommend! read more

Tea Maru - Honey Tea - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

I tried this place since I had a groupon. First of all, horrible parking since it's in an apt complex. There is never parking in the front. I always have to drive around and usually I leave if I can't find parking. I finally realized today there is free parking in the garage that says retail parking. You just have to pull up to the gate and it'll open. Cell signal is horrible inside so have your voucher ready since I couldn't do it inside. I ended up with the mango jasmine tea which was ok. I got it 25% sweet which was good and I liked the mango pieces in the drink. The boba was just ok. Not very chewy. Overall, it's ok if you are close by. I don't feel the need to have to visit again with all the boba options we have in Irvine. SYOY! read more

So far, so good! Tea Maru is in a mixed use area, so you have to pull into the apartment complex to access the retail parking. There is no seating available so it is a grab and go place. I actually live nearby and was hesitant to go because of the bad review, but ended up checking it out since there is a Groupon promotion going on where you can buy a $8 drink for $3. I've been here twice now and got the tea maru latte (jasmine milk tea with the mixed boba). It's normally $6.75. I think the winner here is the chewy boba and they use fresh milk in their drinks. The employee was super nice and walked me through the menu and let me make adjustments. :) read more

Wow, I had to stalk the opening hours for this store in order to get my Groupon a test try for this place. It is located in an apartment complex so parking is a bit unique for this area in that you have to find the structure off the street. Once that challenge is completed, you have to make sure you arrive when they said they are open. I checked both boxes, and arrived at 3:25 on a Thursday. However, when I got there, there was a sign that they will be back at 4:00 pm.... I could have left and never come back again but I had my Groupon and I heard the strawberry boba was good here. So I hung out for 30 minutes looking at the menu and deciding on what drink to try my strawberry boba. 4:00 pm... open, yay! Employee did not acknowledge or said hi or anything. I ordered my drink with strawberry boba. Wah wah. They didn't have it! Now I feel like I was just living in a Comedy of Errors. I ended up getting a matcha drink since it had ice cream on it in the picture. Wah wah, no ice cream either. No seating inside. The more I recollect and write about this place, the lesser the stars. Needless to say a waste of my time and if not for the Groupon, I would not waste my time. I actually am not buying any more Groupons because of this experience also. Terrible all around. If you want to try this place, good luck that all the stars align for you. I wouldn't recommend. read more

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Located in apartment complex, it is a little hidden. The store is in the front facing the main street. Drinks are made really quick. Cars can be parked on the rear. Highlights of the menu: 1. Maru milk with pudding 2. Tea maru latte 3. Uji matcha cheese foam 4. Peach green tea - seasonal white peach series 5. Taro fluffy matcha read more

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I didn't heed the other reviews because I was really hoping it wasn't that bad. Service was great, place clean, but the drink was not so great. I got the Maru Milk Tea? I forgot the exact name, but you could select your tea and it came with boba. The boba was not a nice chewy texture, but rather soggy? The taste was not there either. The milk tea it self was so-so, not my preference. I give it two stars for the good service, but with tax I paid over $7 for a drink that was not at least standard. read more

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Cute small shop under an apartment complex and was captivated by their drinks selection. Luckily, they're doing an exclusive offer until 8/31 which entails buying 1 and getting 1 free! If you also check in with Yelp for the first time, you get an additional 15% off. I would recommend making sure to show this to your cashier to unlock the deals because people typically order through the kiosk. The staff was friendly, attentive, and kind. They offer strawberry, mango, and sweet potato BOBA - unique. Mango Fluffy Matcha - Delightfully fresh as you mix the mango and the matcha together. You can definitely taste the mango taste more and it is filled with mini mango bites in the drink. Tasty! Maru Milk - Fresh milk with brown sugar and boba. Sweet, delicious, their homemade boba was chewy/soft. read more

Tea Maru - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Agree with other customers about the hours. Arrived 732 pm on Saturday woman was mopping floor. Door was locked. I asked through door if she was closed she said yes, looked at the app station like to see if there was any order pending, and she said can't. I said it is 7:30pm why are you closed? Seems like you cannot go in person to order during their open hours which is posted to be closed at 8pm. Came another weekday , arrived 7:55pm it also was already closed. read more

Likes: + Polite, helpful staff. + The drink was nice, but I don't have high standards in milk tea. Non-likes: - Limited parking. Can be a bit of a walk/maze to find this shop. - Only one restroom and no seating area. Not a fun place to hang out with friends at. - The indoor area is cramped, and the AC right above the door runs loudly. Hard to hear the employee over the noise. - The sun shines straight through these large windows, lighting and heating the place up. A lot of glare. - Despite the menu offering various boba, they only had one type available. - Obscure location. Not located at a nice plaza with a big parking lot. Hard to imagine this establishment surviving long. They have like no customers. read more

ORDER mango jasmine w/ brown sugar boba (2/5) the drink was just jasmine tea poured over mango puree/chunks, so there was very little mango flavor. as for the boba, it came in a single chunk... so it was hard to separate and get through the straw. overall, there are definitely better boba spots in the area. SERVICE there is an ordering kiosk, but id recommend ordering with a cashier since there is a 15% off check in on yelp. AMBIANCE there is a visitor parking lot. the store itself is small. read more

Tea Maru - Mango Jasmine - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Minus a star because I visited again during store hours and they were closed :( This seems to be a staffing issue because after reading some of the reviews I saw others had a similar experience. Quite frustrating especially if you have to deal with parking which is already difficult here, and to arrive and they aren't open and there's no sign when they will return. read more

Tea Maru - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

It is not worth paying $6.99. It is so expensive for that quality. The floor is not clean. You have to find the parking spot to go there. because of inside apartment area. Residents speed even so small area. read more

Fluffy strawberry matcha delicious and creamy. I feel like this is a good option if you like it less earthy. The gentleman who helped me was quick and polite. read more

I wanted to give this place a shot despite the bad reviews but I totally regret coming here. the uji matcha cheese foam was so bad, easily the worst matcha ive had. somehow it tastes like actual grass (and no, its not bc its a good deep earthy matcha but bc it doesnt taste like proper matcha) with a bit of sourness and the cheese foam is SO dense that it tastes like salty NY cheesecake?? im so confused how they sell a drink like this. very sad to have paid $8 for this drink that i cant drink read more

Tea Maru - Uji Matcha Cheese Foam - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

This is the worst location ever! Literally everything on their menu is not available. Either its not available at this location or they just dont have it. I asked if they'll update their menu and he said no. Watching them make the drinks is literally 80% milk and 20% puree of some sort. I dont understand whats the point of opening this location when their drinks dont taste the same as their other location and when their full menu is not even available. Why open up a store if you dont have anything on the menu?!? Not to mention there is barely any parking as this location is located under an apartment complex. The workers here dont seem like they know what theyre doing either because tell me why it took them a whole 10 min to make my one drink?? So disappointed in this location and their poor service and drink options. read more

We rate this place 5 stars!!! Service was great. Plus, the drinks are delicious and tasty. We got the Oreo shake boba, strawberry matcha with cheese foam(soho yummy), and Okinawa Latte as recommended by the barista. We were surprised how delicious the drinks were overall and we definitely would come back. IMHO It's worth the price. We recommend making the effort to try it out and support hard working small businesses. Go Tea Maru , go!!! read more

I haven't been to any other Tea Maru location, but let me tell you that this one is not it. I've been to a lot of boba spots in the area and all throughout OC and this one is by far the worst of the worst, not because of their actual boba drinks, but because of their service and the ambience of their store. I gave them an extra star just because their brewed teas are actually pretty decent, and when their boba is fresh, it's really on point--nice and chewy. So the problem isn't their product, it's really the condition of their store, their marketing, and their customer service. First off, their location is tucked away, hidden in an apartment complex where there's no street parking and your only parking is around the corner several yards away. If I didn't live nearby, I would have no idea there's even a boba shop there because their signage sucks. They have giant Chinese characters on their signage that most Americans can't even read; nowhere do you see the words "Boba" unless you look real closely at the bottom and see in very small print "handmade Boba". Why not put a giant sign out there that says BOBA? Or instead of that weird random LED display on the window, put a giant LED that says BOBA. That way you would attract more customers and people driving by would actually see there's a boba spot that exists there. No one can see where your store is. And that A-frame with the print-outs taped on it is really doing nothing for you. The two most recent times that I went into the store to order a drink, it just looked so dilapidated. There's no tables for customers to sit or to study. The bathroom has been out of order for over a year. Their only trashcan literally has a bunch of fruit flies coming out of it. The LED signage has a bunch of extension cords coming out of it that they just stuff in a plastic grocery bag and leave on the floor. The manager or whoever runs the place literally just scrawls "small straw" and "big straw" using sharpie on ripped up paper and scotch tapes it down. It looks SO half-assed. Also wanted to mention I went a few weeks ago and the girl working behind the counter 1) didn't even greet me 2) didn't even ask me what I wanted to order and 3) when my drink was ready she didn't even announce it. That's such terrible customer service. The manager should be training employees on how to do basic customer service and also how to properly clean the place, like taking out the trash regularly and making sure all the glass windows and glass partition is clean. There was literally a family of fruit flies just chilling on the glass partition on the counter. Is that sanitary? Again, the boba is fine for the most part, but there have been instances when the boba clumps up and you're trying to suck up 10 pieces of boba that became a blob. That means you need to not let your boba sit there for too long or make sure it's stirred regularly or make sure it's not sitting in just water (there has to be enough sugar in the liquid it's sitting in so it doesn't stick together like that). To sum it all up: terrible experience ordering, terrible store interior and exterior, and terrible customer service. Boba is okay. Good luck to you, Tea Maru. It's a heavily saturated market for boba in this area, and only the best of the best survive. read more

Pros: Delicious boba! Would recommend the fluffy strawberry matcha. They use some good high quality/organic ingredients. Cons: It's on the bottom level outside of an apartment complex. That being said it's a little difficult to find the first time. But once you park in the underground garage the signs are very clear. Overall: 7.5/10 I've been here 4 times PS: There's a Groupon for $8 worth of boba (about 1 drink) for only $3. That's $5 off!! read more

Tea Maru - Strawberry Fluffy Matcha & Kiwi Citrus Breeze - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Worst customer experience ever with very mediocre tea. 30 minutes later, still waiting for the employee to figure out how to use the groupon properly and didn't charge it correctly. The employee kept on just walking out of the shop to talk to her manager without any regard for people who were waiting in line. For a place that's always so slow, you'd think they would act like they care about their customers. read more

Girl who took my order was extremely rude and not friendly. Gave me a rude look when I clearly asked how here day was. Never again

There's only 10 people max in the store. It's so tiny; I'm happy there was a restroom in there. It is in a very boujie location though with its own retail parking for 2 hours. I like the architecture here; it's beautiful and modern. The drink itself is pretty yummy. I wish they had vegan milk substitutes though. I'm not sure I taste the fluffiness, but it tastes smooth and whipped. I guess I'm glad I opted for boba this time because it's chewy and the perfect texture. My only thing is I wish the café was bigger, so I could sit down and whatnot. But otherwise, a lovely little place worth visiting. read more

Tea Maru - interior - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Good quality boba drinks. It has good varieties of boba drinks. The only reason for 4 stars is that it's hard to find a parking spot. Otherwise, I would give 5 stars. read more

Tea Maru was okay. While the drink was decent, the boba was hard/didn't seem fresh. The worker was so sweet though, she really helped me out when I had questions about the drinks. However, I do feel like there are better boba shops around OC. read more

This is for take out review only. This is our first time getting it. We got two drinks and three desserts. They forgot to give us 2 out of the three desserts we ordered and then also got my drink wrong. I ordered the strawberry cheese foam black tea WITH homemade boba. Instead I got the strawberry black tea with NO CHEESE FOAM NO BOBA? But instead there was lychee jelly. We got it via DoorDash so partially it is our dasher fault as well for not checking. It's still pretty unacceptable to mess up an order when it's right there on the receipt in the bag? After seeing the negative reviews on Yelp, I feel I should have looked it up before we ordered it on DoorDash. Really disappointed since their boba looked good. read more

Tea Maru - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Tea Maru might just be my favorite tea house. This boba shop serves superior boba and always keeps you wanting more. I've ordered a number of their beverages, including the strawberry fluffy matcha and the grapefruit fantasy fruit tea. All of their teas have been tasty, but the show stopper is the craft boba, which is soooo chewie! This location is a bit hard to find and is located within an apartment complex - incredibly jealous of anyone who lives here! There's a parking structure onsite with guest complimentary spots. Once you get past the hurdle of finding the location, this spot is totally worth it! read more

Tea Maru - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

I tried the Maru Milk and holy moly. It's the best milk tea I've ever had. The music playing was also fire and I got my drink pretty quickly. I definitely recommend going here. read more

4/5 drink... matcha was really strong which was good and homemade boba is decent. They did let us try the regular strawberry and regular boba which was very kind. I would argue that the strawberry homemade boba was not as firm as the regular boba. The ambience felt off... a little bland. No music, very small space, just white, not much decor/theme. Service was great though Parking is a little bit of a walk, and by that, I mean the store is not right off the sidewalk. There's a couple stores you have to walk past; it's on the outside facing the Main Street. read more

Tea Maru - Uji Matcha Latte with Strawberry boba - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Tea Mura is small shop embedded in the Park & Paseo condominium. The store-front is hidden behind foliages/shrubs so hard to see from the road. It's down the aisle from a coffee shop. The space is small - ideal for to-go (no sit down). The downside, the barista and cashier is the same guy (so kudos for manning the shop). The menu of flavors (combinations) are unique- like mango bits jasmine tea with cheese foam. The drink is okay (really didn't standout from similar boba shops). read more

Tea Maru - The Strawberry Slush Black Tea and Mango Jasmine Cheese Foam --- staged in front of store signage. - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

If you buy drinks for IG likes, Tea Maru isn't for you. Brulee-smeared cups and clever logos are nowhere to be found. If you buy drinks to drink them, Tea Maru is exactly where you want to be. Soft housemade boba and precisely crafted drinks are delivered each time. The flagship Maru Milk is by far their best offering. I get it standard with Organic Milk, regular Cheese Foam, and Brown Sugar Boba, and I wouldn't change a thing. The drink is sweet but not cloying, rich but not overwhelming. The Fluffy Matcha is like a dalgona but with matcha with a layer of puree at the bottom (strawberry, mango, taro, or sweet potato). I've tried and liked both the strawberry and mango although the amount of puree is too little to sustain the drink. I suggest opting for the boba add-on so you can enjoy till the last slurp. The boba. It gets its own paragraph. It's housemade with spot-on chewiness and bounce back factor. It's the marked difference between Tea Maru and other boba establishments. It's the glaring distinction between grandma's cookies and Chips Ahoy. Don't get me wrong. I like pretty bruleed drinks and cool trendy logos as much as anybody. But sometimes I'm just thirsty. Thirsty for good boba. And I don't care if it's not wearing makeup. I'm here for the drink, not the photo-op. read more

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Just a quick review of my paid experience. I was able to visit for a Yelp event but ended up paying for everything anyways. So since I paid I can review this items here Unfortunately this isn't going to be a good review. There was two people ordering before me and 3 people already waiting for there orders. I asked the employee what he recommends and I was told the Maru tea latte is good. So I ordered that with mixed boba. I also ordered 2 cookies at 3.60 cents each. The cookies from milk are delicious. Then I was charged 14 dollars. I'm not sure how two cookies cost $14 but then come to find out I was charged for my drink as well. He told me that because I bought a cookie I can't receive the free Yelp tea and get the 15% discount for buying a cookie as well. I said that's fine I didn't even know about the 15% off deal. So I figured I would be charged for two cookies and get a free tea. But that didn't happen. The maru tea latte was very bitter. Being a tea snob cause I'm British, the black tea tastes as if it was steeped to way too long in the hot water. It doesn't make the tea drinkable. It's like when coffee gets burnt it just is pleasing to drink. Even with 100% sweetness it still tasted like that. I can't recommend the black tea at all. Maybe it was just bad that day. I would have to try it again but there are better options for me out there as far as tea an boba go. read more

Tea Maru - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Came by here on Friday afternoon to get some boba! Indoor parking was hard to locate, I had to drive around a 2nd time and spotted it. Ordered 3 drinks: 1) strawberry blast with boba 2) taro storm slush with boba 3) jasmine milk tea Maru latte with boba Their boba balls are very chewy and so good, love it. Drinks were decent and similar to other places. No seating inside, only 1 staff helping you. Sign up for their rewards program and get $5 off your next order. read more

Tea Maru - Strawberry Blast, Taro Storm, Tea Maru Latte - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

I was excited to have this boba place opening in the neighborhood and I've heard of good things about their homemade boba. However, i was pretty disappointed- could be because of poor execution of making the drinks. I tried both Okinawa tea latte (with Brown Sugar boba) and Uji Matcha latte (mango boba) with less ice and 25% sugar - both drinks came out with a ton of ice (about half a cup) and very sweet. The Okinawa one at least still tasted like tea, but the matcha one had so little matcha that it basically tasted like diluted milk... The brown sugar boba was decent, but the Mango one was flavorless and I would not recommend it. Since they just opened not long ago, I will be open to try it out again and maybe they will work out the kinks and mix better drinks! read more

Tea Maru - Okinawa Tea Latte and Uji Matcha Latte - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Nothing is good here. I tried it 4 times at SA location and also Irvine location. Milk drinks taste just like whole milk. Fruit tea is okay. 5 starts for using great fruit. read more

Watery milk tea and soggy, goopy boba. Disappointing for $6.50 per order. Neither my husband or I could finish our drinks. Sorry Tea Maru.

I wanted to like the boba more than I did. I ordered the Okinawa tea latte without adjusting any sugar or ice. It was pretty sweet so next time I would get 50% sweetness. Unfortunately, the boba was over cooked so it was super soft. Taste was there, but texture was just very soft. Parking: a little bit confusing if you don't live in the apartment complex. I drove around the whole complex before realizing you just drive into the resident parking lot and park in the spots that are designated for retail. Plenty there once you find it though! Overall, I would go back and probably try a different drink and possibly swap out the boba for something else or no boba. read more

Tea Maru - Okinawa Tea Latte - Bubble Tea Near Me - Santa Ana, California

This place is horrendous. The drinks are very watered down, and it took 15 minutes for 2 drinks in an empty place.