Greatly overpriced and nothing to show for it: merely average drink quality. Not sure why so many Stanfy students like this place. I guess beggars can't be choosers when it comes to the dearth of good boba places in the proximity. ps. Anybody who says best value for your money clearly has not had a wide variety of boba experiences. read more

Mine and my co-workers' go-to when we need to get our Milk Tea fix in the area. A small spot, pretty dim. But better milk tea than other spots in the same area. Service is okay. The other day I came in and the guy was texting behind the counter. I had to knock on the counter to get his attention. But they are pretty quick when it comes to making your drink. read more

TL;DR: $5 credit minimum. If you're in Mountain View and you're craving milk tea, don't have cash, want a snack, or if it's Tuesday (Tea Era's closed), come to Verde. If you just want milk tea and have some cash on you, go across the street to Tea Era on Castro. I'd recommend their Pearl Milk Tea or Green Milk Tea w/ Boba. Salty Fried Chicken (salt and pepper/popcorn chicken) is decent. I hear Mango or Lychee freeze is also good. LOCATION: Right off of Castro on Villa street. Look for the red awning on the right side of the street if you're turning left on Castro. The place is pretty nice, they have free wifi and tables where you can sit and chat. There's always someone focusing intently on a laptop tucked away into the far corner booth. FOOD: Milk tea and boba are good, but quality is not always consistent. The milk tea will taste watered down sometimes. What's neat is that the large size you'd get at other boba places is regular size at Verde. If you're super thirsty or you're with someone you don't mind sharing with, spring for the large size (this will run you ~$4.50) and you'll get what'll seem like a large bucket of milk tea. If you're hungry, you can get their "Salty fried chicken" - basically their version of salt and pepper chicken. It's pretty crispy when it's fresh but it'll get a little soggy if you try to travel with it. Best enjoyed if you're sitting down or not going far. OTHER NOTES: Service is what you'd expect from a boba place. Nothing too remarkable! read more

Verde is just another tea shops. It's pretty average. How hard is it to brew some good tea and add milk? Apparently super hard. The shop itself is pretty narrow and because of this, is pretty hard to navigate. If there are no other boba places open, this isn't a bad resort and certainly is better than the chain boba places around it. Be sure to bring cash if it is just you ordering one drink as the credit card minimum is around two drinks. It seems as if they use a powdered milk creamer for their milk tea and it certainly shows. The illusion of "frothy" that they advertise is perhaps just a side effect of using powdered milk creamer. While it isn't necessarily bad, it can leave a gritty taste in your mouth. The milk tea can be a hit or miss as there are many inconsistencies in their drink making. Sometimes its too watery, other times its not sweet enough. All in all, an annoying problem to have. Verde definitely uses powder for their taro smoothie. Although with an taro milk tea or smoothie, you've come to expect powder from any typical boba joint, this particular smoothie was grainy and lacked in the taro flavoring department. Lastly, the biggest letdown of Verde may be its boba. Although the boba is fine in any of the milk teas, it was terrible in my smoothie. I understand that boba does become hard in cold smoothies but Verde's boba became crumbly and hard in a matter of minutes. Definitely expected more out of their boba. That being said, when Verde hits, it is a solid place to get your boba. Get a milk tea and avoid the smoothies. And if you can help yourself, get a true classic milk tea instead of a flavored one. read more

When I'm in MTV, this is my 'go-to' tea spot! Recommend: -something cold = milk tea with pearls -something hot = honey lemon tea -quick bite = any of the taiwan toasts, peanut butter or garlic are my faves (fluffy warm goodness in a cute to go box) *note: gotta spend more than $5 or else its cash only read more

Best milk tea ever, not too sweet, pearls are always good...some place might have variable quality but the many times that I go there, drinks are always good.(same cup size, regardless of how bad the economy is :D) Service is fast!!! Great value of the meal, get a big plate of chicken cutlet with veggies and tofu and 1 green tea for just $5.99. Love their mix bean shaved ice with pudding!!! (They use a huge cub for this one, share with a friend!!) Must try, great value and good quality always. Hands down best pearl tea ever. Almond milk tea is good, frothy ice tea is good, plain milk tea is good, too. Something about the milk powder they use...doesn't leave that nasty after taste. They do have a big menu for everyone and may be kind of confusing for first timer. Also, I notice that sometimes they don't turn on the AC so people don't really stay long at the place but...when they do turn on the AC it's a cool place to chat and have a afternoon tea with your friends. Bathroom is clean...the kitchen can be kind of loud sometimes tho. The only thing is I wish they would open a little earlier....sometimes on the weekend I just want to go there for breakfast and they are not open until noon :( p.s. I love the funny jokes on the cups...read it if you understand chinese read more

Since I work in Mountain View, I enjoy coming here for tea breaks. I'm a fan of their milk green tea (no pearls) and passion fruit green tea depending on my mood. The place is on the small side, but it feels cozy. It's a good place to hang out on the weekdays when it isn't too crowded. I've been on a Saturday night and good luck finding a place to sit! The milk tea is sometimes sweeter than other times - I find Robert (the manager) makes it the best. I finally tried one of their lunch plates and it was pretty tasty! For $6.99, you get the entree and a small green or black tea. You can upgrade for $1 more for a regular size drink or something other than green tea. I ordered the chicken leg quarter rice plate. The chicken was nicely marinated. It came with a small salad, some meat over the rice, and a marinated hard boiled egg. If you don't have cash, the minimum credit card charge is $5. Out of all the pearl tea places in downtown MV, this one has the best tasting tea. read more

My husband and I love their boba milk teas and drive out of our way to get them, but their service is not great. I've had the staff argue with me twice when there were issues with my drinks. Their customer service sucks. I miss the old Cupertino location and staff! read more

Milk tea is bland. Squid ball overfried to dark brown color. But the worst is the chicken thigh with rice - more like rubber with rice. And music is loud classical piano + loud kitchen noises + baby screaming. So relaxing. read more

this is the pudding milk tea i got. (regular ice/ sugar everything) why? why can't you fill it up? someone really has to check the QC when drinks are handed to customers. i am really disappointed. read more

Verde Tea Cafe - this is the pudding milk tea i got. (regular ice/ sugar everything) why? why can't you fill it up? - Cafes Near Me - Mountain View, California

The quality of Verde has gone down. The other day, the server misunderstood our boba order, and instead of calamari, I got chicken cutlets. Even though they replaced our order, everything was just a hassle and took longer than it should have. The taro boba is super sweet. However, if you want free wifi, have no cash and only credit, and space to sit go to Verde. Tea Era has better boba, but is too crowded. read more

The regular pearl milk tea is the best I've ever had. I have been to Quickly, Tapioca Express, and some random store in SF, and have found Verde to be far superior. I go to Verde almost once a week. I'm addicted!! It's the perfect amount of tea and tapioca. There's a subtle taste in the tea / tapioca, I can't quite tell what it is... It's delicious. read more

I'm sorry, did they actually put Brandy in my friend's Royal Milk Tea? Is that legal? Also it was nasty. There's a sign that says "No games, no cell phones, no loud noise". Is there a fun ban? I was craving sesame milk tea. They were out. My almond milk tea (hot) was good though. read more

It totally breaks my heart to write a negative review update for Verde. This used to be the spot where everyone hung out (and I guess it still is), but I only find myself coming here now for posterity's sake rather than to satisfy my PMT craving. Basically. The other day I came here with friends. We each ordered a different tea. I went with my usual order, the Earl Grey, which has never let me down. I drank two sips and HAD TO PUT IT DOWN. I have never tried a PMT so bad that it made me want to throw it away. I think I even made a face after tasting it, and it was completely involuntary. I actually never ended up finishing my drink, and I had a huge headache afterward and I don't know why. Upon further thought, I realized that Verde has steadily been getting worse since my early high school days, and unfortunately came to the conclusion that Verde just was no longer very good. I couldn't bring myself to give it 1 star, not after so many years of patronage. But unless Verde brings back its game (or at least is more consistent with the quality of beverage it serves its customers), I don't think it can merit anything more. read more

Oh, oh, oh! Bubble tea, pearl tea, boba tea ... whatever you want to call it, it is Yum Tea. Verde is really the main place to go for a variety of teas (green and milk-based), with or without pearl/jellies/addins, hot or cold, as a blended smoothie or iced. So many options, and it is bliss. You can literally customize away - make a drink double sweet, less sweet, extra pearls, pearls and jelly, etc. Pearls here are, as others have mentioned, on the high end compared to other vendors. They never run out, and the taste is just right, slightly sweet, slightly chewy, not too goopy-hard-bland-sweet. I prefer this above Q-Cup and Fantasia, mainly because Q-Cup is all about the look and often fails in function - they have less of a variety, are not reliable with their pearl quality, and every time I go and ask for some food item there's a problem with it (not cooked right or just not available). But Verde! My fav way to take pearl tea are hot in the winter, cold in the summer, with a milk base and pearls. My fav teas from Verde are: Almond, Peanut (watch out, peanut bits floating in your tea may not be your thing but I love the taste), Black Milk (basically original/regular), Coconut, Honey, and there's prolly more but I can't remember at the moment. But those are the core items. Oh, and Taro - which is a tricky, tricky thing. I have literally gotten sick from drinking Taro pearl tea at other places, but these guys make a pretty good one, which was a relief. They do have meals but honestly they look exactly like anime food but don't taste nearly as good as such things look in the anime. So stay away from that chicken leg, you will regret it. (Learned a hard lesson with that one.) BUT - their salty fried chicken and sweet potato fries are to die for. The best flavor of all the saltyfriedchickens I've tried (QCup, random tea places). More salty but vaguely sweet, because they're fried along with the sweet potatoes, and the seasoning has a hint of cinnamon/spice in it. Also beyond reproach is their thick Taiwanese toast. You can get the toast savory or sweet (I think they have regular butter and garlic) but the main options are sweet - coconut, peanut butter, nutella, strawberry jam. And dude, you can mix half/half flavors. SO - my all time fav is one piece of toast with half peanut butter, half nutella. You can of course do the jam/pb thing. Note: Lines can be long, place can be crowded, only one register. If you are doing something special with your drink order, you may have to repeat what you want a few times. Also sometimes there's something of a wait, particularly if you order more than one thing, or any food. read more

Do not be fooled by the pale shade and seemingly innocent sweetness of their iced passion fruit frothy iced tea! There's more caffeine in there than you'd think. I only drank about half of it after dinner, and now I've missed my geriatric bedtime by four hours. Aside from my bad reaction to any kind of caffeine, the milk teas at Verde are delicious with their sweet, chewy boba. I agree with what Megan L. said about the awkward layout of the remodeled cafe: the space between the cashier's counter and the booths is dangerously narrow. Nonetheless, I love to bring out-of-town visitors to Verde for bubble tea and salty fried chicken, which comes with succulent yam fries. read more

My NorCal friends always boasted about their two prized boba places: Verde and Fantasia. Naturally, I had to see for myself. Verde is located in a really nice part of town, in the heart of downtown Mountain View. I was able to find street parking relatively easily, and the location makes for a good stroll area. The tea itself was just okay. After having Fantasia as well, I've come to conclude that NorCal boba isn't superior to SoCal's, but it does win on the price point. The prices are lower and help its overall value. read more

I've never really heard of hit until moving back to the bay, but it sounds popular enough. The drinks however are more of the sweeter persuasion and the size is a bit large for my taste. But the selections is pretty dandy. my only peeve....the ripped chairs..seriously...replace them... I don't want to sit on something that looks like it lost a fight with a pride of lions. read more

Without question, this is the best bubble tea I've ever had and that's saying a lot since I've tried many kinds and this outstrips them all. What puts them ahead is that they have a frothier, creamier milk tea, a level above any TapEx or Quickly. Quickly is probably the lowest quality by the way. The tapioca pearls are just chewy enough, not too hard, not too soft. It's also served in bigger sizes which is a major plus. There is also a bigger size for only a dollar more. Atmosphere is great too. Since, it's so popular, often times the place is packed, almost to the point where it's hard to get by other people. I like busy places though, so this suits me just fine. Service is ultra fast. For example, usually I can barely get to the pick up spot before they've already made it. It's a great place to just hang out. I usuallly go after breakdance practice at around 10:30 and it's still pretty busy. One weird thing is that if you get the regular pearl milk tea, it comes out to $3.01 so bring a penny. The most delicous bubble tea I've had, you must check it out. read more

I love the food here, especially the pork rice bowl. And the drinks are pretty good. But the service. Dear god, the service. The service is absolutely, unutterably terrible. It's the worst service I've ever experienced at any cafe in the bay area, which is notorious for terrible service in general. The counter will often be left unattended for long stretches of time. Even when there is someone at the counter, they're terribly slow, often because the staff are chatting with someone, They will take an order and then forget about it. Or if they do remember to make it, they won't bother to call it out until you realize it's not coming and you go to inquire about it. Dear Verde owners: fire every employee, replace them with new ones. Perhaps ex-cons. They couldn't do worse. read more

I just love this place. There used to be one closer to where I live, so maybe I'm biased and am drawn to this place because I grew up with it, but it has always been consistently good and refreshing. My go tos are their milk teas with boba or grass jelly and the strawberry fantasy smoothie. Wish they were closer to where I live again! As for this Mountain View location, it's a bit cramped for a wheelchair, but you can fit inside and get to the counter and fit into a few tables. Be careful backing up or turning around. I have not seen the bathroom, nor am I sure there is one open to the public. read more

I came here for some good milk tea after reading some really good yelp reviews. I was very disappointed. I ask to add only half the syrup in my drink and the cashier kept on chatting with another employee and asked me to repeat my order multiple times with a really bad attitude. When my order was called, the guy practically slammed several cups in front of me and just walked away! He didn't say which one was what flavor or which cup is mine. The tea wasn't that great, I should have just gone to Tea Era. 2 starts for the milk tea 2 start for service read more

Delicious, high-quality pearls and tea. Rude Staff. There is a more authentic place down the street on Villa, katty-corner to the post office. I think their salty snacks are better, too. read more

Great boba. Open late in a place where businesses closer earlier. Huge menu. My friends and I all got boba, all of which were great. The prices were reasonable and the menu selection had a huge variety of brick toast which I love. The owner was funny because at midnight he yelled "get out" and everyone just got up and left, I guess he has a loyal following who know the routine. If you're nearby- give this place a try. read more

Verde Tea is too nice to just be a hit it and quit it booty call sorta guy despite the fact that he's available most of the time. He hangs out with his friends Tea Era (less available), Tapioca Express (always available), and Jazen Tea (always available, but on the fruity side). He's a very middle-of-the-road choice when you've got that craving but you don't want to get too kinky. Basically, he'll meet your needs. Still, there's something to be said about consistency, right? It's nice to have a reliable dude on your side and Verde is nothing if not reliable. You'll probably find something you really like about him and just stick with that every time you hit him up for those late-night escapades. Fortunately, he's not out that indecently late, so you never have to worry about a walk of shame home with this guy. He'll kick you out before that. read more

The bubble tea was good. It was $2.95 and with tax totaled $3.21 and the plastic cup the bubble tea was in like a 12 oz. container so it's worth the money. On a Friday night at midnight, the place was busy where people had ordered food and hanged out. read more

Drinks aren't as good as I thought... maybe I'll give it another try but for sure I'm not coming here before they close at night. They were cleaning their place to kick people out 10 mins before closing with the strongest product ever. It burned my nose! It was effective as people ran out quickly. But what kind of place does that? RUDE. read more

I had the pleasure of introducing my sweet Michael to bubble pearl tea here, a handful of months ago. If memory serves, he got the milk tea and I the almond, and we enjoyed passing our cups back and forth across the table. We might have ordered the crispy little tofu squares as well - so yummy and a good salty contrast. Thanks for providing a lovely venue for an even lovelier date. read more

I used to come here a lot so I knew this place before the renovation and thus, before they tried to look all swanky. I agree with cc c. in that they do have a lot of wasted space now. I'd order the Mango Freeze and it's delish. Their pearl tea is pretty good too, but I'm not a big fan of it in general (actually, I'm scared I'll suck up a tapioca ball, choke and die since there may not be anyone, except me, who knows CPR and I doubt I can do it on myself). The place is usually busy at night and serves as a typical Asian hang-out. read more

First time here I ordered a chicken thigh dish with rice. 1 star. Do not order this, it was like chicken jerky, I don't even know how they managed to get dark meat chicken this dry. Green apple Boba was okay, bit on the overly sweet side, but good. Second time here, I asked the cashier whats made fresh because my chicken thigh last time was super dry and old and he said, everything is made fresh here...I laughed inside. He suggested the Chicken curry and I obliged. For once I felt that there was a shortage of rice because there is a hefty serving of chicken and veggies in the curry but the veggie cuts were massive like they didn't care to cut it into smaller pieces. 3 star for the curry dish this time and the boba drink was consistant and good. You probably should pass on the food, if you like this type of artificial powder flavors of boba then its okay, if you don't, I don't recommend you come here at all. read more

People have their PMT loyalties, and some people swear by Verde. I almost became one of those people, but as a hardcore Yelper I adhere to the unspoken QA rule of writing a review only after having attained a sufficient sample size i.e. visited several times and ordered different things. Let me begin with the ambiance, because Verde is quite posh and comfortable. The theme of black looks almost too nice for a boba place. Your first impression stepping into this shop will be one of being impressed, but with the TV and loud machines in the background, it is suitable more for chatting and not really at all for studying. Milk teas are all $2.95 regular (which is like a medium/large at most places), but be aware that boba is only included in the regular pearl milk tea. I don't like how their menu is a little shady, like not specifying that toppings cost additional and not showing anywhere that they participate in the Five Star rewards (pretty skimpy at 1 free for every 12). For that matter, they don't even have the cards on display so you need to find your own somewhere. Service is prompt, but so prompt that it's interesting--the cashier didn't even finish giving me my change and number yet and he was already greeting the next person in line. I don't think it makes things much faster, and you feel kind of neglected and transparent (even cafeterias are more polite). Their boba don't look so frighteningly uniform like at some places; sometimes it tastes homemade here. Though it's inconsistent, I must give them credit for being incredibly generous--even with my careful allocation of boba to tea, I always run out of tea and awkwardly end up with lots of boba left. My favorite is the papaya milk tea, which is very uncommon. I doubt it's fresh papaya, but it's nonetheless tasty because it's so creamy. When blended with tea and paired with chewy boba, it's quite delicious though it is predominantly papaya smoothie rather than tea. The sesame is not bad either, but again it's difficult to detect the tea hiding in there somewhere. The ominous threat of sub-par tea became a reality when I got the regular pear milk tea, half sweet--no fruity flavors or sweetness to mask the lack of tea, and it turned out tasting like diluted, tea-flavored cream. It was also one of the less good boba days (note I'm euphemistically saying less good and not worse), so instead of being refreshing and energizing, I was left food-comatose from all the cream and prodigious amounts of gelatinous boba. It wasn't awful, but just not on point and consistent like Tea Era. Tip: Everyone tends to come in pairs, so bring a fake date if you are foreveralone; otherwise you'll be 3rd/5th/7th/9th wheelin Conclusion: Tea Era is better, but Verde is a viable alternative on Tuesdays when Tea Era is closed. read more

Their rose milk green tea is perfect and taro is also good, except it isn't purple which takes away some of the fun. The only reason I would come to Verde instead of the other bubble tea places on castro st. (Jazen, Tea Era) is if I was too lazy to walk to the other places. Jazen is literally next door and they have a great happy hour. However the one big advantage Verde has is that their menu is very extensive and they are super fast. Waiting in line is kind of awkward because there isn't much space to stand and you are literally always blocking the entrance; all of this is elevated when it is crowded. They have a $10 min credit so prepare to have cash or buy a bunch with your friends. read more

Verde Tea Cafe - Large menu at verde - Cafes Near Me - Mountain View, California

Wow! So I think I discovered a new tapioca place! Came here recently one afternoon (hadn't in about 2 years!) because it was close by. I ordered the milk green tea with grass jelly. It was SO good!! Something about the tea was just creamy and smooth and delicious. Better than Fantasia in Cupertino and definitely better than most milk tea places such as TapX or Qcup. Lots of cool snacks. I wish they had crepes though. read more

OOOH.....love the milk tea and the taiwanese toast *drool*....but don't love the long line or the tiny tables. I'm hapa, I look Asian, but I'm not rail thin nor petite enough to fit into 26" rollerboard, carry-on luggage. I NEED ROOM TO BREATHE! Honey Milk Tea...warm with chocolate toast. I can get my after dinner, sugar/chocolate, tapioca pearl fix for less than $10.... The down-side for this SF girl is that this place is in MOUNTAIN VIEW!!!! SOOOOOOOOOO FAR FROM THE CITY *WAH* ( I know, I know, I will shut up now).... Up-side....at least parking here was easy to find and FREE!!! *LOL* WARNING: HANDS OFF MY FOOD!!!! Don't touch my food people, or I will bite your hand off. 'nuff said. read more

Drinks are great! While cheap the food (except the jam toast) however are barely ate-able. Free WiFi but its quite loud so not somewhere you want to study. Not much to complain. I just wish the girls who work there can smile more. They are cute but will be much cuter if they just smile!! read more

I used to come here at least once a month because I liked how the strawberry green tea was not too sweet. However, the last time I came here which was a couple of months ago, I ordered the same tea and cuddle fish balls. My friend and I shared the cuddle fish and a few hours later, we both got stomach aches. :( I haven't been back since and honestly would rather take my business elsewhere. read more

I LOVE VERDE! I just wish they hadn't closed the other location on Stevens Creek which is so much closer to me. Still I find that it's worth the drive. Just the regular pearl milk tea is awesome. The best thing about their tea compared to anywhere else is the FROTH. Oh and the fact that they take credit/debit with no (I repeat) NO minimum charge required! The fried tofu is also good and when I want excess carbs, I order the Taiwan thick toast with half strawberry jam and half buttermilk. Now those are some excess carbs well worth it. read more

My previous experience at the Cupertino Verde was pretty unforgettable. I dont even remember how my drink tasted so I had to jump on writing this before I forgot all the important details. I ordered the red bean milk tea with pearls. The pearls were really fresh and chewy at first but when I reached the bottom, they started to get that consistency pearls get after you place them in the fridge overnight. The tea itself had no red bean flavor. I felt like i had ordered a green tea milk tea with added red beans. Speaking of the red beans, I did like these better than the ones that come in Tpumps' red bean. They were sweeter and there were more of them so they were easier to get some in every couple of sips. read more

O! M! G! The co-worker here is soooooooooo f**king HANDSOME and his sooooooooo nice!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Omg!!!!!! Everybody should come over here and older your milktea from him!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!^{*~£~+~%~+|€#$;@ read more

Stopped in with my wife because we wanted to try the Taiwanese style shaved ice. We got the red bean and taro. This is a review of the shaved ice. Pros: Portion size is OK Red bean and taro is acceptable Cons: Not very authentic. It came in cup of snow-cone type ice with beans and taro poured over the top The ice was course, not at all like actual shaved ice. They cheaped out. In all, we were a little disappointed. read more