If you’re craving bubble tea in NYC, the good news is there are plenty of options to find some of the best boba nearby—wherever your fun NYC adventures take you. Bubble tea, which is also known as boba, is a fun Taiwanese drink that comes in lots of exotic flavors. For those just getting acquainted with this fun, unique drink, look for a tea base along with some delicious fruit or milk. And here’s the extra-fun part—chewy tapioca balls and other toppings can be added to the mix. The “bubble” in the name refers to the foam that's created by vigorously shaking the tea. Read on for where to find the best bubble tea in NYC.
Click on your preferred borough below to jump to those bubble tea locations:
Bubble Tea NYC
1. I’MILKY
992 Sixth Ave., Midtown
Facebook • Instagram
I’Milky’s philosophy is to keep every drink natural and authentic, so it carefully selects 100-percent natural ingredients and hand-picked tea leaves. This bubble tea shop in NYC also offers espresso drinks (if coffee’s more your speed), oat and soy milk options for those who are dairy-free, and offers snacks like rice balls, bento boxes, seaweed salad, and edamame. Plus, when you add $1 to any purchase that’s $10 or more, you can add your wisht to the wishing wall and that extra $1 will be donated to Make-a-Wish Metro New York.
2. Tiger Sugar
197 Canal St., Chinatown
42 W. 32nd St., Koreatown
Instagram
This popular bubble tea spot in NYC is known for having the original black sugar boba tea, made with fresh cream mousse and a unique tiger stripe design.
3. PaTea
227 E. 14th St., Gramercy Park
Facebook • Instagram
The adorable bear logo will draw you in to PaTea, but the variety of bubble tea offerings at this Gramercy Park location will keep you coming back for more. This boba shop has traditional milk teas, teas, and tea lattes that you can get with tapioca bubbles and other customizations. But you can also get yakult (a sweetened probiotic milk beverage), brown sugar milks, fruit slush drinks, and milkshakes.
4. Mi Tea
101 Macdougal St., West Village
Instagram
Founded in 2016 in Hangzhou, China, Mi Tea specializes in creating high-quality Himalayan pink salt cheese tea drinks, pairing a tea base with a rich, creamy cheese foam topping. Of course, you can get regular fruit teas, traditional teas, and milk teas here too.
5. The Alley
68 Cooper Square, Noho
Facebook • Instagram
This boba spot in Flushing makes its own tapioca daily and sugar cane syrup from scratch using the highest quality ingredients. Plus, it handpicks the tea leaves it uses in its drinks. As if the tasty bubble tea options weren’t enough to bring you to this spot, the decor and logos on the cups makes it an Instagram-worthy stop in NYC.
6. CoCo Fresh Tea & Juice
12 John St., Financial District
79 Division St., Chinatown
38 Lexington Ave., Kips Bay
646 Ninth Ave., Hell’s Kitchen
124 W. 72nd St., Upper West Side
Facebook • Instagram
A range of bubble teas, milk teas, and fruit slushes are offered at this string of colorful, compact, counter-serve cafes. Among the most popular choices here are the bubble milk tea, taro milk tea, exotic mango green tea, matcha latte, and pudding milk tea.
7. Tea Magic
2878 Broadway, Upper West Side
Facebook
This intimate cafe serves up a variety of bubble teas and other tasty treats in a contemporary space. Several flat screen TVs are on hand to entertain guests, often students from nearby Columbia University. Tea Magic offers a long list of flavors and lots of varieties of boba teas, with toppings that include green jelly, red bean, and pudding.
8. Vivi Bubble Tea
49 Bayard St., Chinatown
2 E. Broadway, Chinatown
183 Hester St., Little Italy
325 Broadway, Tribeca
226 E 14th St., East Village
30 Third Ave., East Village
18A W. 14th St., Union Square
50 Lexington Ave., Kips Bay
170 W. 23rd St., Chelsea
607 Ninth Ave., Hell’s Kitchen
1324 Second Ave., Upper East Side
Facebook • Instagram
This ubiquitous bubble tea shop offers both hot and refreshingly cool versions. Its signature drinks include the ViVi signature fruit tea, blue galaxy, red bean matcha milk tea, and beyond. Milk tea flavors include oolong, Thai, and ViVi’s very own black/green milk tea. ViVi uses ingredients that hail from Taiwan—all of which are FDA-approved.
9. Gong Cha
200 Broadway, Financial District
72 Bayard St., Chinatown
27 St. Marks Place, Lower East Side
12 W. 32nd St., Koreatown
75 W. 38th St., Midtown
160 E. 44th St., Midtown
1600 Broadway, Midtown
2810 Broadway, Upper West Side
925 Lexington Ave., Upper East Side
Facebook • Instagram
Gong Cha traces its history back to 2006. One of the most recognized bubble tea brands worldwide, its drinks are crafted with fresh tea that hails from the finest Taiwan tea estates. Gong Cha, which translates to “tribute tea for the emperor,” has expanded to more than 15 countries and 1,500 locations across the world. The US buzz is in its specialty milk foam, which offers a slightly salted, cream topping atop the freshly brewed tea. Beyond the milk foam series, there’s a milk tea series, a slush series, and even a creative series. It features a lemon wintermelon basil seeds offering; a taro, and a lemon ai-yu white pearl among other exotic flavors.
10. Yaya Tea
206 Grand St., Little Italy
51 Chrystie St., Chinatown
284 Third Ave., Gramercy
Facebook • Instagram
Beyond delivering great tasting bubble teas and other fun drinks, Yaya Tea yearns to save the planet—one bubble tea at a time. When environmentally-aware guests reuse Yaya’s glass bottles, they’re given a 10-percent discount off any small drink. This sweet deal is available at all locations. It even lets teetotalers get creative—they can craft their own teas. First select black white, oolong, or green, and then choose up to three flavors.
Bubble Tea Brooklyn
1. I’MILKY
142 N. 6th St., Williamsburg
Facebook • Instagram
I’Milky’s philosophy is to keep every drink natural and authentic, so it carefully selects 100-percent natural ingredients and hand-picked tea leaves. This bubble tea shop in NYC also offers espresso drinks (if coffee’s more your speed), oat and soy milk options for those who are dairy-free, and offers snacks like rice balls, bento boxes, seaweed salad, and edamame. Plus, when you add $1 to any purchase that’s $10 or more, you can add your wish to the wishing wall and that extra $1 will be donated to Make-a-Wish Metro New York.
2. Tiger Sugar
903 8th Ave., Sunset Park
2132 86th St., Bensonhurst
Instagram
This popular bubble tea spot is known for having the original black sugar boba tea, made with fresh cream mousse and a unique tiger stripe design.
3. Vivi Bubble Tea
790 Manhattan Ave., Greenpoint
113A Court St., Brooklyn Heights
5924 8th Ave., Sunset Park
6731 Bay Parkway, Bensonhurst
2169 86th St., Bensonhurst
6517 18th Ave., Bensonhurst
1616 Avenue U, Sheepshead Bay
Facebook • Instagram
This ubiquitous bubble tea shop offers both hot and refreshingly cool versions. Its signature drinks include the ViVi signature fruit tea, blue galaxy, red bean matcha milk tea, and beyond. Milk tea flavors include oolong, Thai, and ViVi’s very own black/green milk tea. ViVi uses ingredients that hail from Taiwan—all of which are FDA-approved.
4. Gong Cha
156 Lawrence St., Downtown Brooklyn
5723 8th Ave., Sunset Park
313 9th St., Park Slope
1570 Flatbush Ave., Flatbush
1698 E. 14th St., Midwood
Facebook • Instagram
Gong Cha traces its history back to 2006. One of the most recognized bubble tea brands worldwide, its drinks are crafted with fresh tea that hails from the finest Taiwan tea estates. Gong Cha, which translates to “tribute tea for the emperor,” has expanded to more than 15 countries and 1,500 locations across the world. The US buzz is in its specialty milk foam, which offers a slightly salted, cream topping atop the freshly brewed tea. Beyond the milk foam series, there’s a milk tea series, a slush series, and even a creative series. It features a lemon wintermelon basil seeds offering; a taro, and a lemon ai-yu white pearl among other exotic flavors.
5. Yaya Tea
80 Dekalb Ave., Downtown Brooklyn
2320 86th St., Bensonhurst
Facebook • Instagram
Beyond delivering great tasting bubble teas and other fun drinks, Yaya Tea yearns to save the planet—one bubble tea at a time. When environmentally-aware guests reuse Yaya’s glass bottles, they’re given a 10-percent discount off any small drink. This sweet deal is available at all locations. It even lets teetotalers get creative—they can craft their own teas. First select black white, oolong, or green, and then choose up to three flavors.
Bubble Tea Queens
1. The Alley
38-02 Prince St., Flushing
Facebook • Instagram
This boba spot in Flushing makes its own tapioca daily and sugar cane syrup from scratch using the highest quality ingredients. Plus, it handpicks the tea leaves it uses in its drinks. As if the tasty bubble tea options weren’t enough to bring you to this spot, the decor and logos on the cups makes it an Instagram-worthy stop in NYC.
2. Tiger Sugar
40-10 #A, Main St., Flushing
Instagram
This popular bubble tea spot is known for having the original black sugar boba tea, made with fresh cream mousse and a unique tiger stripe design.
3. M Tea LIC
2301 41st Ave., Store 1D, Long Island City
Instagram
As it says on its site, M Tea creates fresh, high quality bubble tea, using fresh-cut fruit and nutritious ingredients without additives. Plus, it offers a selection of French-style pastries. Try various bubble tea flavors, from signature and classic milk teas to boba made with fresh fruit and creme brulee teas.
4. CoCo Fresh Tea & Juice
3310 Broadway, Astoria
2922 Ditmars Blvd., Astoria
40-24 College Point Blvd., Flushing
39-22 Main St., Flushing
36-01 162nd St., Flushing
45-40 Bell Blvd., Bayside
86-55 Broadway, Elmhurst
37-01 82nd St., Jackson Heights
Facebook • Instagram
A range of bubble teas, milk teas, and fruit slushes are offered at this string of colorful, compact, counter-serve cafes. Among the most popular choices here are the bubble milk tea, taro milk tea, exotic mango green tea, matcha latte, and pudding milk tea.
5. Gong Cha
25-08 Queens Plaza S., Long Island City
40-06 Union St., Flushing
136-20 Roosevelt Ave., Flushing
159-17 Northern Blvd., Flushing
40-24 College Point Blvd., Flushing
90-15 Queens Blvd., Elmhurst
8801 Queens Blvd., A-3, Elmhurst
252-01 Northern Blvd., Little Neck
61-35 Junction Blvd., Rego Park
Facebook • Instagram
Gong Cha traces its history back to 2006. One of the most recognized bubble tea brands worldwide, its drinks are crafted with fresh tea that hails from the finest Taiwan tea estates. Gong Cha, which translates to “tribute tea for the emperor,” has expanded to more than 15 countries and 1,500 locations across the world. The US buzz is in its specialty milk foam, which offers a slightly salted, cream topping atop the freshly brewed tea. Beyond the milk foam series, there’s a milk tea series, a slush series, and even a creative series. It features a lemon wintermelon basil seeds offering; a taro, and a lemon ai-yu white pearl among other exotic flavors.
6. Vivi Bubble Tea
3516 Ditmars Blvd., Astoria
31-54 Steinway St., Long Island City
83-28 Broadway, Elmhurst
Facebook • Instagram
This ubiquitous bubble tea shop offers both hot and refreshingly cool versions. Its signature drinks include the ViVi signature fruit tea, blue galaxy, red bean matcha milk tea, and beyond. Milk tea flavors include oolong, Thai, and ViVi’s very own black/green milk tea. ViVi uses ingredients that hail from Taiwan—all of which are FDA-approved.
7. Yaya Tea
8612 Whitney Ave., Elmhurst
Facebook • Instagram
Beyond delivering great tasting bubble teas and other fun drinks, Yaya Tea yearns to save the planet—one bubble tea at a time. When environmentally-aware guests reuse Yaya’s glass bottles, they’re given a 10-percent discount off any small drink. This sweet deal is available at all locations. It even lets teetotalers get creative—they can craft their own teas. First select black white, oolong, or green, and then choose up to three flavors.