Hey Sugar

The bubble tea market in Markham is pretty saturated with the same few stores multiplying; so when we passed by Hey Sugar on Yonge and Finch, we decided to pop in.

Hey Sugar
Location:  5379 Yonge St
North York, ON
M2N 5R6

OneZo Tapioca

A couple of my friends had been recommending OneZo Tapioca to me for quite some time now… but as I rarely passed by one, I hadn’t made a visit until a few weeks ago on one of our many adventures.

OneZo Tapioca
Location: 5 Northown Way, Unit 9
North York, ON
M2N 7A1 

Kung Fu Tea Shop 2.0

Rose milk tea, Uji matcha latte, tieguanyin milk tea

I was pretty sad when I found out Kung Fu Tea Shop closed their location on Dundas and University two years ago. It was my go-to spot for bubble tea when I was downtown and I would go out of my way to get my fix.

So I was pretty excited when they finally re-opened on Spadina, with a much bigger location and definitely with more foot traffic.

Kung Fu Tea
Location: 264 Spadina Ave
Toronto, ON
M5T 2E4

The Alley

Royal No. 9 & Uji Matcha

I was a bit surprised when I realized I never wrote anything about The Alley – known as Diagon Alley elsewhere in the world, they opened up last summer in the Commerce Gate Plaza, and has just opened a new location on Main Street Unionville.

The Alley
Location: 505 Highway 7 E
Thornhill, ON
L3T 7T1 

Funky Munky Cafe

I was on the hunt for a place to work after dinner on a Tuesday night, and found Funky Munky Cafe. I wasn’t looking for bubble tea, but imagine my surprise when I walked in to find that they offered bubble tea in addition to coffee and tea.

Funky Munky Cafe
Location: 9275 Markham Rd, Unit 7
Markham, ON
L6E 1A1

Boba Guys

Hojicha, Thai Iced Tea, Classic, and Muscat Oolong

I don’t know anyone in Canada that seriously calls it boba – it’s known as bubble tea here, so it was obvious how uniquely American this brand is.

When I first visited the Bay Area is 2014, my friend had recommended that I go here; but time constraints and lack of seriousness in trying different bubble tea led it to be forgotten. This past summer, my friend added it to our itinerary for San Francisco, and off we went in search of one during our one day in San Francisco.

Boba Guys
Location: 429 Stockton St
San Francisco
CA 94115

Spotlight: Green Grotto Maccha Hokkaido Milk Tea

I have reviewed my overall experience at Green Grotto already, but in the last few months, they released a new drink: Maccha Hokkaido Milk Tea.

I already love their Hokkaido milk tea, and I like their maccha milk tea, which meant it was a match made in heaven. The drink comes with grass jelly but I like to substitute with tapioca.

At $6.49, this drink is not cheap by any means, but it is the perfect blend of earthy matcha and sweet Hokkaido milk to leave your tastebuds satisfied. Also, you get 15% off with take-out!

They have opened a new location across from Markville Mall, and have a whopping eight locations now in Markham, Richmond Hill, Scarborough, Downtown Toronto, Vaughan, and Mississauga. Browse them all on their website to find the one closest to you.

ZenQ

Pearl milk tea creamy frappe

Located in the same plaza as Cha Me. Cha, we may have gone here one day because the aforementioned was full… but nevertheless we still enjoyed the vastly different atmosphere of ZenQ.

ZenQ
Location: 1076-8333 Kennedy Rd
Markham, ON
L3R 4P3

Green Grotto Tea Room

Jelly trio roasted milk tea

There was a time my friends and I were obsessed with going to Green Grotto. We used to go anywhere from once to three times a week for some popcorn and bubble tea. There is a sign outside that welcomes you to enjoy your stay for up to 3 hours, and often we stayed for over two hours.

Why? Green Grotto provides an atmosphere similar to a pub – sit down, order a drink, and chat for hours with your friends, get some work down, play some cards, browse some magazines, you name it.

Green Grotto Tea Room (website coming soon!)
Location: 3623 Hwy 7 E, Unit 115
Markham, ON
L3R 8X6

Gong Cha

Earl grey latte with 3 jellies and milk foam roasted oolong tea

Another bubble tea place straight from Taiwan has joined the ranks here in the GTA. Gong Cha is located near/in the Metro Square plaza and offers a few new options to bubble tea lovers. They also accept the Vicinity rewards card, always another plus so you don’t need to carry around all these different stamp cards.

Gong Cha
Location: 3636 Steeles Ave E
Markham, ON
L3R 1K9