T Bunz

Really Really Really slow service. We waited about 20 minutes to get our sandwiches made which were average at best — would not go back. Didn’t try the bubble tea.

Damn good, customizable boba tea made fresh daily with loose leaf tea. Bonus: lots of boba so you get some with every taste. Love the option of controlling sweetness, 30% is right for me. Bunz: pork belly was succulent and flavorful.

I’m all about those pork buns! I love pork belly buns and miss the Taiwanese ones. They have different versions with duck, chicken, etc in addition to the traditional pork belly ones. The pork belly was pretty tender and they ask if you’d like the buns to be garnished with peanuts. They also come with pickled veggies. The taste wasn’t exactly like the Taiwanese style pork belly buns because it’s usually added with pickled mustard, cilantro as well, but it was a good rendition. They also have milk tea and sandwiches.
Make sure to show your student ID and get 10% off!

I wish they had wifi, but I loved that the tea wasn’t too sweet. I got a kiwi 10% sweet with mango stars, and I liked the mango star consistency. Protip: when you ask for less ice, they still give you a lot of ice, so ask for no ice. Also, when you check in on Unilocal,you get a free topping or upgrade!

Place is small yet welcoming. Nice hostess at the front desk. Always smiling and pretty. That’s a bonus. Great food, and well prepared. Fresh and simple. Has bubble teas, also a fun thing. Close to parking and bike corral, installed recently. Also in the heart of downtown area so plenty of things to do after lunch. I say awesome.

Perfect for a quick, delicious, and satisfying snack or dinner, depending on how many bunz you get. It’s a new little hole-​in-​the-​wall, great for take out, but they do have a few counter seats if you want to eat there.
I tried the 1 piece pork belly for $ 3.50. I’m a fan. I used to buy those bread buns and eat them plain growing up, so delish! The generous pork slice was tender, and the accompanying pickled veggies, peanuts, and slightly sweet sauce were so tasty when combined together. Well done.
I also enjoyed the jasmine flavored tea for $ 2.50, and boba was free with a Unilocal check in. The tapioca was chewy and sweetened, so I was a happy camper. Also buy 8, get 1 free stamp card available, so ask for it.
Hopefully they’ll spruce the place up a bit. But great idea and concept, and as long as they keep up what they’re doing I’ll be a regular patron.

I’m hoping I came here on an off day because I really want this restaurant to succeed. I love small mom and pop places and the fact that they are selling baos/​buns makes it even better! (I miss the asian food I grew up with in socal)
But the two buns I tried (duck and pork) were really gross. 1) At first I couldn’t tell which meat was what because they were both smothered with sauce.
2) The flavors in the sauces were not right. Especially the duck one. It tasted musty and almost like they mixed molasses together with chinese vinegar. And the bun was doused with this overpowering sauce. The pork one was a lot better but it was far from amazing.
3) The buns were old. Yes, they were steamed and warm but they were old and crumbly.
I really liked their daikon and carrot pickles!
The milk teas here were way way too incredibly sweet. The 100% tastes like syrup. The 30% was still way too sweet for me. The 30% is like 80−100% at Sharetea.

Was walking around Berkeley and stopped in front of this place that still had the grand opening sign. checked Unilocal and reviews were decent so we stopped on in to give it a try.
The workers are fast and friendly. Me and my friend both got the jasmine green milk tea which tasted like freshly brewed tea (not the fake powder stuff!) and 50% sweetness was perfect for me! The boba was fresh and slightly sweetened as well.
Approved!

Love this place. Bubble Tea is Best in Berkeley. Food is delicious and tasty, specials are worth checking out. I go with the Thai Milk Tea. Just perfect. Wish there was a restaurant like this near me. Gk check this restaurant out i highly recommend it. Ps, theres a dry erase board that you can write your comments on.

At first I almost passed right by it, because it was so new and the space is pretty much a hole-​in-​the-​wall (but a nicely decorated one, mind you). My first thought was, ‘wow, another boba shop in Berkeley?’ but then I noticed that they sell buns, a.k.a. ‘bao’ as well as sandwiches. That’s something new, considering that most tea places only offer snack-​like foods and not so much something that could be considered actually a meal, like lunch or so.
Backtracking, I decided to check it out since I did need lunch and I never, ever say no to boba. I ordered the braised pork bao (2) and just a standard black milk tea (my baseline standard when trying out any new boba place). I am very glad that they have Square, since I’m used to many places being cash only (or cash under a certain amount) so I appreciate it a lot. The interior is fairly small, but it’s well-​utilized, with a bar/​stool area and then a few couches/​small tables for sitting around and talking. I can definitely seeing sitting there for a bit and chatting with friends.
The service is very nice and friendly; the guy at the counter was very polite and approachable, and you can tell the people who run this place really care about making it good and trying their best to give quality they can. I wonder if when they start getting popular, if they can handle the load but for now it doesn’t seem to be an issue (although note that they put the food together to-​order so do keep in mind you’ll have to wait like 5 minutes or so).
The bao were very tasty, the braised pork was soft and tender and well-​seasoned. I also really appreciated the house-​made pickled vegetables – very traditional, along with the crushed peanuts on top! Next time I really want to try the duck bao… mmm duck… and possibly the regular sandwiches as well.
The tea/​boba was good. Quite good. Not too sweet, had the right balance of tea and that ‘milk tea’ taste and the boba was chewy and not hard. I usually stick to the standard flavors but definitely want to try others like green, almond, Thai… they have lunch deals and happy hour it seems, which I think is great for those who want to hang out or grab a bite. They also offer discounts if you’re a Cal student so extra bonus there!
I hope they stick around; while Berkeley definitely has more than its fair share of boba/​tea places, there are surprisingly not many around the Gourmet Ghetto/​North Berkeley, and this will definitely save me a trip all the way down to campus when I’m craving boba.

T Bunz looks like an hole in the wall. seating is a couple tables.
on duty: one cashier and one sammie/​drink maker
menu: milk tea, sammies, teas, cookies, chips
eats: Hot Pulled pork on Ciabatta (6) special, reg. 6.75
–tender pulled pork, spicy bbq. apple slaw (just a few slices, no flavor)
taste average
–Ciabatta bread/​fillings ratio disproportional, banh mi baguette better choice
bun @ room temperature, a detraction
not a good value.
crumbs:
–boba tea pricey at 3.25, add on to sammie, 1.5, still passed.
–no reason to repeat.
–cute? awkward more appropriate.

Saw that a new boba place had opened up in Berkeley and came by to check it out. It’s a very small, cute place and all the servers there were very friendly. They also offer free samples of their teas which is nice. All students also get a free size upgrade when they show their ID!
I personally found the milk tea to be a little too sweet at 100% sweetness but they do offer all sorts of customization. The tea itself was also a little watery so next time I’ll probably order with less ice. The texture of the boba was also a little soft for my liking, but I think that in time they’ll work the kinks out.
It’s not the best milk tea in Berkeley, but they have a decent start. Keep in mind when visiting that they are new and still trying to find their footing, but I applaud their efforts!

Came here for the first time today. Cute little place, very nice and patient cashier in the front since we were completely indecisive.
Almond milk tea was awesome, honeydew milk tea was okay not great. A bit grainy as if they used powder or something and it didn’t dissolve well. The passion fruit tea wasn’t so bad though.
Cute interior was a white board for you to freely doodle. Which I did (hehe)
Probably be back again to try out their sandwiches this time.

Super friendly staff and service. You can customize your boba’s sugar and ice level, which is always a great plus for people like me that don’t like their drinks overly sweet. The pork buns make a great snack :)

Definitely give this place a try! They just opened two weeks ago in the neighborhood, and we finally stopped in to get some bubble tea. There’s no other bubble tea place around here, so this is a nice addition to North Shattuck. I got an almond milk bubble tea and it was very very good – I had never tried an almond bubble tea before and was impressed with this one. My husband enjoyed his jasmine oolong tea and tri tip sandwich as well. The staff were very friendly and eager to make their customers happy. We’ll definitely be back!

More tea, but this time with tasty bun sandwiches.
Brand new tea and sandwich place. The amount of tea places in Berkeley is getting crazy, but at least T Bunz has a twist with their offering of buns. I tried the pork belly buns and one of the teas. The tea was fine. Refreshing, served in a cute jar, although a bit on the bitter side. The pork buns were not bad. Meat was tender, and it was loaded with colorful veggies and what tasted like pickles made in-​house. At $ 3.50 a piece, they are not cheap, but I did not leave hungry.
I should have gotten the order to go because there really isn’t much sitting room and the benches they have are not comfortable. Hopefully they stop using Styrofoam trays.
Other tea and coffee places are better for sitting and talking or studying so I’m not sure when I would suggest coming here. Perhaps for a picnic takeout.

I stopped here on a whim since it just opened and I wanted to check the place out. I wasn’t planning on getting anything since I just ate but I tried a sample of their jasmine milk tea! It was incredible, most of these milk tea places taste too much like milk but here it had a delicious jasmine tea flavor. Their grape and passion fruit flavors (from the samples) also tasted good. I ended up getting the jasmine milk tea with aloe since they were out of boba. Like with many of the other places you can choose the sweetness and quantity of ice. They also said that there milk is dairy free which I needed so that was definitely a plus. You could also get a variety of add-​ons like aloe, mango, lychee, boba and more. Interestingly they also sold a lot of food that I’ll have to check out next time.
This place seems convenient for a quick stop to pick up a tea drink and food

Time: 3:37pm/54°F mostly clear
Purpose: Place was written down a month ago ever since then drove by windows still cover. Until Berkeley Unilocaler message me that the place is now open, 2 days already. What are you waiting for?
Ambiance: Place is almost considered to be hole in wall by its standards. There are two cushion seats for sidewalk seating with a two sided stand up ad board but, no tables. Saving grace was the cute little highback basket weave bistro style table/​chair set inside. One side of wall with dry erase suggestion board with backless stools and two tier unlevel wooden counter boards. Other side has a mirror also with couple of stools along with a connecting door all painted wood paneling. Sanded down floorboards with light lacquer coating. Painted over wooden barrel on top an cold mini fridge with a Milwaukee brand retro analog tuner radio. Inner back wall is the counter were the order/​pick up is done. Cut out window on left for pick up, while lower right the ledge fill with samples, tip jar, iPad, menu blackboard hanging overhead. Tuck in corner handwritten step by step introduction on how to master your drink order instructions. Modern pop music playing not loud enough to disturb your convo. Airy not stuffy for a small space like that surprises me. Very homey feel however not too cozy, cold draft coming in doorway. Not their fault as we’re in winter season now.
Staff: Young guy and girl about late 20’s. Could be bf/​gf or simply just workers. Very nice as the girl was being ask a series of questions. She didn’t quite understand on how to answer while the guy steps in and help her out. Great team work there, not leaving each other hanging. Both really friend and will bend over head over heels to make a sale. Definitely no pushing for sales.
Cleanliness: Grade B, well kept although some areas may need just a tad of elbow grease other than that, good to go for what it is.
Eats/​Drinks: Lemon honey tea $ 3.50 without any add ons. Its a great refreshing drink with no overly sweet. Taste just like what the menu indicated. Lemon and tea were mixed with consistentcy nothing artificial tasting compare that to Vita carton box drinks with flexible straw included, you know what I’m talking about. They also make hot versions of any of the drinks being offer. I was eyeing the #T3 roasted duck 1pc for $ 3.75 but, didn’t. Eating a Chicken, pork or fish is all the norm at boba places but, a step up, duck? For me to eat duck as a la carte, I’ll need the skin detach and crispy, slit steam bun with red dye dot on top, hoisin sauce and some lettuce.
Products/​Services: Pork belly, slow cooked chicken, roasted duck, avacado/​banana smoothie, Miss Vickie’s chips, Parisian baguettes, milk tea, flavored tea, Orea cookies. Add ons: Lychee jelly, passion fruit jelly, aloe, red bean, mango star, boba $.50¢ ea. Text in your order available (510)646−5666. No Wi-​Fi, TV.
Punch Lines: Minimal seating, limited menu, friendly, average prices, samples, hand sanitizer, complimentary mints, easy night out, special bargain, budget watchers, wood paneling, laid back, kitschy décor, light bites, zippy service, best cheap eats/​drinks around, nothing out of the ordinary, interesting takes, after work drinks/​apps, charming, itty-​bitty, kept its standards, satisfactory, kid friendly. Street parking, nearby cafes/​restaurants, bars, grocery stores, within minutes from Bart.
Tradeoffs: T-​bunz carries most of the same line up of other places. Difference here is how many places have 7 – 8 kinds of samples and the time to pour it for you? Can’t even remember a time, I went to a boba place that offers unlimited samples without the clerk cringing.
Final Thoughts: I dig this kind of place when you’re young just starting out banks won’t approved a loan. You take what ever funds you have available at the time and chase your dreams. I can see areas for improvement in the future so, I’ll cut some slack here as it’s a new start up, learning curve. They may think I don’t see it but, I know they try hard. For that, I would be ashamed to give anything lower than 3 stars.

Such a new and good milk tea and sandwich place! People are nice there and they have Chinese steam buns with pork belly which is my favorite! I love their T-​special! It’s sooooooooooo awesome!

Excellent tea and really good sandwiches! I tried the jasmine green tea and the margarita sandwich. They were both excellent. I will definitely be back.