U Cha

I love this place! I am a boba addict and I have been looking for the perfect place to satisfy my boba needs. Thanks to my friends, I just recently discovered U Cha. Their best seller: Iced Milk Drink with Pearl is by far my favorite! The customer service is also a plus, and the atmosphere is very inviting. Prices are reasonable as well.

That’s some quali-​tea boba!
This is probably the best boba place that I’ve come across in Berkeley. I was in the area last week, stopped by on a whim, and was glad I did!
So I’m no boba expert, but this place knows how to make boba. The #1 Fresh Milk Tea with Pearls is by far the best. I definitely recommend it to anyone! The pearls itself was very soft, but not completely mush, which I like. I got it with 50% sweetness, but I still thought was a little too sweet compared to other places. Nonetheless, it was still delicious.
My bf got #7, the Passionfruit Green Tea with Ai Yu Lemon Jelly, also with 50% sweetness. He really liked it as well, but we both agreed #1 tops it. No lie, the passionfruit drink tasted very fresh and the jelly was superb, but there was something about the fresh milk tea drink that trumps it.
Service-​wise, the workers were very fast and efficient, despite the crowd. The line was to the door, yet we got our drink within 5 minutes. Go workers, props to you!
If you have yet to try this place, I recommend you hurry and try it!

Right next to Great China! I had the Okinawa milk tea, seems one of their top 5 best sellers. It tastes okay. I told them to not put pearl but they still did, which made me a bit upset.
But I’d still love to go again to try their other options such as the fresh milk tea and the taro milk tea.

My hubby and I ever rarely go up to Berkeley and there was no way in heck we were going to leave without trying some of their boba. Friends of ours, who also happened to have been UC Berkeley students, told us about their popular U Cha and boasted about how great their teas were. Time to put it to the test!
Driving through downtown Berkeley is chaotic. The roads are narrow, pedestrians are everywhere, and parking is pull-​out-​your-​hair difficult. But my hubby kept his cool and after going through some trouble finding the place, we finally saw the big sign of U Cha on the corner of an intersection.
The boba spot itself is on the smaller side, but simply decorated. I personally love the bright white walls and minimal wall décor. It just made the space seem bigger and super clean. The menu was easy to read with one screen dedicated to showcasing their top ten drinks. Wanting to go for the basics, we chose the green milk tea and Okinawa milk tea, both with pudding.
I had asked the cashier if the pudding was «egg pudding» and all he could tell me was that it was yellow. Not very helpful, but that sounded right to me. Prices are decent, but that isn’t too big of a surprise since U Cha caters to a large student population. Our drinks came out fairly quickly and upon first glance, it looked like we were missing egg pudding, but then we realized it was because our cups didn’t have a lot. BUMMER!
Luckily, the lack of egg pudding was redeemed by the AMAZING taste of the teas. The green milk tea had a strong, healthy taste of green tea that permeated the milk perfectly. The milk certainly came in second to the tea and that is honestly how all milk teas should be. It was delicious! The Okinawa milk tea had that signature roasted brown sugar flavor with just a hint of bitterness after each sip – just the way we like it!
If U Cha was closer to us, I have no doubt that it would be one of our returning favorites. While it isn’t the best we have ever had, it is certainly a place we would come back to again if we were in the area.
So we got it Berkeley peeps, U Cha is pretty dang good.

U-​Cha is officially my FAVORITE boba place. I heard a lot about it when they first opened one in Berkley and I was super excited to come back home and try it out.
I love the Matcha Latte, it’s always on point whenever I get it. The passion fruit is also really good. Basically all the drinks are super good.
A lot of other boba places I go to tend to take a while for the drinks to come out but service is always fast over here. The service is fast and attentive.
If you go later in the day like close to closing they run out of some ingredients so def go earlier in the day!

There was a line out the door when I arrived on a Sunday afternoon. With only one employee working the register, I probably waited 5 minutes or so which isn’t bad at all. I ordered a roasted oolong milk tea with boba ($ 3.25 + $ 0.50 for topping). My BF ordered the iced fresh milk drink with pearl and added pudding ($ 3.99 + $ 0.50). His drink is listed as #1 on the Top Sellers list. The list is a great place to choose from especially if it’s your first time there.
Both drinks were great. The boba was made well (not chewy or mushy) and there was a good amount added to the drink.
There’s limited seating in the shop, maybe 6 tables for 2 or so. It’s a great place to catch up with friends and not so much a place to study at.

Personally I’m not a huge fan of boba and tea so it is really hard for me to find drinks that I like from places like sharetea, ucha, purple kow etc. U cha, however, has this iced milk tea that I love to drink. It gets busy during lunch and dinner hours and parking is kind of hard to find. The drinks come out quick, but know that it might be a little crowded. It does not get a perfect five stars because the boba at night becomes hard or too chewy or sometimes they just run out (which is arguably understandable).
tip — Make sure to get their stamp card!

Milk tea — very tasty flavor profile. Stronger than other milk teas I’ve tried but still does not compare to Asha tea house. You do get more for you dollar so a student on a budget will appreciate it.
Matcha tea — very mild in terms of matcha flavor but it’s a refreshing level. The right amount of sweetness that brings out the matcha flavor. Good option if you want to try something other than the standard milk tea. Asha’s matcha is on another level so I’m trying not to be super critical.
Pearl — it is sweet which I really appreciate. I don’t like bland pearl. It’s just no fun! This makes the boba here much better.
If you’re considering trying it GO FOR IT.

I was in Berkeley for the day and came here because I wanted to try a boba place that isn’t in the Lower Bay. The menu is very similar to ShareTea’s. I ordered the Okinawa Pearl Milk Tea w/​regular sweetness level. It wasn’t too sweet and had a good flavor. The boba was really good and tasted sweet. I’m not sure if they used honey boba or if was just the brown sugar flavor from the drink. I was pretty satisfied with the drink overall. Even my boyfriend liked it and he isn’t a fan of milk tea.

Sometimes I’m craving plain milk tea, and when I do, I usually head to U Cha. Their milk tea is really good, and their pearls are so sweet! I always opt for 0 or 25% sugar, and never leave unsatisfied. I’m not a fan of their fruit teas though. I also ordered a hot drink once and was a bit disappointed as the tea was lukewarm at best.
The location itself has really limited seating though, and is often packed through the door with students looking to get their boba fix. Also, I’ve been meaning to try their shaved ice, but they always seem to run out?

Came here at the beginning of the semester to catch up with some friends and I was utterly disappointed. I asked my friend before coming what I should get, and she told me that she’s had the matcha latte, so I decided to get that. Upon ordering, I asked the cashier if I could have less sugar and less ice. She told me, «We can’t do less ice. If you want less ice, we will have to melt the ice and it may dilute the drink.» I was super confused for a second and in my head, I thought, «So you mean you’re going to add water to it?» I didn’t bother asking and just got it normally iced. When I tasted my drink, I was even more confused because even though I ordered it normally iced, it still tasted super watery and diluted. Someone else in the group ordered the shaved snow, but it was a bit too sweet for my liking.
Definitely sticking to Asha in the future.

First time here because my original boba place around the area wasn’t open at the time. I decided to try one of their top drinks so I got the Passion Fruit Green Tea with Ai Yu Lemon Jelly.
I love sweet and fruity drinks so this was a great drink for me!
My boyfriend ordered a hot honey milk tea and was disappointed because it just tasted like watered down milk.
It was pretty empty when I came in the afternoon so service was fast and easy!

Overall ⁵⁄₅
Quality/​Food 4.5÷5
Service ⁵⁄₅
Atmosphere ⁵⁄₅
Nutshell: New boba place that open up next to Cal. Compared to Sharetea and Pinkcow this is my favorite as the tea is a lot stronger, sweeter and the boba consistency was perfect. My favorite boba place in Ca to date :)
Quality: Got the green milk Tea with boba and pudding. The tea is brewed as you could since it was so strong. The milk was fresh and creamy. The boba was soaked in honey and had the perfect consistency. Overall the normal sweetness was perfect for my drink. Unfortunately the egg pudding though consistency was good, it was a bit flavorless. Drink was $ 4 including tax. If you pay with cc they dont have a tip option (tip container though!) which for some customers is a plus.
Service: Staff was quick and friendly :)
Atmosphere: New, hip and decently sized comparable to a starbucks store!

Of course my first review ever would be of a boba shop. If you know me, you’d know that I’ve been addicted to boba for the past 4 years. There is no boba place I haven’t been within the immediate Berkeley vicinity, so therefore, I’d know all the best places, right? ;)
Drink itself (most important): 4.5÷5
Only reason I’m taking off half a point is because a lot of their drinks are super sweet. I’ve had a sweet tooth for most my life, but as I’ve grown older, I’ve become more conscious of how much sugar I’m consuming. Their fresh milk drink is absolutely divine. I’ll even deal with the nasty repercussions of my inability to digest lactose for this drink, but I must admit, it is extremely sweet. Not too big of a problem, because you can always lessen the sweetness, but not something advertised when ordering for the first time. I’ve come to the habit of always ordering 25% sweetness level at U Cha.
Other than that, there’s an awesome selection of milk teas, fruit teas, lattes, yakult drinks, and creamas. I’d definitely recommend the Mango Yakult for anyone tired of getting milk/​fruit teas, and the Okinawa Milk Tea is fabulous (at 25% sweetness!) for milk lovers.
Toppings (also very important): ⁵⁄₅
First off, U Cha has some of the best boba I’ve ever had. They’re soft, but not mushy, and deliciously chewy to perfection. Thinking about it now is making my mouth water. I give them complete props for always having the perfect boba consistency.
As for the other toppings, I had ai yu lemon jelly for the first time here. Surprisingly slimy, but not a turn off. It just has a different consistency from grass jelly, which is more firm. Can’t really judge the other toppings here, cause I usually only get boba, but I’d say you can’t really go wrong with anything else! :)
Misc: ⁵⁄₅
The store is very clean. Never been inside the bathroom, but have heard stories (lol) that it’s super clean. Not surprising, though, since they recently opened. The owner is super dope and friendly. Price-​wise, I’d say it’s not bad, average for Berkeley.
All in all, I’d totally recommend anyone living in or visiting Berkeley to come here for their boba fix.
PS. The green tea shaved ice is delicious. Must try, ’nuff said.

This place is something else.
This shop has been opened for a while and every time I drive by I see it have a bunch of people and wondered if it was any good. I mean Sharetea up the block has a lot of people but their oolong tea with crema taste powdery and nasty.
Anyways my friend wanted to get milk tea from somewhere and I suggested U-​cha since I’ve seen it have a lot of people and wanted to try it for once.
We parked outside, and most of the time they have plenty of street parking at night (as I am to cheap to pay for parking during the day) and walked in.
The menu fairly expansive and the prices are on par with most places.
My first drink of choice is always the oolong tea with crema 50% sweet with grass jelly, since I’ve been dialing down in sugar, and the drink came out pretty quickly. It was really good, strong tea taste with creamy cream. My only gripe was there could be more grass jelly but it tasted wonderful and fresh.
Next drink of choice, which I’ve been getting is the roasted oolong milk tea 50% sweet with grass jelly and it’s just as good. Delicious, with strong flavor.
They have stamp cards for buy 10 get one free and another promotion where if you buy 5 drinks and get the 6^th one free on same purchase.
It is decorated quite nicely, modern clean colors along with employees that keep the place clean all the time. I mean the waiting area is a bit on the smaller area but hey, it’s still a nice place to hang out and catch up with friends if you’re able to find a spot.
Delicious drinks plus a nice place to catch up? Sign me up.
Cheers!

5-​stars approved! This place has really legit boba. I think it’s one of my top 4 favorite places in the Bay Area next to Sharetea, T4, and Gong Cha. Their best seller is the fresh milk drink ($ 3.99) which is basically fresh milk plus boba coated with brown sugar. This type of drink is really common to find in Taiwan, but it’s quite rare to find a good one of these in Norcal or even in Socal the land of Taiwanese boba.
For the fresh milk sometimes the boba might be too soft and mushy… How you deal with that is you need to mix the drink up with the rest of the milk and give it some time to firm up the boba. Also mixing up the drink allows you to prevent from drinking a mouth full of super sweet brown sugar boba and then then a mouth full of almost flavorless milk given how sweet the first gulp was…
Berkeley is becoming a place filled with all sorts of good boba and asian desserts.

I ran into U Cha looking for a hot cup of tea for the boy and myself before the long wait at Great China across the street, and were pleasantly surprised with the drinks!
THE HIGHLIGHTS.
+ Extensive drink menu with some less-​common tea types (or at least, not commonly done well)
+ Flexibility in adjusting sweetness in drinks (50% is more than sweet for the honey milk tea)
+ Fast, friendly service
+ Salty, sweet crema drinks served
I’d gladly go out of my way to grab another tea at U Cha!

Stopped in for some boba after lunch. There are so many more boba places in Berkeley now compared to when I was a student!
U-​Cha is small but has a few tables/​seats inside. The menu is medium, not quite as extensive as some other places. Although not advertised, you can adjust the sweetness and ice levels (0%, 25%, 75%, 100%).
I tried the Okinawa Milk Tea (brown sugar milk tea). I couldn’t really taste the brown sugar in the milk tea, but I got 50% sweetness, which was actually still a bit too sweet since this drink comes with boba and the boba at U-​Cha, while of an extremely chewy and desirable «Q» texture, is very sweet.
There was a buy 5, get one drink free promotion, which was perfect for our party of six. Definitely recommend this drink place. Prices are pretty reasonable ($ 2-​$ 4 per drink), and there are even some shaved snow items (although called shaved ice on the menu). One size only, equivalent to large size at most places.
The employee at the cash register was also kind enough to take a group photo for our party. My group also got into an interesting discussion when we noticed one of the printed items in the store with «地道» where in other places it is written «道地.» We think it was a typo, although in Taiwanese Mandarin we say 道地 and in Mainland China Mandarin + Cantonese, the order is 地道. Since the store claims to be a «traditional Taiwanese tea house,» we think the intention was 道地. xD

I very much enjoyed my wintermelon tea drink the night before taking off for a monthlong jaunt in Asia.
Newly opened, it wasn’t as slow in service as some have touted. mainly, I was impressed by how friendly the front guy was, giving out free things, and adroitly managing the crowds. I will definitely return. Given that it’s not located in as crazy a spot as PK if driving, this will def be my go-​to spot.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND. This is my new and current favorite boba place in all of Berkeley. Amazing chewy boba, ability to customize sugar level and ice. Great service!
My favorite is the Okinawa Milk Tea with boba 25% sugar (love the flavor!) as well as the oolong milk tea. The shaved snow is super good too! I tried the green tea and it was a lot of snow/​jellies and full of green tea flavor.
Must try if you love boba. The best of Berkeley! Don’t forget to ask for their stamp cards :)