Ten Ren Tea

NOTE: $ 6 MIN CHARGE FOR CREDIT
I absolutely love Ten Ren’s! The people were very friendly and answered all my annoying questions about where they import their boba pearls from. They sell much more than milk tea, with a large selection of tea leaves available. I didn’t inquire, but it seems like they know their tea.
I got a regular sized Mango Milk Green Tea and fell in love immediately. It took a lot of self-​control to not go back and get another one, haha. The boba pearls were also some of the best I’ve had – perfectly soft, chewy and sweet. The best part was that the cost came out to $ 3.00 (!!!) When you look at cost and quality, Ten Ren’s is top notch. I can’t wait to come back and try other milk teas!

Boba/​tea shops are making $ 5 drinks the norm. That shouldn’t be. Ten Ren has lots of affordable options that are all very good. Try them out!

The pearls were chewy and the tea tasted more like peach than tea. Overall, the bubble tea was good. The store was packed on a holiday afternoon.

Daaaaaaaaamn! Dat $hit is addictiiiiiiiiiiiiive! Boba crack… hahahaha!
By far the softest and chewiest tapioca I’e ever had in a boba tea!
My favorite is the oolong milk tea.
Every time I go there I am tempted to try something new — they have huge list of teas, milk teas and herbal teas (caffeine-​free) but can’t get myself to move away from the always-​so-​godamn-​delicious oolong tea :)
They do not take credit cards for orders under $ 7.

Order Jasmine with Pearls and Lychee. The store is a little hard to locate if you don’t know where you’re going but you’ll find it eventually. The tea itself lacked flavor and the pearls were extremely chewy. Lychee was successful I guess!!! Fast service — possibly a little too fast.

Ten Ren Tea Co is for sure on my top five milk tea joints coming from a milk tea aficionado who travels between SoCal and NorCal regularly. Maybe it is because this store actually specializes in selling (oriental) tea that they make their drinks so damn well. The first time I had a drink from here, I couldn’t believe how delicious and well you can taste the tea but it wasn’t overwhelming with the complimenting milk and sugar. The tapioca pearls was also cooked and prepared to perfection with a soft and sweet outer layer and chewy inner.
A personal favorite here is the Roasted Oolong. Get this if you really like tasting the tea in your drink because it packs a punch. Otherwise get the classic black or green milk tea or any of their customer favorites, you won’t be disappointed. Depending on the location (they have multiple stores), you can order tea eggs which are boiled eggs soaked in a mild tea broth and they are mouthwatering af.
Ten Ren, y’all changed my life.

Dang, this is one of the most legit tea places I ever had. I used to think Fantasia was the best boba place ever, but it nearly puts all the other boba places I tried to SHAME.
It is located in Cupertino Village, the most Chinese place you will ever find that’s not in China. Parking can be a bit annoying because the plaza is pretty huge and there are usually a ton of people around. The inside is a very traditional Chinese looking medicine/​tea shop and there are leaves and Chinese herbs you can buy I think. The inside was pretty small and less crowded and noisy than Fantasia, which I can appreciate, but there is not much seating inside and it can still get a bit noisy if you’re looking for a quiet place to chill with friends. I also don’t think they have a restroom or free wifi, so don’t plan on staying and working here.
Their menu is pretty extensive, they sell milk tea, tea, and slushie-​like drinks. Their price is pretty average for a boba place, ranging from around $ 2.50-$ 3.50, but that is cheaper than a LOT of boba places in the Bay, which can range from $ 4-​$ 5. They also have a Five Star program so that’s pretty nice.
So I ordered a Matcha Milk tea with pearls and gosh it was so darn delicious. They used legit tea, and it was not too watery, sweet, or milky like most other places that make matcha. Furthermore, their pearls are the perfect consistency — not too chewy or hard. Can they get any more perfect?
Overall, I really loved their tea and would love to try other teas on their menu. And naw, their medicinal atmosphere won’t stop me because nothing can, this place is too good.

Visited TenRen today. Decided I’d try something new so I went on Unilocal to find recommendations. Someone mentioned that the almond milk tea was good, so I tried the almond milk green tea.
Bad decision.
The almond flavor was overwhelming and had an unpleasant aftertaste, and it’s on the sweet side, so I’d recommend asking for the sweetness to be reduced.
Usually the normal teas are decent, so I recommend those, but I would not recommend the almond one.

The queue was super long when I came and it took us at least 5 minutes before ordering.
We ordered taro smoothies with aloe vera, milk green tea with pearls, osmanthus oolong, and peach green tea.
There are a lot of staffs that work in that small space, but they look very efficient.
I think this is one of the best bubble tea shop there is. I’m not a big fan of bubble tea, but I love this one.

Despite the growing number of pearl milk tea places in the bay, Ten Ren is still a solid and affordable choice. In the milk tea spectrum, their drinks tend to lean more toward the tea side, so it’s not always my go-​to place, but they do a lot of their drinks really well. It’s kind of expected that their drinks would be more on the tea side as they also sell tea leaves.
Prices have also stayed relatively low compared to a lot of newer places, and what I really love is their prices always come to some quarter amount (as in it’s either an even dollar or it’s some multiple of .25, so it makes life easy). For example last night, I got a large White Peach Milk Tea with pearls, and the total came to $ 4.
A few of my favorite include their mango green tea, oolong milk tea, and honey green milk tea. Honestly, I don’t think any drink I’ve tried from them has disappointed me, so that’s pretty good, as they have a decent sized menu. Additionally, their pearls always have a nice sweetness and good texture.
Overall, a great choice for milk tea, even though there are so many options just in Cupertino Village alone.

Ten Ren Tea has one of the most fragrant teas out of the existing boba chains out there. You will find upon entering the shop that it is a place that truly specializes what it sells: tea. There are vessels of tea everywhere about the shop, and often, you will find customers purchasing tea in addition to drinks.
Note: you are able to specify how sweet you would like your drink, although they may not automatically ask you this.
Go-​to order: Honey green tea with boba and grass jelly.
This is an ultra refreshing choice for anyone that is needing something light (milk-​less), and needing a caffeine spike at any time of the day. The grass jelly that they serve here is by far the best kind out there — it doesn’t taste dated, and it isn’t in tiny absurd pieces as you may find it served elsewhere.

This place has my heart. Everything I’ve tried is delicious. Not overly sweet and not too milky that it taste away from the tea taste.
A few favorite of mine:
–Mango milk tea
–Green mango ai-​yu
–strawberry yogurt tea
The boba is always cooked perfectly. And a large is just around $ 3.
They have the point system so sign up with your number!
Also accepts credit cards with a minimum of $ 7.
The parking is a pain in the butt sometimes when you want to do a quick tea run though. WORTH IT

I’ve been here way too many times, and it never fails to disappoint me.
— The drinks have a slight unpleasant medicinal taste.
— The drinks are also quite watered down
— There’s no place to sit, and barely any place to stand. It’s not really a hangout spot.

I’ve recently grown to love TEA, and if you’re a fan of actual TEA versus sugary/​added sugar tea, than this is the place for you! You can tell their tea comes from high quality tea leaves, and you can also purchase tea from there too! It’s basically a tea shop offering a wide selection of tea/​milk tea and the option to buy tea leaves!
Perks:
The boba is a free add on! unlike almost all places where it’s an additional .50 cents !
Their roasted oolong tea is DELICIOUS! Try this if you’re ever wanting to grab a quick tea, not really a place to chill at though.

This place is not for the faint of heart, but those who are SERIOUS about STRONG TEA flavor, then this is for you. It’s located in the busy Cupertino village and parking is a nightmare. However sometimes ya girl just has the cravings for some straight up tea without all that crazy artificial overdone sugariness or watered done stuff, so I will put up with that crazy plaza for some Ten Ren. You can tell how strong your tea is going to be the second you walk in. Your nose is greeted by the aroma of various pungent teas and the shop overall looks like a medicinal tea type of place your grandma would send you to find some herbal remedies to drink your sickness away. They have two small tables, so it’s best you just grab tea and go.
I ordered the peach green tea with HOUSE MADE grass jelly. I’m honestly not a fan of grass jelly, but Ten Ren is the only place I’ll have it. It’s soft, big chunks and very different from other places! Overall, my drink had perfect sweetness and was a nice change from your typical tea house.

I had green honey boba tea. It was very refreshing taste and good!
I actually prefer this place to Purple Kow.
I want to try other flavor too!

Loveeeee this place. If you want some really authentic teas, this is the place to go. They also sell loose leaf teas of many varieties. You know it’s super authentic when they open cans and let you smell them (I think you can get sampling, too). Their pearls are usually on point. The only downside is that the drinks are pretty pricey. I do enjoy their green mango aiyu honey green tea, and their drinks are all quite good.

Some of my favorite things about ten ren are 1) pearls don’t cost extra, 2) their prices are very reasonable, and 3) some of their fruit teas (strawberry, for sure) contain actual tiny fruit bits.
They have a huge menu! I typically stick to their cold flavored teas, with no milk, although their passion fruit milk tea is my boyfriend’s favorite, and it is pretty good.
I usually get strawberry green tea with pearls, since it’s really sweet and has the little fruit bits. The bits aren’t like the chunks you would get at Tea Zone, they are more like fruit pulp almost.
If you don’t like your tea too sweet, you can just ask them for less sweetness at the register. You can also ask for light or no ice.
Out of my many visits to Ten Ren, only two times did my drink not meet my expectations. The first was blueberry green tea. Honestly, I don’t know what I was thinking when I ordered it, since I’ve not once seen blueberry flavored tea at any other store. It didn’t really taste bad, it just lacked flavor, so I wouldn’t recommend that one. The second time was when I got HOT Mango Green Tea. When you order fruit teas hot, but with no milk, the fruit flavor strongly overpowers everything else and it tastes a little too sweet (coming from a sweet tooth, by the way). Other than that, I’ve never had a poor experience.
Another cool thing about Ten Ren is that they sell loose leaf tea and tea bags in store. The loose leaf tea I assume is what gives the store it’s sort-​of earthy smell. It’s hard to describe, but I love the smell of Ten Ren.
Large size costs $ 1.00 extra, which is twice what most stores charge; however, it’s forgivable with their low base prices plus free pearls. I do wish they still offered mini pearls, since it’s hard to find those anywhere even though they are so good!
They aren’t affiliated with the FiveStars Rewards, but you can ask for a stamp card at checkout, and when you purchase 10 drinks you get the next one free. I do wish they had FiveStars since I have an abundance of stamp cards to keep track of.
Indoor seating is limited, but it’s not really an issue since most people just get their tea and leave. The line is rarely long, and orders come out pretty quickly.
Overall, Ten Ren is definitely in my top 5 all time favorites for tea, so I would definitely give them a try.

I love tea. Especially when it’s brewed properly and is fresh. My boyfriend, friends, and I came to Ten Ren this past weekend. I really wanted to try it.
The parking is horrible because it’s close to 99 Ranch, but that’s not a deterrent of mine if the drink is delicious. We walked in and the different tea aromas were everywhere. It smelt so good! Definitely a place where I can purchase tea.
Its a small place with two tables and two employees, but they are quick. I ordered the milk black tea with little pearls as they were out of the big pearls. The pricing of the drinks was on par — affordable for fresh brewed tea. My drink was done in 5 minutes or less. In my first sip of my drink, I could definitely taste the black tea. It wasn’t too bitter. It smelt great! The little pearls were really good too. It was chewy and not too sweet.
I will definitely be back for more tea drinks. I really want to try the jasmine green tea!

I’m a little disappointed in lowering my rating, but it has to be done.
I’ve gone to Ten Ren several times since my first visit. The intoxicating aroma of tea leaves is always welcoming, as are the drinks themselves. I always try to visit while I’m in town despite the constant construction on nearby streets or in the plaza itself. The drinks have been consistently reliable until now.
Biggest issue of today: the small pearls kept getting stuck in my straw. This is not cool when you’re trying to sip a drink stress-​free. Having to apply negative pressure into the straw for a long time with no reward is just not cool.
Also, I no longer think that the tea flavors are top-​notch. Jasmine milk tea and roasted oolong milk tea, the latter of which I tried just today ($ 4.50 for large size w/​boba, which I think is a slight price hike), are both balanced in sweetness, but the tea flavors are not that strong. I’ve had strong tea at other places since last year, which has opened my eyes so to speak.
I’ll probably come back to Ten Ren for a passion fruit green tea w/​small boba if I’m nearby and have time — with the generous assumption that today was a fluke — but it won’t be my top priority any longer with better shops in San Jose proper.