Hill Street Cafe & Cigar

Good café-​convenience store hybrid. A great coconut smoothie ($ 3.50) and milk teas, and a rather Americanized menu for being in the dead center of Chinatown. Their sandwiches are VERY good, but for food make sure to come before 3pm or 4pm when the ladies are still there. Espresso drinks are pretty good. It’s a clean place with lots of snack options. The only knock is that there are always weird Cantonese men loitering and smoking on the patio, playing the lottery. All day.

yummy thai tea boba here!
reasonably priced as well.
it has a bunch of food menus on the. this includes food and beverages.
i’ve tried their pizza, sandwiches, and drinks. i like the berry smoothie on hot summer days; can u say brain freeze?
their deli sandwiches are made to order so u can let em know if u want less condiment spreads.
the café is very convenient for hotel guests.
btw, i dont see any smoke available it is laden with lotto stuff tho.
will return and try other food. and post pix

It was pretty impressive. Got lucky with street parking right out front at the loading zone, with my blinkers on. Anyway, nice convenient store for snacks and drinks, plus bobba and thai iced tea. They also do sandwiches and pizza… but I haven’t tried those. Cash only, be prepared.

The workers here are really friendly. I always come and grab drinks for me and my coworkers or boss. Usually its lemon honey tea or lemonade or coffee. You get like a 32 oz cup for a mere 2 dallor. They have boba, junkfood, sandwiches, scratches, lotto etc. its always packed with people gambling so beware its always packed.

This tiny Market-​Café is located at in the courtyard of the Best Western Dragon’s Gate Hotel. I was staying in this Chinatown Hotel for 2 nights & by doing so I got a free continental breakfast at the Hill St. Café both mornings.
Each morning about 10 or so locals from the neighborhood would sit around outside this place smoking, drinking coffee and scratching lottery tickets. I saw one of them eating a package of raw hot dogs, I witnessed him down 3 of them in about 2 minutes. So the place was pretty entertaining for people watching.
The place served up a great waffle, along with some OJ, coffee, an assortment of Bagels, Muffins, hard boiled eggs etc … A very Solid continental breakfast.

Unique little store that has just about everything. It is like a little market with a drink bar. Plenty of outdoor tables to relax and enjoy a drink. I ordered the Iced Green Tea Latte and it was not very good.
Th Iced green tea latte hadh ard ice that would suck up with the tea in the straw. It was not mixed well but more like crushed ice. The powder was kinda clumpy and stuck on the bottom of the cup. $ 2.00.
I have had better.

I love coming to this place for their cheap boba. I can’t remember if it’s $ 1.25 or $ 1.75 for a large milk tea with boba… but the point is that it’s cheap and good!!!
Both the milk tea and the boba always satisfy my craving, and any time I’m in Chinatown, it’s not a complete trip until I stop in this place for boba =)
There isn’t really space inside for you to sit, and it’s not the cleanest place to have a «boba date» with anyone, but there ARE tables and chairs outside where you can often find cute Chinese grandmas and grandpas chillin. =)
There’s a $ 3 underground parking lot literally right next to this Café, and I usually park there during the day. At night, I can usually find street parking.

I like that this place has really cheap boba milk tea. It sells for $ 1.25 for a large. How awesome is that. I think it’s a steal so more often than not, I’ll swing by here when I’m in Chinatown. Other than that, this place is a convenience store that sells candy, other milk teas and slushes, cup ramen, coffee, cold bottled drinks and lotto tickets. I love the old Chinese folks who hang out here during the afternoon.
About the boba milk tea, milk tea enthusiasts, you know who you are, this isn’t the place for you. If you’re used to 85C or Tea Station, you’re probably not going to be happy with Hill Street’s. I took my sister once and she complained about it. But for average Joes and Josies like me, I can’t tell the difference and I’m blissfully happy with my serving and the taste of their milk tea. :)
They have nice workers. I came here for breakfast once. They didn’t have much of a selection, but I got a bagel with jelly and a coffee. The guy was nice enough to toast it for me. :)
This place is cash only!

Why is it always the asian owned places that mix and match their shops? Doughtnuts and Chinese food? No problem. Want some wontons with that burger? Absolutely.
Hill Street Café is half convenience store half coffee shop, you can get a lotto ticket, a gatorade, a blended frapp and a hot dog all at one stop. And theres a courtyard outside to sit and watch the cars go by.
One thing I hate though is the parking, pretty much street only or you can pay and park at one of the nearby lots, blech.

Not quite a café. Not quite a convenience store. It’s a weird mishmash of the two. The lady running the register was super sweet when I walked in. I was the only one within a 30 foot radius not feverishly filling in lottery ticket scantrons.
I was in need of my Sunday paper, some Gatorade for my running buddy and a tapioca milk tea. The fact that I was able to get all three for under $ 5 made it a neat little discovery in my neighborhood.

This café is a little spot on a busy street right next to the 110 fwy. Therefore, parking is a little bitch, and I actually got a ticket for parking in the loading zone. What the heck?! I am loading up on boba, you know.
Anyway, it’s not exactly a sit-​down and read your book or check out the scenery spot– just a place to pick up some decent boba and be on your way. The shop is constantly filled with old chinese people buying lottery tickets– big con. But, the boba is relatively cheap, and you get a large size. The milk tea is just powder and the thai tea is watered down, but I like the lady behind the counter as well as their milk tea boba (it’s stronger, almost has a hint of coffee) so I’m a frequent.
They open early and close around.9 I think. It’s usually not too busy, but if you want to make sure you get out of there without a ticket, try the little parking lot next door ($ 3 to get $ 2 boba!) or park adjacent on Alpine street. Their shakes are pretty good too– my cousin always gets the oreo shake.
They have food, but it’s more of a rotisserie-​hot dog and ready to be heated food. That goes for the pizza and sandwiches as well. So if you’re looking for food… this is more like 7 – 11 food. They have lots of good drinks and snacks though. The owner also owns the little motel that is the center of the plaza, so alot of the stuff there is convenience food for tourists; coffee, individual packaged cereal, muffins, snacks, etc.

Scored a nice loading zone parking right out front! YAY!
Chill courtyard with tables and chairs — people smoking and relaxing enjoying coffee, tea, boba — YAY!
The woman behind the counter was extremely sweet to inform me they don’t sell cigars. Too bad the name of the place is Hill Street Café & CIGAR! Boo!