Silk Road Cafe

I’ve been to the place since this place opened. I have since moved out of the city. However every time I go back to Silk Road, my experience have gotten worse and worse. Case in point. Recently I took my god daughter here to get something to drink. When I ordered the iced green tea, the woman messed up my order. When I told her that wasn’t my order, instead of making the order I requested, she instead gave me the same order and sprinkles green powder and served it back to me. When I told her that wasn’t my order she said that’s how ‘green tea looks like.’ Mind you, it didn’t even look close to being iced green tea! It was a pale yellow color and tasted nothing like green tea! Sorry Silk Road but you either need to get rid of your crappy employees or risk your business closing up! Sadly the once vibrant Silk Road has change significantly to a point where it actually stinks! I had so many great memories but if this is how this place runs a business I’ll be happy to see it go and replaced with another business!

I’ve passed by this café many times before, but today was the first time I decided to step in and give it a try. Luckily they had empty tables near an outlet in the front, but still limited as other reviews have pointed out. It does get noisy post-​work hours, something to consider if you plan on making this your study spot. Also not sure if they just don’t want to turn on the AC, but my ice cold drink was the only thing keeping me cool in this summer heat.
They have a solid selection of hot and cold drinks, and teas. Wouldn’t expect any less from Chinatown. The honey green tea tastes as expected, but it’s my go-​to drink because you can really screw up a simple drink like that. Will try more next time!

Came in here to wait for our table next door at Peking Duck House and needed to kill time. Ordered a vanilla latte which did not taste right at all — the coffee was really bitter and whatever they used for vanilla tastes like really old agave syrup. The guy working the counter didn’t really smile or speak to us, let alone look us in the eye. 1 star for convenience (where else are you supposed to sit when Peking Duck House is packed and has no waiting area and it’s freezing out?) and another star for the benefit of the doubt — the party after us ordered boba drinks and hot tea and those looked far more fresh and appetizing.

I’ve been there once before, and I don’t think it’s a bad place. I ordered a taro milk tea, along with a lot of the things that my friends ordered. The taro milk tea was exactly how I wanted it to be. I’m going to try the rest of the menu next time.

Came after dim sum breakfast/​brunch with a group of friends. The owner/​maker of the boba drinks is a mother-​like kind Chinese lady. Chinatown rocks in the first place but/​and boba drinks were good. You can choose flavor along with the boba or replacement things, like aloe, lychee etc. they also sell tea pots and cup set for either $ 28 or $ 40. I bought a $ 28 one, and it is so great! It’s oriental and useful at home for guests and/​or interactive tea pouring conversations with your loved ones!

We had really high expectations for this Coffee Spot on Mott Street. As a self-​proclaimed Gourmet Coffee Spot in Chinatown, we expected really good coffee, really good service and really good homemade baked goods.
For some reason that we can’t recall, we ended up only getting the tea at this place, instead of the coffee. So we can’t really judge the coffee, but based on other reviews it sounds like the coffee is great here.
What disappointed us was the fact that while we were waiting for our tea, we saw the staff bring in a ton of baked goods from Costco. Not only was their baked goods, we saw a lot of frozen foods that are common occurrences in Costco. This tells us that the food and baked goods here are bought and resold, not really fresh or homemade.
Though the tea was good, we didn’t like the way the food is being resold. Once we saw this, it ruined the whole place for us. If we do come back here, maybe we’ll try the coffee next time. Definitely, we will not be ordering their food as we could probably get it cheaper at Costco.

I ordered a milk tea and an espresso. I enjoyed both drinks.
I liked the place because it looked like a real café. So many cafes out there on Chinatown are bright and obnoxiously loud. I liked the area because you could study in a place that won’t blind your eyes.

The atmosphere could definitely use with some sprucing up. It’s way too bright and the seating needs to be rearranged. However, the tea itself is what deserves the 4 star rating. The tea comes in the most adorable clear glass tea pot with matching tea glasses. I believe I ordered the passion fruit tea, which came out fiery red. It was, hands down, one of the best teas I’ve ever had.

A relatively new fixture in Chinatown as of early 2014. It is clearly a distinct departure from other bubble tea and coffee shops in the area because they are able to maintain the café décor look and feel, as opposed to the hustle and bustle of other small bubble tea shops or shacks further along Mott and Bayard. Definitely nice and quiet environment to enjoy a quiet conversation, read a book, or work on a laptop. It’s a definite hidden gem tucked away in between all the crazy touristy traps around. I’ve stopped in a couple times around and was pleasantly surprised both times about what a nice place this is in the midst of the weekend chaos outside. Decently priced drinks, and noticeably, they offer tea service as well. Definitely would come back to check this out with a friend again, next time.

Definitely one of the most affordable and comfortable cafes in Chinatown. I recommend the Taro Milk Tea; it is the best.

I came here on a weekday evening and needed to kill some time before meeting up with a friend.
The AC wasn’t working too well but I still enjoyed my iced coffee.
There were plenty of seats even though there were a few people hogging a few key tables studying for the MCATS.
I think there’s a $ 5 minimun on cc but I paid in cash.
Paintings and random for sale through out the store.
I’d come back for tea next time.

It’s a nice place for tea. You can sit, and sit, and sit. As I write this, I’m clocking in at 2 hours.
When I order hot drinks they’re always scorching, but it’s fine. The art is really nice to stare at when you’ve been sitting for 2 hours.

The ambiance in Silk Road Café is a bit dead but the almond milk tea I had was not bad, just a little sweet for my preference… but it had the almond taste I really enjoy in an almond Milk tea. For $ 3.50 the price was a bit steep so I don’t think I’d get that again. They brew amazing tea here though. No Fuss tea. The taste of an unsweetened iced jasmine green tea was very flavorful and it had the floral notes that a chain bubble tea store would somewhat miss. bravo!

Came here on a Sunday night with a bunch of loud friends haha :) We all got $ 4 smoothies and it was a nice even number with tax included so I appreciated that too. I got the coffeeccino and I wish I took a pic before slurping it all down because it was amazinggg. It was a coffee smoothie and tasted so great almost like a frapp but not as sweet which is a good thing.
We were the last customers of the night at like 9:30 and they gladly let us stay till around 10:30 pm when they were closing even though it was a party of 9 gathered around a table playing Mafia after ordering one drink each.
Added bonus: they have a pretty clean bathroom with soap!!!
And they have a drink card that’s buy 9 get 10^th free instead of the traditional buy 10 get 1 free.
All in all great service and great products!

This place is a cute little café on Mott street. I’ve been here around 3 – 4 times and I like it. Its a nice place to bring a laptop but there are limited outlets (an outlet strip on a table). They let you stay as long as you want. They have an iced coffee special ($ 2.50 for one). The coffee is pretty strong and slightly more bitter than most places I’ve been to, but it’s a good strong coffee. They are better known for their teas that come in a pot but I haven’t tried them yet. They also have a loyalty card!

I’ve come here several times because I saw that this place has WIFI– in the process, I’ve ordered things here several times.
First of all, the WIFI is ABYSMAL. If you are only going to come here to use the wifi, then you may as well find another place, because the speeds here aren’t going to help you accomplish anything.
Secondly, the drinks here are reasonably priced, and taste decent. Never had any of the food here, and I would just stick to the drinks. The place has a $ 5.00 credit card minimum.

Didn’t know this was a self serve café before walking in. You go up to the counter, order and pay, and depending on what you ordered, they will either call you up or bring it to your table.
I ordered the Signature Rose Green Tea and Original Waffle with Peanut Butter and Condensed Milk and everything came out to $ 12. $ 6 for the tea and $ 6 for the waffle.
The tea comes in a teapot with two cups, as they put it, it is good for two people. Caution: The tea is hot! The Signature Rose Green Tea came out smelling like rose and it tasted like rose but where did the green tea flavor go?
I ordered the Original Waffle with Peanut Butter and Condensed Milk because they ran out of crispy waffle. I thought the peanut butter and condensed milk would be drizzled on top but they put it between the waffles which made it amazing! There was a side of strawberries and bananas doused in whipped cream, could have done without that. The best part was that the waffles wasn’t ridiculously sweet! A solid 4 out of 5 for the waffles!
Would I come back again? Of course! The food and drink that I got from here was amazing and I cannot wait to try the other items on their menu!

Friendly service from the lady at the counter.
Tried their honey green milk tea and its probably the best I had with a good tea flavor, which I prefer.
Most places just taste like milk. This also had just the right amount until of sweetness.
Will come back again, and they offer free WiFi. Good place to chill and relax.

I really like this place. The décor is great, and their bubble teas are delicious. I particularly like their hongkong milk tea. The consistency is perfect — not too watery and not too thick. The tapioca is a bit hard for my liking (or maybe it was just that batch), but the taste of the drink itself is really good. I’ve only been here once so far, but I’d totally go again.

I have been on a dessert binge lately. Hoping I would get fat, not working at all. My friends recommended this place because it has Taiwanese shaved ice.
The cost is $ 5 which includes a choice of 2 toppings.
They served it in a martini glass, which is quite unusual. I thought the portions were a bit small. Some of us got more, some of us got less, I think it should be consistent.
It’s a decent place for a date.
Besides the shaved ice, they have other small eats that you can order.