Formosan Tea Bar

This place is awesome. Tucked away down a tiny alley off the main road, it provides a peaceful haven within the city. (Srysly quiet in there, perf for studying). I recommend the cold jasmine green tea with milk and sugar. It’s great. They also serve salted peanuts that accompany the sweetness of the tea perfectly, however are ridiculously overpriced, only buy the peanuts if you are rich, or if you just don’t care about how overpriced they are. Tea is about £4−6 last time I checked, so normal fancy drink prices.
They have some chilled music on and you can either sit on a bar stool, or take your shoes off and sit on a wooden floor in the back of the tea bar with cushions and cozy bits. I hate feet so I just sit on the bar stools, plus who had the time to take there shoes off, then go through the hassle of putting them back on before leaving? Not me.

Lovely tea bar in a small alley by high street. It could be hard to find just by looking at the address. The tea bar only serves tea and complimentary peanuts are by the cash register. The guy working behind the bar was really helpful in my decision making of which tea to order. He even offered free samples of the green tea and black tea with milk. They were both delicious but i went with the green tea with honey and pearls. The way you order is by picking the tea base, and each topping is an additional £0.50 (like honey or pearls). Usually it takes 5 minutes for the drink to be ready but they have free WiFi so the wait isn’t too bad! The tea bar seating is quite unique so i would reccomemd drinking it there if you can find a seat. The place is quite popular!

This place opened in May of 2012, and no one has bothered to review them? For shame! :P
I walk down High Street fairly often to go to class, and I randomly came upon a sign that led me to this cute little bubble tea shoppe. This location is down at the end of Wheatsheaf Yard; it may be a bit difficult to find at first, but there are so many unique stores tucked away in alleys, so you will get used to it. I had to go down a cobblestone alley to get here, but it wasn’t of the sketchy variety so don’t worry.
A few things I’ve gathered from their Facebook page:
– They take reservations: there is a room towards the back of the store that is reminscent of private Japanese Tatami rooms. The room even has a projector! It’s a cute set up if you want to get a group of your friends together and watch a show while sipping on bubble tea! (Of course walk-​ins are welcome);
– There are take out and catering options;
I’ve included a few photos that show the interior of this shoppe.
Now on to the bubble tea. I live in Los Angeles, and just twenty minutes away, I am privy to some of the best bubble tea I’ve tasted in America. With that said, I went into Formosan Tea Bar with very low expectations (which I have for all eating establishments here in the UK). I ordered the standard black milk tea (I mean … if you can’t make a STAPLE taste good, I don’t trust you’ll make anything else taste good!) with just a little bit of boba (which I generally don’t order).
The boba balls were chewy, and the drink was subtle yet flavorful. I usually like my milk tea strong, but this was pretty good. I wouldn’t say it’s five-​star worthy as the drink was SLIGHTLY watery, but would I come back? Yes I would.
Their menu is simple (pictured), and their pricing is appropriate. They only have ONE size, so that’s what the price reflects.
There is ample stool seating as well as a few table setups.
Also, they have a stamp card if you want to get a free drink after you’ve filled it up! :) This is always a great incentive if a store’s product is good, and Formosan Tea Bar at least makes a good black milk tea.
If you have any inquiries, email –
Their hours are:
Mon — Sat: 10:00 am — 8:00 pm
Sun: 11:00 am — 6:00 pm
I’ll be back to try out the rest of their menu! I have to fill up this stamp card before I leave for America again in two weeks. ;)