Milk Tea & Pearl

Cafe at 12A Little Portland Street

8 / 10 from 1 review

Address
12A Little Portland Street
Soho
London
W1W 8BJ

Map

Telephone
020 3002 0234

Region
Soho

Nearest Station
Oxford Circus
0.15 miles

Category
Cafes & Tea Rooms

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Tea kiosks in Taiwan are the first stops for students between classes or off from schools. As for the busy office people, a cup of Pearl Milk Tea tends to be their deserving afternoon treat. Instead of seeing people walking down the street with their cups of latte or cappuccino in New York or Seattle, you will find that in Sydney they stroll down the street with Pearl Milk Tea in their hands! Milk Tea & Pearl brings this trend to London for the first time!

All In London Review

Tapioca pearls and jellied teas

Bubble tea is what all the cool kids are into at the moment. The tea has already proved a hit in New York, where hip bars are spiking it with alcohol. There are still only a handful of outlets in London selling the drink, however its arrival on the 5th floor of Harvey Knicks indicates we may be about to follow the transatlantic trend. Milk Tea & Pearl is the latest bubble tea shop to open, a micro-shop on Little Portland Street with barely enough room to stand and a counter displaying large glass jars filled with little black beads and curious-looking jellies.

Bubble tea was first invented in Taiwan in the 80s, where it is still known simply as milk pearl tea. The pearls themselves are in fact tapioca. If you’ve ever tried mochi, you’ll be familiar with the glutinous texture of these little balls. The tea became primarily a kid’s drink, unsurprising given the candy colours and sweet flavours available. Milk Tea & Pearl’s manager tells me that back in Taiwan it is also custom for office workers to get a round in mid-afternoon, and generally it’s more popular among women than men.

The warm Taro milk tea is purplish and sweet, while the Assam milk variety looks and tastes more like conventional tea. Both are smoothie-like and more filling than a mere hot drink, sipped through a fat straw which enables you to get all the “bubbles” at the bottom.

The cold jasmine and passionfruit tea is both refreshing and fragrant, and we also try a very sweet “Angel” jelly which can be added to flavour Assam. The Demon jelly is a tad herby but fairly plain, while the coconut jelly is so tasty it could be packaged and sold as a sweet in its own right.

Makes a change from PG Tips. All teas are £3.50.

Reviewed by Leila
Published on Feb 3, 2012