Riding on Taiwan’s bubble tea hype, a plethora of bubble tea stores have emerged across Saigon. Aside from the well-established brands such as KOI, Gong Cha, and The Alley, Saigon has numerous new brands popping up to cater to residents’ thirst for this tasty and addictive drink.
From Taiwanese classic black milk tea to Vietnamese-style bubble tea, here’s our guide to some of Saigon’s newest and highly affordable bubble tea places.
Table of Contents
Image adapted from: Trà Sữa Wecha
From green rice to jelly to fruits such as longan and lime, Wecha offers a variety of options of tea flavors and toppings at a very affordable price.
A large size order of any bubble tea, from VND28,000 (~USD1.21), comes with a complimentary pug-shaped jelly pie to munch on.
Image credit: Trà Sữa Wecha
One of the most recommended drinks is the slushy Ruby Hong Ngoc VND28,000 (~USD1.21), topped with a thick layer of cream cheese, consisting of milky pudding and green rice.
Price: VND25,000-VND35,000 (~USD1.08-USD1.51)
Address: 175 Binh Thoi, Ward 9, District 11, Ho Chi Minh City
Opening hours: 7AM-11PM, Daily
Image adapted from: Te Amo
Priced from only VND19,000 (~USD0.82) with toppings, Te Amo is probably the cheapest bubble tea in Saigon. The cherry on the cake is free shipping to locations that are within 3KM from any of its stores.
Classic black tea flavor
Image credit: Te Amo
Even though its price is incredibly cheap, the brand has earned rave reviews for its delicious bubble tea and unique cup design.
Its menu includes items such as orange bubble tea, matcha bubble tea, and black tea.
Fresh-tasting and mildly sweet while its boba are chewy and tender, Te Amo’s black milk tea (VND19,000,~USD0.82) is popular among regulars.
Price: VND19,000-VND25,000 (~USD0.82-USD1.08)
Address: Multiple locations in District 1, District 4, and District 10. View location list here.
Opening hours: 9AM-10PM, Daily
Creamy egg bubble tea
Image adapted from: Trà Sữa MayCha
Boasting over 30 flavors, MayCha’s specialty is creamy egg bubble tea (VND22,000, ~USD0.95) – an aromatic tea topped with a decadent blend of egg and cream.
Image credit: Trà Sữa MayCha
One of the cheapest bubble tea brands in town and very suitable for bubble tea lovers of all budgets, MayCha also offers regular deals on selected drinks- such as its VND10,000 (~USD0.43) deals on chocolate, Oolong, and chocolate flavors, among others, till Sept 11th. Drinkers cannot customize their sugar levels here, so it might be good to know in advance that the tea comes out moderately sweet.
Price: VND17,000-VND27,000 (~USD0.73-USD1.17)
Address: Multiple locations in Go Vap and Tan Phu Districts. View location list here.
Opening hours: 9AM-10PM, Daily
Image credit: TRÀ TIÊN HƯỞNG Gotcha 鮮饗茶
Tien Huong Gotcha’s tea leaves are all imported from Taiwan and boiled in filtered water, while its milk is imported from the US.
The resulting bubble tea is packed with vitamins and suitable for drinkers of all ages. You can also customize your sugar levels here – a plus for the health-conscious.
Image credit: TRÀ TIÊN HƯỞNG Gotcha 鮮饗茶
Tien Huong Gotcha is also known for its overwhelming number of roughly 100 menu items, running a gamut from bubble tea to collagen tea to herbal tea.
Since quality tea leaves are Tien Huong Gotcha’s strong point, customers can try the Taiwanese flavors – A Li Shan Tea and OoLong tea (VND59,000, ~USD2.55) – with their distinctive fresh herbal fragrance.
Price: VND26,000-VND59,000 (~USD1.12-USD2.55)
Address: Multiple locations in District 1, District 4, and District 7. View location list here.
Opening hours: 8AM-11.30PM, Daily
Dragon fruit milk tea
Image adapted from: Toco Toco
With the use of only made-in-Vietnam ingredients such as tea leaves planted in Moc Chau, tapioca balls from Nghe An, and sweet jam from Da Lat, Toco Toco has produced a distinct Vietnamese bubble tea flavor.
Toco Toco also has plenty of feel-good flavors, ranging from macchiato, fruits, and Yakult. The teas also come in ice blended versions.
Image adapted from: My Linh Nguyen
Those who are taking a break from bubble tea but craving fresh desserts can check out the store’s xueshan options (VND32,000-VND40,000, ~USD1.38-USD1.73). These desserts are made of herbal jelly and fruit tapioca balls, which make for ideal snacks on a warm day.
Not only will xueshan help you satisfy your occasional hunger pangs, but they are also packed with Vitamin B and C for digestive tract health.
Price: VND26,000-VND65,000 (~USD1.12-USD2.81)
Address: Multiple locations in District 1, District 2, and District 8. View location list here.
Opening hours: 9AM-10PM, Daily
Image adapted from: Lavida Coffee and Tea
Lavida is particularly popular among local cheese lovers because of its signature cream cheese bubble tea, which is always a sensory overload. The combination blends the sweetness of tea with the slightly salty taste of cheese.
Image adapted from: Lavida Coffee and Tea
Apart from its cream cheese toppings, Lavida is also known for its variety of drinks with boba, jelly, fruits, cheddar, and even pudding toppings for a mouthful of chewiness.
Fried rice with eggs and kimchi
Image adapted from: Lavida Coffee and Tea
The menu also includes hot meals such as fried rice and noodles, which make the place ideal for those who want to have full meals and desserts in one place.
Price: VND26,000-VND55,000 (~USD1.12-USD2.37)
Address: Multiple locations in Phu Nhuan District and District 10. View location list here
Opening hours: 9AM-10.45PM, Daily
Image credit: Uncle Tea
Compared to other bubble tea brands, Uncle Tea stands out with its unique packaging. Aside from the commonly used bubble tea plastic cups, Uncle Tea’s tea is also served in bottles of different shapes, sizes, and designs.
Those who want their tea served in a reusable bottle with its signature uncle mascot will need to pay an extra charge of VND12,000 (~USD0.52), a dirt-cheap price in exchange for the collectible.
The bottle – or any bottle you bring to the store – will eventually pay for itself over several drink orders too. To encourage environmentally friendly behavior, Uncle Tea gives buyers who bring their own bottles a VND5,000 (~USD0.22) discount off any bubble tea purchase.
Image credit: Uncle Tea
Aside from traditional flavours found in 36 different items here, customers also find options that cannot be found elsewhere – such as weight-loss milk tea. These include jasmine pu’er tea and matcha tea, which are low in calories and contain fat-burning compounds such as catechins.
Another must-try here for the health-conscious is the kung fu bubble tea (VND39,000, ~USD1.69), which is filled with a gentle aroma. Instead of sugar, the tea is mixed with honey, which is lower in calories and good for drinkers’ skin.
Price: VND24,000-VND50,000 (~USD1.04-USD2.16)
Address: Multiple locations in Binh Thanh District, District 5, and District 11. View location list here.
Opening hours: 11AM-9PM, Daily
Image adapted from: Eat My
The August Coffee is not a bubble tea brand, but a simple coffee shop that includes classic bubble tea flavors such as lovely bear bubble tea (VND46,000, ~USD1.98) and egg flan bubble tea (VND46,000, ~USD1.98) in its menu.
However, its use of bear-shaped ice cubes made of milk tea in its bubble tea has quickly garnered interest from shutter-happy bubble tea lovers. They give you a flavor boost, as they slowly blend into the tea to prevent it from losing flavor due to the melting ice.
Image adapted from: Eat My
Aside from bubble tea, you can also order other items such as coffee, juice, and pies, which makes it a great hangout destination in case your friends or partner are not bubble tea drinkers.
Image adapted from: Eat My
Price: VND33,000-VND60,000 (~USD1.43-USD2.59)
Address:
Opening hours: 8AM-11PM, Daily
Image credit: R&B Tea
Choose among cream cheese, regular milk, and fresh New Zealand milk with your R&B Tea order from its menu of over 40 flavors. Most bubble tea stores in Saigon serve bubble tea with cream, but R&B Tea’s cream cheese is especially popular. Some reviewers say that it tastes like real crème brulee and is addictive.
Image credit: R&B Tea
Its drinks served with fresh milk are also highly sought after for their mildly sweet and fresh taste. R&B Tea uses Anchor fresh milk, which is imported from New Zealand, produced by pasture-fed cows, and highly nutritious.
For those with a sweet tooth, we recommend the candy milk tea cream (VND53,000, ~USD2.29), which has a velvety texture and a good creamy stretch.
Price: VND35,000-VND55,000 (~USD1.51-USD2.37)
Address: Multiple locations in District 1 and District 10. View location list here.
Opening hours: 8AM-10PM, Daily
Image adapted from: Xing Fu Tang Vietnam 幸福堂越南
A new player in the local bubble tea scene, Xing Fu Tang’s bubble tea, a Taiwanese brand, has quickly gained mass interest for its well-crafted appearance, unique textures, and freshly made pearls.
Customers can observe the entire process of boba making, which creates pearls that turn out to be super moist, chewy, and naturally sweet.
Image credit: Nguyễn Đức Long
It also has a variety of bubble tea with unique visuals such as rabbit-shaped panna cotta or glitzy handmade soda jelly floating on the surface – making for memorable snapshots.
Another bonus is that the black sugar milk tea option comes with an optional extra layer of thick fat milk foam, topped with caramelized brown sugar for a crispy texture and stimulating taste.
Price: VND49,000-VND149,000 (~USD2.11-USD6.43)
Address: 44 Nguyen Hue Street, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1
Opening hours: 9AM-11PM, Daily
Aside from coffee, bubble tea is another beverage that Saigon residents of all ages love drinking. Because of all the bubble tea places that emerged all over the city in recent years, we can enjoy a diversity of flavors at wider price ranges.
Hopefully this guide can help you make faster decisions on where to get your next bubble tea fix, wherever you may be in our city.
Also check out:
Cover image adapted from: Xing Fu Tang Vietnam 幸福堂越南, Te Amo, and Eat My
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