Shiny Tea

TL;DR — Disappointing and tasteless. You’re better off going to Coco or Chatime for Taiwanese chained bubble tea.
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I had a lot of high hopes for Shiny Tea after hearing so much about it. I even went online to read about the hype and where it came from and its origins in Taiwan. Needless to say, I had a lot of expectations for what’s supposed to be «better than Chatime». Please note: Chatime is still my ultimate favorite chained bubble tea joint.
Not only is Shiny Tea hard to find, it’s actually a super long wait. I ordered a large Original White Pearl tea (half sugar, less ice) because it’s their signature item and it took them more than 15 mins to make my drink. Plus, there were only 2 people in front of me. I wasn’t too mad at the time because I wasn’t in a hurry but you’ve been warned…
The drink itself is disappointing. Period. There’s no other way to describe it and all the other reviewers have already said it below. It’s tasteless — it’s not even sweet, it tastes closer to skim milk than tea. The tapioca pearls were good but I’m drinking the bubble tea for the tea too! You can’t have one without the other or I’m just drinking milk with pearls. The cup is hard and sturdy — much higher quality than other places I’ve been to and the prices are slightly cheaper (maybe 50 cents cheaper for a large), but all that means nothing with your drink isn’t sufficient. So needless to say, I’m sad that the drink didn’t live up to its hype. The location is hard to find for people not on the skytrain and the service is slow. All in all, I won’t be coming back. Chatime and Coco are still my go-​to for Taiwanese bubble tea and I would recommend people to just pass up on Shiny Tea.

Came here after a recommendation from a local at the Richmond mall saying that Shiny Tea is the place to go if you really want a place that has good tea. There is a sign in the back of the spot that says the Inventor of Boba approves of this place or something like that. This place was kind of hard to find since its not really near anything but its in Aberdeen Square, 2^nd floor and faces the windows to the Metro thing.
At first we wanted Osmanthus tea but they didn’t start serving it. Then we wanted Jade Green tea but they ran out. So we ended up getting a green lemon tea with less sugar and a green tea with fresh milk. The Lemon green tea was a tad on the sour side but still kind of refreshing. The green tea needed more tea since I could mostly only taste the milk. I also tried the white pearls for the first time and I think the states needs to get this next. I wish the boba there was honey boba because plain is just boring now.

I’ve tried their bbt twice and definitely disappointed with the quality… first time I went they ran out of all of the specialty tea drinks other than the jade, green tea and black tea. Plus… black pearls. So in the end I got the hot jade milk tea plus white pearls. Second time I got cold tieguanyin milk tea plus black pearls. But for both times, I feel like the drinks are simply watered down and the tea flavour isn’t rich enough. There are def better bbt places in Richmond. If you do decide to come here, be prepared to line up for at least 5 – 10 mins to get a drink.

Terrible service. I asked a question about the ingredients in the drink and got yelled at and pretty much humiliated. I asked politely if there is any whipped cream in the pu-​erh macchiato. She just screamed out my question a couple times in an incredulous voice like so: «you order MACCHIATO and ask if there is WHIPPED CREAM???» like it was the stupidest question ever and i was some sort of idiot for asking.
Traditional macchiato, by the way, has foam on top only so i asked because i didnt know what to expect for a «tea macchiato» and to make sure.
Then i asked if it was possible to get it without whipped cream. She just made it sounded like i was making the most ridiculous and demanding request for some reason by frantically looking around the room and repeated it loudly (and unkindly) for a couple more times.
Wow, okay. i cant believe i would even ask you to do something as ludicrous as going for a casual scroll at the Himalayas since whipped cream is definitely not a TOPPER or anything…
Or you could, you know, just tell me «sorry, no can do» or «it’s blended into the drink» if it is. I would just order something else.
There is a difference between efficiency and just plain rudeness/​hostility. This is the latter. I just hope none of you have to deal with her uncalled for attitude.

While there is a lot of hype for this place, I would skip out on it. I’ve been here 3 times and always have ordered Original Milk Tea as that is a basic of a bubble tea you can get.
The first time was when they were fairly new and it was pretty good. However the second time and the third time the quality kept dropping. The tea isn’t the best quality but as I was waiting the third time they kept reusing the same tea leaves again and again which explained why there was barely any tea taste. The pearls were okay but with the flavour of the tea it just tasted like milky water with some chewy pearls.
There is also a line most of the time but the way they took orders (the cash person kept leaving/​waiting for previous orders) explains it.
If you really want bubble tea then this is an okay place but not the best.

I have actually had bubble tea from Shiny Tea both in Taiwan (it’s birth place) as well as Canada. My thoughts for both locations is average average average.
The quality of the tea very average (as I may have already mentioned). I’ve had the following drinks at Shiny Tea and here are my thoughts for each:
1. Panda milk black tea
— panda milk tea has 2 kinds of pearls — the typical black ones you see in regular bubble tea and a small white coloured variety. I quite enjoyed the small pearls as you can’t seem to get this kind of pearls at many places in Canada. This is the best item I’ve had here so far.
2. Green milk tea with grass jelly
— I’m going to assume most people know what grass jelly is — this being said, the grass jelly here is not very chewy or fresh tasting and they are quite stingy with it. I ran out of grass jelly when I still had like 30% tea left. I got green tea because they ran out of black and due to the watery quality of the tea, I couldn’t quite taste a different with the black tea. I got 50% sugar and the sweetness level is on point for me.
2. Awkeotsang jelly lemon green tea
— Awkeotsang jelly is a white square shaped jelly that is suppose to be very chewy. However the ones in the drink I had here was not chewy at all and tasted very much like the grass jelly I had in the green milk tea. This was by far my least favourite of the 3. Despite getting only 80% sugar, it was extremely sweet and had no lemon taste whatsoever.
The prices here are decent. However, my recommendation would be to skip the line-​up here (baffling) and go to well tea, chatime, bubble queen or the bubble tea shop for much better bubble tea.

Panda milk tea? Cute, but overall flavorless.
This food stall is located in the new addition to Aberdeen Centre called Aberdeen Square. You are actually able to see it from the building’s glass exterior if you’re passing by on the SkyTrain! However, the building itself is pretty baron as it felt like Shiny Tea was really the only vendor open on the entire floor!
I went in the early afternoon as it is normally the best time to get fresh pearls as it is the first batch of the day! I remembered seeing the special Panda Milk Tea they served on my friend’s Instagram account so I decided to give it a try! Like all the other trending franchised Taiwanese bubble tea brands like Chatime and Coco, I got the options of customizing the sweetness and ice-​level of my drink. I usually order my drinks with 80% sugar and less ice when I visit a location that I am not familiar with. The texture of the pearls were excellent, but I felt like it could’ve been coated in more brown sugar to make it a more flavorful chewing experience. This drink featured white pearls, which are mini agar tapioca balls, and the traditional black starchy pearls.
Now here’s my reason for the lowly 2 stars: I felt like I was drinking water! :(
At 80% sweetness, drinks were still relatively sweet based on my previous experiences with customized tea drinks. However, at Shiny, it felt like my 80% meant that there would be no sweeteners all together. It didn’t compliment my bland pearls at all!
Perhaps I’m just a Coco evangelist!

I am going to be pretty biased since this was my first only visit and having only tried one drink. My first impressions of this drink was pretty good! I had gotten the White pearl tea under the Hanlin creation category. I really enjoyed the mini white tapioca, which they call it sweet potatoes?
I got it with 50% sugar, less ice. Since it was my first time trying out this drink I thought that half sugar would probably be the best combination since normally I go 30%. The taste from the milk tea was quite delicious and very smooth. I enjoyed that it wasn’t too sweet and that I was able to taste more of the tea flavor than just the sweetness. At times I did feel like I wished the drink was a bit more sweet, but I enjoyed it regardless.
Having looked at past posts/​reviews on this place, this place isn’t new and has been around for awhile. When I got there I was surprised how long the line up was just to order drinks. It felt like they had just recently opened or something… Lineup was a pretty long wait… took 20 mins just reach the front to order and another 15 mins to wait for the drink so in total waited 35 mins shy of 40 mins…
Pros:
— Pretty good bubble tea
— A lot of different types of flavors and teas to try
–Menu has lots of options
— Taste and flavor is good
— Cheaper than other places
— Unilocal check in voucher (yay)
Cons:
— Hidden location
— Not convenient unless your near skytrain or walking
— Wait time is long and slow in getting out orders

I think with all the hype, it skewed my impression on this place. I finally found my way to this place, from inside Aberdeen on the 2^nd floor, in the hallway next to the medical clinic, walk straight through to the hallway to the end towards the Canada Line station… you’ll find Shiny Tea.
It’s a Friday at 4:45pm. When I got there, there was a line of people waiting for their drinks already, about 6 – 7 people. I ordered their Oolong Milk Tea with pearls, ½ sweet and less ice. I showed the cashier person my Unilocal Check-​in Offer of a free topping. She was initially confused but luckily «the boss» clarified and I got 50 cents off — yay for Unilocal check-​in offers!
After a very long 20 minutes, I finally got my drink. Note: they yell out the number in mandarin? But I didn’t understand, so after yelling out the number 3 times she eventually said it in english, which I finally understood my BBT was ready.
The Oolong Milk Tea had a nice and slightly different tea flavour compared to other bubble tea places. However, making it half sweet really took away the sweetness and it tasted like watered down milk tea. Usually regular sweet is really sweet at other places, so maybe their regular sweet is fine? Regardless, the milk tea was okay, nothing to rave about I think. The pearls were good and chewy.
Overall, the price of $ 4 for a medium size, the long wait, and overhype of «the best bbt», this experience was okay. Plus, they forgot to give me a stamp card — Buy 10 drinks and get 1 free. Maybe next time it’ll be a better experience for me. Other than that, the bubble tea is good and it’s a convenient bbt stop for the Canada Line passengers, if you have time to wait in line for your bubble during peak times. Cash Only!

Fave! Best pearls + tapioca in town — BY FAR!
The portions and quality seemed slightly better when they weren’t so so popular before. Word got around, but it is all deserving. Can’t go wrong here. I live far, but would make the trip when I get cravings for Shiny Tea.

I have to say that I am not a bubble tea connoisseur. However, of the bubble teas I’ve had in the lower mainland, this particular place serves up some of the best. This seems to be due to the fact that you can actually taste the tea! I had the Oolong Milk Tea with Grass Jelly and was thoroughly impressed with the notes of Oolong. In most other places I’ve only ever tasted the milky sweetness and not necessarily the tea itself.
On top of this, you can also customize your drink to varying degrees of sweetness as well as ice level. Pricing is pretty reasonable and they are very efficient.
Be warned though, line ups can get pretty crazy during certain periods of the day, and if you are coming from the mall side, try not to get lost!

In my top 3 for BBT in Vancouver. Tea is very good and you can actually taste it in the bubbletea. Choose your sweetness and ice level. Pearls, coconut jelly here is very soft.
My favorites are 3Q tea, 50% sweet with less ice and Honey Tinguanyin Tea, 50% sweet. I’ve also tried the Mango Black Tea which is also delicious. I don’t think you can go wrong with anything you choose here!

Opened just a year ago, I first heard about this place from my Taiwanese friends who raved about how authentic the bubble teas were. They say that it brings them back to their childhood. I’ve only been to Taiwan a few times so I was intrigued and had to try for myself.
Its location in Aberdeen Square was difficult to find at first. It’s one level down from the food court and facing the Skytrain station.
They have many tea choices (but the popular ones run out pretty quickly). I’ve already tried a few different teas with milk and they’ve all been very flavourful (regular, Oolong, Tieguanyin, Pu-​er, etc). I can actually taste the tea, unlike a lot of other bubble tea places.
I enjoy the white boba/​pearls (sweet potato balls), which are basically the regular black pearls but mini versions. The grass jelly is also good too (firm type).
You can tailor your drink to the sweetness & coldness that you prefer (100% sweet, 80% sweet, 50%, 0%, half ice, less ice, no ice). I find 80% sweet and less ice is perfect for me.
They have a large menu and I plan to slowly try their other varieties. But I always end up just getting milk tea. One of these days!

My current fave bubbletea place!
The milk tea here has a rich brewed taste, and the pearls are just the right amount of chewy.
I’ve tried 4 variants of toppings for the milk tea so far — the white pearl (tiny pearls), the boba (regular size black pearls), the panda (mix of both types of pearls) & the grass jelly. My fave is the white pearl. On other days when I want a mix, the panda is a good choice.
Highly recommend this place for very authentic tasting Taiwanese style bubbletea!

Came here last week as I was already in Aberdeen and was craving bubble tea. This place is located on the Aberdeen Square building and could be tricky to locate. If it helps, it’s on the side that faces the skytrain directly.
It seems they specialize in using actual teas for their bubble tea. I had the oolong with black and white pearls. It was my first time having white pearls and basically taste like black ones, but smaller. I would definitely get both next time as well. Both the tea and pearls were delicious!
I absolutely hate driving to this mall, but I would definitely come back if I’m here and am craving bubble tea. Don’t forget to check in and get a free extra item in your drink!

By far the worst bubble tea I’ve had in Greater Vancouver. It’s convenient to the Canada Line and there’s always a line-​up so I thought it would be good.
First time I went, almost all of their drinks were sold out. It must be really good!!! But to my disappointment it wasn’t. I went during midday the second time and wanted to order their White Pearl Tea from the HanLin Creation but later decided on the Panda Milk Tea which is the White Pearl Tea plus regular tapioca balls. The Panda Milk Tea had both the sweet potato balls and black pearl, hence Panda. I asked for less sugar and less ice. It came out as hot with no sugar. Bleh.

I’ve been pleasantly surprised during my last few visits. The flavour of the drinks and pearls have improved significantly :) and I like how hearty they are with the amount of pearls they give you. Note: I like my kumquat with lemon bubble tea with less ice and half sweet :)
Haven’t tried any other flavour since I’ve discovered their kumquat with lemon… But I think I’ll stick with what I like: P (for the most part)
Note: Remember to check in on Unilocal

I got the HanLin Creation milk tea with mixed white and black pearls and was not impressed.
The big pearls were hard and the milk tea wasn’t good. Hard pearls alone will make me not come back to this boba drink place.

I’ve been here twice and ordered two different drinks: Regular milk tea (what they’re famous (???) for with white boba with 75% sugar and no ice and Oolong Milk tea with black boba no ice.
The first drink is okay, but I’m too Americanized that I could use more sugar in my drink. Also the white boba isn’t white boba, it is actually sago… like what you would put in your coconut milk+ taro drink. Anyways, it was disappointing. It’s different than what I expected and it’s not the same as what the Taiwanese call «white boba.» I guess they use it because it’s cheaper/​more accessible in Canada. ugh. so not impressed.
The drink was alright, at least it tastes like tea (lol). My second drink was alright, I actually thought it’s better than the first drink. haha.
The second time I was there, their boba wasn’t ready until 20 minutes or so. They also didn’t have change for me since they’ll have no change if they give me my change. It was around noon but they had no change. =.=… I then went to the food court area to get lunch and got some change… They were so inflexible and it was really inconvenient for me. Their location is actually not that convenient too since it’s at the other side of the mall.
Overall, I probably won’t come here just to get their drinks, but I will grab a drink it’s on the way to where I’m going. lol

I’m a huge fan of tea but not of overly sweet things, huge balls at the bottom of my drink that I need to chew on for an hour, or fake fruity flavours that taste like ass. This is why I don’t do bubble tea, but I will do Shiny Tea. Sure, they have the regular sized pearls, but they also have white pearls which are itty bitty and not so invasive to your drink. They don’t have any of the fake fruit sugar nonsense, and you can customise the sweetness of your tea. Score.
The tea is good and they have several different kinds. I’ve tried their smoked jasmine, oolong, tieguanyin and I’ve had the pu erh macchiato, which was interesting but not my thing as I don’t do dairy often.
The staff are great with portioning, have no waste and know how to make everything balanced. The only cons are that it’s currently cash only, and there’s often a language barrier so if you have questions at all, you best speak Chinese.