Half & Half Tea House

A very nice treat on a hot winter day!
Line wraps around the building. You can call in your order but it would have to be $ 10 minimum. Totally worth calling in, we waited about 15 minutes.
Milk tea with pudding and honey boba. Delicious. Love how the boba is warm and then you mix it with the cold tea and milk. The pudding also brings a different consistency in it. Makes it a very fun drink to sip and chew on!

It gets packed in here, which it only means that is delicious.
I will definitely come back just to get me a boba drink again. worth the drive + the wait.

Their Boba is so good! The line is always ridiculous and the place is always packed but it’s because it’s so good!
Just don’t get the Almond smoothie, it is disgusting. It tastes like you’re drinking shampoo. The coffee and taro smoothies are great. The guava one is good, too.

The line was really really really long, so it must be good.
I’m rating this on the experience ‘tho, so although I’ve not tried their actual tea or products, I’d offer advice for service, ‘tho I know everything is fresh made custom to order, there’s got to be a better way to drain the line more efficiently, whether it’s that «In N Out Burger» style where they have an order taker walk the line and take manual orders and ramp up the kitchen area to process orders faster, open up another register, accept online orders for quicker pick up (they do have phone orders with a minimum order amt, but I thought I heard in line that you still had to wait in line and can’t circumvent the waiting by cutting to the chase and going to the head of the line to pick up and pay)
I’m sure I’ll bump up this rating once I’ve tasted their goods and hope it lives up to the hype… but right now, waiting for what feels like 15 – 30 mins seemed a bit difficult as a time investment.

Generally, when I tell people that I live in Monterey Park, I get one of two responses:
1) Er… where?
2) Oh, the place with all of the good boba.
Q_​Q
Yes, it’s super hyped. Yes, the lines are long. Yes, expect to wait up to ½ hour for your drink on most evenings. Yes, the service leaves much to be desired.
But man, that honey boba! So good. Always worth it.
Cash only.

How can I not give this place five stars?! It has the best iced milk with egg pudding/​grass jelly!
I have been coming here for over five years. It is usually packed, but drinks come out pretty quickly. I wish they could open Half and Half in DTLA.

Finally made it here to try the famous pint sized small boba drinks! There were so many options that I had a difficult time choosing! I had #1 (milk drink with boba and pudding) and added caramel drizzle. My boyfriend had the iced milk drink with red bean and boba. The prices are below NY prices and the quality of the drinks were great! I usually don’t like caramel but this time it paired well with the drink! They don’t skimp on the toppings either! My boyfriend said his red bean drink was really heavy. Haha! The line was out the back door when I got there on Sunday afternoon. I can see why. I wish I could bring a drink to accompany me on my flight back home.

Found out they don’t use Half and Half in their drinks. It’s named after the founder’s heritage, she’s a halfsie!
When you want good boba and drinks you gotta check this place out. Huge selection of drinks. I love that they tell you which drinks don’t contain caffeine. My sister can’t have caffeine due to her health condition, so this is a life saver!
Basically this is a take out boba shop. There’s a couple of small tables outside, but nowhere indoors to hangout. There’s street parking on Atlantic and parking structure with entrance to Half & Half in the back. If you enter from the back, make sure you open the sliding door before you walk in!
Tip: When they call your number be prepared to show your receipt

Hands down my favorite boba drink I’ve tried so far! If you are in the area then this place is a must. Don’t think twice, just go. The only suggestion though is to come at a weekday because I’ve heard the line gets long but when I came at 9pm on a Monday, there was only maybe 3 people ahead of me. Good thing though is that they have fast service.
I ordered the number 1 on the recommended list: iced milk drink with pudding and honey boba. I love how it has a malty honey flavor to it. This definitely complements the milk and makes it taste heavenly. I understand now why it’s so popular now.

I was so HAPPY To finally ARRIVE. I got the honey boba with pudding and tapioca.
It was too sweet for my taste, and I should have mixed it more. I had no idea there was caramel in the bottom. It is quite small interior so definitely take it to go. I also am lactose, so I would recommend sharing with a friend b/​c the thing is HUGE (almost size of my face)
regardless, its a sweet drink. My friend got the hot grass-​jelly which was yummy too!

I’ve been here several times.
Ambiance: small interior. It’s an express so they don’t encourage you to hang around. There are 2 tables outside in the front for groups to sit.
Service: good and as fast as they can however at peak times wait can be up to 15 – 30 mins to order. If you’re ordering more than $ 10 worth you can call it in and just pick it up without having to wait in line.
Drinks
— they have sooooo many choices
— there most popular is listed by the front
— my personal favorites are #5 milk tea with caramel drizzle and pudding with boba. It’s more like a dessert drink. It’s super decadent. You gotta mix it well to maximize taste.
— I also like the rose tea
— Tip you can ask for less ice. Also get a stamp card after 10 drinks next is free.
— Supersize it for 50 cents more
Parking: free in the back. There’s a back entrance
Great bubble tea drinks with lotsa options. I like it as a special treat now and then but you can’t drink it all the time because it’s so sugary. CASH only as well.

Half and half is wonderful but I can never really appreciate the line or service. While they have great milk drinks, their boba is average at best. If you are coming for the first time, try their iced milky drinks, then go explore the rest of the menu. Beware, the regular size is more like a large and the large is more like an extra large. Also, cash only. I repeat. Cash only. Don’t be that person who has to venmo your friend cause you don’t carry cash :(
Their service is terrible, leading to unnecessarily long lines. Every time I’ve gone, a new «trainee» is taking orders and they’re usually very poorly trained or rude/​grumpy. If you go, you’ll notice that they kinda fence the entire place up so you can never see what’s going on inside. What if they’re spitting in your drinks or concocting illegal fireworks inside? You’ll never know!
Anyway, tl;dr: good drinks, mediocre boba, bad service.

One of the most popular bubble tea joints in Monterey Park, there was no surprise when we were met with a line going out the back door. After waiting 10 minutes, I ordered the 2^nd most popular drink: the iced milk tea with honey boba and pudding!
The drink was a little too sweet for my taste, but the pudding and honey boba were delicious. The joint itself is a small, but trendy little place where your finished drink gets delivered out of a tiny hole (which I guess is kind of cool).
Overall, I give this place 3 out of 5 stars. If anything for their fat, wide bubble tea cups.

Just a review for brown sugar milk tea…
Not flavorful and doesn’t taste like anything. Tasted so watered down and I don’t recall much ice in my cup. Actually, when I was waiting for my drinks to be made, I heard a young woman worker in the back talking very loudly (due to the blenders going off all the time) and she even said something about brown sugar not even tasting like anything and then something about the customer (me) who probably doesn’t know what it is or what it tasted like. Something like that.
I just wanted to try something new but never getting brown sugar milk tea again.

My sister LOVES half & half so every time I’m in the area we have to stop by.
Make sure to grab the stamp card (sometimes they forget to offer). Also it’s CASH ONLY!
Also, if you’re coming on a weekend call in to place your order! This will only work if your order is over $ 10 though. Make sure to ask how long the wait is versus how long it’ll take if you phone in your order, I’ve found that it’s shorter just to go in at times. Doesn’t hurt to ask!
I have two drinks that I tend to go back and forth between: the #1 (iced milk slush with pudding and honey boba) and the guava green tea with lychee jelly. Just depends on if I want something super sweet and filling (go for #1) or something light and refreshing (guava green tea).
Also, if you can speak mandarin… some workers will probably understand you better :/​which kinda sucks that it’s hard to order with some of their employees. But this has only happened to me like once or twice. It’s doable :)

Had to get some drinks from the «latest and greatest» tea house, so stopped by here during our brief visit to LA
In short, it’s popular-​duh– and the drinks are pretty good. My Brown sugar milk tea was maybe too sweet, but maybe my fault for ordering something with brown sugar
Passion fruit yogurt drink– Wifey’s drink was pretty good too.
Interesting how big their drinks are– Not sure if it’s just a knockoff from HoneyBoba.

I don’t spend a ton of time in the SGV, so I try to stop by a Half & Half whenever I’m in the area. Since my sense of the geography is absolute shit, I never know which location I’m going to until I follow Google Maps and get there. I’ve been to this one a couple of times, both after lunches at Chengdu Taste.
It’s not particularly different from the other one I’ve been to, except that parking is on the street instead of in a lot. The interior is smaller, too, I guess, and there’s a nice outdoor patio set-​up. Otherwise, though, same quick service and delicious boba. I drink a lot less boba tea than I did before I could drink alcohol, but I find it hard to resist Half & Half.
I only ever really get the black milk tea with honey boba. It’s basically perfect, sweet but not saccharine, with soft, warm, gooey balls of boba. You can get one tea split into two cups for a small extra charge, and this is the way to go if you and a friend have are bloated full from a massive Szechuan lunch, just as an example.
I’ll keep hitting Half & Halfs whenever I’m in the area. I like the cafes, and the tea and boba are delicious. This is pretty much the only spot I get boba anymore, and certainly the only one that generates a craving.

Yum oh yum oh yum, is how I would describe my first experience at this boba place. Famous for their honey boba and various flavors, this is definitely worth a stop if you’re visiting LA or in the area.
There are various locations around and for this particular one, it was a cute and small place. Plenty of parking in the back, and it’s fairly easy to find. When you entered, do note that the register is located towards the back of the store, and that the long seat is meant for people waiting who had already ordered and paid. This place is strictly cash only!!! Once you paid & ordered, just wait for your number to be called for your drink.
For the drink, I tried Number #1, which consisted of Iced Milk Drink with Pudding and Honey Boba… and oh my goodness, the honey boba itself was delicious. Soft, warm, and not too chewy, the tapioca was yummy to eat and suck on with its light honey flavor. The milk itself was light and fresh and the pudding was sweet and fluffy. Overall, the drink was good, if not a bit too sweet. Portion wise, the small size was definitely filling and upgrading it up a size is only a dollar more.
:) If you swing by here, definitely try the combo drinks since these are pretty unique and different from your usual standard boba /​tea drinks.

Visited Half & Half Tea House for the first time today. Although I was prepared for a wait, I didn’t expect the lines to be out the door. Waiting in line with a much younger crowd, I felt a little old, not so ‘hip’, and a bit out of place.
The line to order moved very slowly. But it gave us ample time to study the menu. We ordered a lavender milk tea with lychee jelly, rose milk tea with lychee jelly, and ginger milk tea with honey boba. Our order, surprisingly was ready in less than 10 minutes.
The verdict? My favorite drink by far was the ginger milk tea with honey boba. It wasn’t too sweet, had a good ginger flavor, and the honey boba was excellent! The lavender milk tea with lychee jelly was also tasty. The lavender flavor was subtle and matched well with lychee jelly. I couldn’t drink the rose milk tea because it was way too sweet. Plus the tea flavor was barely discernible.
Even though I really enjoyed 2 out of 3 drinks, I don’t quite get the hype and long lines. IMHO, the drinks are good but not exceptional. The interior is a little cramped and designed so that you can’t see drinks being made. You place your order and pay on one side, and pick up your order through a window on the other side. Prices are decent for what you get.

East coast, west coast, I’ve had boba all over. I’m honestly not sure what the hype is about. Don’t get me wrong, the boba is pretty good. I came here fairly late around 9pm only to find a super long line. My friend assured me that the line would move quickly… it didn’t. It was easily a 20-​minute wait in line. I felt like I was waiting to get on a ride at Disney World. Still, my friend convinced me that it’s worth the wait. After finally getting to the counter and ordering our drinks, we then waited another 10 – 15 minutes for the drinks to be made. My logic at this point was only that the drinks had to be so mind-​blowing that it’s worth the theme park lines.
The traditional black milk tea is the perfect benchmark for any boba shop, so that’s what I got. Again, I can’t emphasize enough that I thoroughly enjoyed this drink. However, it’s not that much better than the best one I’ve had in other parts of California (or other parts of the country for that matter). Was it better? Maybe, but I think it comes down to your own personal palate.
Overall, the drinks were good and the service was average. It wasn’t a life-​changing experience as it was hyped up to be by so many friends. I certainly wouldn’t wait in excess of 30 minutes for a drink here. Would I come here again? Sure, only if the total time from getting in line to getting my drink didn’t exceed 10 minutes. Otherwise, my time is much more valuable than overpriced boba that I could probably find cheaper elsewhere that’s just as good.

o