Tapioca Express

I use to come here all the time before i discovered T4! The staff is always friendly and quick with your order. I usually get the chicken and milk tea combo their popcorn chicken is bomb (I always get level 7) my brother also enjoys their fresh watermelon slush on hot summer days!

TapEx brings back soooo many memories for me! I remember wayyy back in the day, my friends and I would cut school and come here to kick it! Lol. I think tapioca express really introduced me to the boba world, no doubt they for sure were one of the first boba joints around. But these days, when I think boba, I don’t think tap ex and that has to do with a few reasons.
1. They lack the freshly brewed teas that most places now use to make their drinks.
2. Over priced for being made of powder additives and such.
3. Outdated and small environment.
But my review today is not so much about their drinks.
I feel like especially with T4 opening in the same plaza, I totally forget tapioca express even exists. But I came in for some popcorn chicken the other day because T4 had sold out of theirs. Price wise, tap ex and T4 only have a few cents difference. But T4 gives way larger portions. The popcorn chicken I received from tapioca express was good but they skimped me big time. The popcorn chicken only filled half the bag. (Imagine the bag size like the ones you get donut holes in? Lol) Also, they charge for sauce which doesn’t make sense to me…
But what I do like about tap ex is that they’re welcoming to all people. What I mean is like T4 is like straight up Asian people, I feel like people of other races feel intimidated stepping into T4. Tap ex on the other hand, is different. The environment is very diverse and that’s what I think makes a business strong. Also, although customer and employee interaction is limited, they still have pretty good service. The cashiers are friendly and the baristas work fast so you’re not sitting around waiting forever!

Be aware that they don’t serve or accept food orders anymore at 945p even if you’re in line long before and the one in front of you took sooooo long to order. So disappointed. However, food and drinks are great.

This is my favorite boba spot within San Leandro, San Lorenzo, Hayward, and Union City. It has snow bubbles, milk tea, smoothies and great food. The workers there are nice and the quality of their drinks and food are great for a boba spot. I would recommend this place to anyone who loves boba. And I know there are new boba places and names, but this is one of the traditional ones that is appreciated and people still crave

I Love This Place Ive been coming since i was little. THE Food is amazing from the crispy chicken to the curly fries. And The Snowbubbles are life. SO DONT MISS OUT

After trying iTea in Castro Valley and Chinatown, Tapioca has fallen in the Boba rankings. They offer to standard milk tea, jasmine milk tea, watermelon juice with boba, and lychee tea boba, among many others. Although the service is really friendly and quick, I wish their drinks were more creative… it lacks some excitement with its competition. Even though Tapioca Express boba drinks have fallen on my list, I shall forever remain a big fan of their spicy crispy chicken! Level 8 is a winner!

The Watermelon icy with green apple jelly and the fried calamari is so crisp and delicious I have to have it.

Location is okay, with the exception of parking. The shopping center where it is located is always packed!
Drinks are reasonably priced. Add Bobas or jelly to your drink for an additional 50 cents.
Wait time during peak hrs is ridiculous, I would recommend satisfying Boba cravings after 5pm, if you can wait.
Passion Fruit PMS smoothie (yeah.PMS. Yup) with Boba and green apple jelly was so yummy!
Overall great spot.

Maybe I’m just hella spoiled from all the boba options I get in Berkeley, and having boba all my life (Taiwanese pride, yo), but this place is okay. My brother and I came here when the wait time at Delight Café right next door took way too long. He had a mango milk tea, while I got earl grey.
I love earl grey milk tea, but IMHO, my drink was too sweet for my taste. My brother thought the drinks were overpriced.
There’s couches, tables, and chairs, and a giant TV that played annoying pop crap and ads. I wouldn’t come here to get any work done.

I used to come here a lot during high school. Basically the «hang out spot» for teenagers.
They have a TV and wifi. A couch, tables, chairs, and high chairs for the little bar.
Parking sucks.
From what I remember drinks are made from powder. That’s a nope for me now.
I’ve tried their fried Pop chicken. And it tastes more of hot spicy grease than actual chicken.

I love boba drinks! It was such a refresher to get one while I was on vacation here in Cali. I got a large vietnamese coffee with coffee jelly. It was strong but much needed for a night out in town. It was a perfect mix of coffee and jelly. The large was quite filling though that it was hard for me to finish it. But super delish though!
I like that they have a wide variety on their menu such as snow bubble, icy, milk tea, tea, juices, smoothies, jelly juice, italian soda and coffees. The list goes on with a lot to choose from depending on what you’re craving for that day. You can customize the drinks with your favorite boba or jelly flavors to add in the mix. The cost ranges from $ 3-​$ 3.50 so it’s quite reasonable.
There’s also snacks and food to enjoy with your drink as well. On the menu, they had chicken, fries, calamari, lumpia, pot stickers… and much more. We got the fries and it was freshly made. This shop is pretty small though as I felt it was a little crowded to be in there. I suppose there’s a lot of people that come here to study as well. Nice hangout though if you can find a space.

Love the taro milk tea and spicy pepper chicken. Bit expensive though thus minus 1 star

Lol, we come here all the time, since we live very close (probably once a week or more!). Just found out today that they have stamp cards, for buy 10, get 1 free (but you have to ask for the card). Staff is very quick. Parking is crappy for the whole shopping center. You may get lucky and find a spot close, or you may have to circle around several times and park a little farther. We usually walk here.

I would give it 1 star, but my drink came out very fast. But the quality is very watered down and just over all not so good. Not coming back here.

I’ve been here at least half a dozen times in the last 2 months … not sure where the sudden craving for boba is coming from, but this is where I go to feed it.
The staff here is young … and even though I’ve been here several times, I still can’t seem to get the right syntax down for my order (you Starbucks people know what I’m talking about — there is an efficient way to name your drink) … At this point I don’t know if it’s me or the staff but every time I need to repeat my order at least twice … «yes, i said large. yes I want boba.» … /​sigh
My favorite flavor here which I don’t always see at other places is plum and every time I order it, they double check with me to make sure it’s what I want. Along with reconfirming and making me repeat my size and if I want boba. But once I get through actually placing the order (and occasionally being charged the wrong price) the drink makes me happy.

Wow! The one word that describes this wonderful delicious beverages. The drink PMS is amazing. Peach, mango & strawberry+ add-​ons! You don’t wAnt tapioca bubbles? No problem, you can get jellies… The mango jelly out of this world.
You won’t be disappointed! I think I will be back here several times before leaving Cali!

Watermelon icy with tapioca is my favorite I only have that here. Haven’t really had any bad experience except for the time when I felt like the watermelon they used wasn’t fresh and when I brought it up to their attention they just said it’s not watermelon season. My thing is then why sell it, right?

Nothing too fancy, in a plaza in the back, but in front of the Safeway facing it. Tough to find parking on Saturday nights, but you can always find one if you’re willing to walk a little. The coffees and teas are your standard TE’s, and they offer a stamp card too. It’s smaller than the other TE’s I’ve been to, but still, not bad if you’re in the area.

Snow bubble, tapioca, and spicy chicken.
Their chicken is quite tasty and goes well with a sweet tapioca drink. Small and cluttered inside but its not a huge deal. This is more of a spot that you’d stop by for a quick drink and move along. They’ve got wifi, outdoor seating, and a television. You could lounge on one of their couches but they’re usually filled with high school student gossiping.

After an informative Meetup with some real estate pros, I had a meeting that I needed to join online. Unfortunately, there seem to be no Starbucks locations in the area so finding free WiFi was a challenge. After some searching, I tracked down a Tapioca Express that seemed clean enough and would over some shelter from noise and other distractions.
To get my WiFi key, I ordered an almond milk tea and and order of crispy popcorn chicken. The boba in the milk tea was super mushy and the chicken was the smallest amount I have ever seen. In fact, I felt a little ripped off to be honest. On the pro side, their WiFi did hold up so my meeting worked out.
Service was kind of slow and prices are moderate. My expectations were definitely higher and so the experience was pretty disappointing as a whole. If I can help it, I won’t be coming back.
Food: ⁴⁄₁₀
Service: ⁵⁄₁₀
Price: $
Atmosphere: ⁵⁄₁₀