I got the hojicha and it was hands-down the BEST hojicha I’ve ever tried in the bay!!! The hojicha was so rich and my drink was sweetened perfectly—not too sweet, which didn’t steal the thunder away from the hojicha’s notes and flavor! I do want to disclose that they did take over an hour for my drink to be ready, BUT I went for their soft opening weekend, so that may be why many people were there (there were around 25 orders ahead of mine). They whisk the hojicha and ceremonial matcha right in front of you, which was a blast to see. The ambience was great! I’d definitely go again at a time where there aren’t as many customers there.
Update: my friend went a few weeks after me, and their wait is still just as long (about 40-50 minutes). Definitely place your order, explore downtown Berkeley, then come back for your drink. There aren’t a lot of seating options available in the tea bar.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
BoBo Liao
The houjicha is delightful! Love the ambiance and design of the space. It's so fun to see how they prepare the drinks. I heard some of the workers went to tea ceremony school/class! Which explains why they use certain tools and how they make their drinks! Very beautiful and authentic.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Johnny Tan
Amazing all around. Great drinks. Love the plant-based milks. Hojicha was delicious. Also liked the black sesame matcha.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Zhou
Very high quality and delicious matcha. We got the strawberry and the hojicha, both very tasty and good balanced flavors. The cafe was very clean, chill, and relaxing atmosphere. I probably wouldn't wait over 30 minutes for two drinks again, but it was a fun experience and delicious drinks.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Isaac Linn
So excited for the opening of this tea bar! The design and menu are very thoughtful. Also, I’m looking forward to having a local retailer for soba cha, genmaicha and hojicha.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kiki
Very high quality and they use non dairy milk by default. The genmaicha latte was lightly sweet and the flavors of the brown rice and matcha really shone through.
The wait time was 26 minutes from ordering. It was crowded when I went and people talk very loudly. There is a bathroom.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Stephanie Lauber
Came here with my boyfriend on an early Saturday afternoon. There was no line at the kiosk, but the estimated wait time was 50 minutes. We ordered a normal iced matcha latte (regular sweetener) and a normal hot matcha latte (with maple syrup). Both had oat milk (which I think is the default). I wish they just had regular milk since I don't have lactose intolerance issues, but they did not. Sometimes oat milk can upset my stomach.
We waited over an hour for our drinks, but we walked around Berkeley for a while and came back. They closed ordering for a couple hours in order to catch up and reopened orders at 3:30pm. So be prepared for that if you go. The earlier, the better.
The drinks were really good. You can tell they use very high-quality matcha powder by the beautiful emerald green color and lack of bitterness. I think I liked the hot matcha latte better with the maple syrup. I wish they had half-sweetness options, but it was only full sweet or unsweetened.
I will definitely be back. Apparently they will have online ordering through snack pass, but it wasn't available yet when we ordered. Looking forward to trying their other drinks. : )
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
kamila barrios
Best matcha in the Bay! Recommend getting the rose matcha latte.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Johnnie Baba
Some of the best matcha I've had in the bay. I really appreciate the effort put into every single cup and it's aesthetically pleasing watching them whisk by hand. None of the matcha flavor is watered down, the syrups aren't overly sweet or artificially tasting. The atmosphere of the cafe along with how welcoming the baristas are, all contribute to a serene and friendly experience. Great place to unwind from the day to day.
Tiffany Kwok
Was so excited to hear about the soft opening! I tried their matcha and hojicha and both were amazing. Can’t wait to go back to try the other drinks
If you don’t like Matcha or matcha that doesn’t taste like Matcha come to this place. I get that they’re still in their soft opening phase, but waiting 50 minutes and then continuing to let customers order without that warning is terrible. Nothing is worth 50 minutes of waiting time.
I got the Rose Matcha and my friend got the Horjicha and both were watery as heck.
I will not be coming back. When I asked them to post a sign up about the wait time, they apologied but looked at me crazy. Dead.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
Erika Barrios
I love the herbal blue lotus tea. It's a nice flowery and warm drink for a cold day. I also had the rose matcha latte. The wait is worth it as all the drinks are hand whisked and made with care.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Allison L
I haven’t even gotten my matcha yet as I’m still waiting, but this is one star review for it now being over an hour since I’ve ordered and there’s still 10 drinks ahead of mine. Don’t come here until you want to wait at least 1.5 hours when they estimate ~30mins when you order on the kiosk.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Evangeline Poulos (EP)
This is by far the best matcha I have ever had. Strong and smooth flavor. Very high quality.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ying-An Wang
Hands down best matcha latte in the Bay. Very generous with matcha servings.
Staff are super friendly and easy to talk to.
Atmosphere is very relaxing and the shop is tastefully decorated.
The lines can get a bit long but definitely worth the wait!
I got the hojicha and it was hands-down the BEST hojicha I’ve ever tried in the bay!!! The hojicha was so rich and my drink was sweetened perfectly—not too sweet, which didn’t steal the thunder away from the hojicha’s notes and flavor! I do want to disclose that they did take over an hour for my drink to be ready, BUT I went for their soft opening weekend, so that may be why many people were there (there were around 25 orders ahead of mine). They whisk the hojicha and ceremonial matcha right in front of you, which was a blast to see. The ambience was great! I’d definitely go again at a time where there aren’t as many customers there.
Update: my friend went a few weeks after me, and their wait is still just as long (about 40-50 minutes). Definitely place your order, explore downtown Berkeley, then come back for your drink. There aren’t a lot of seating options available in the tea bar.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
The houjicha is delightful! Love the ambiance and design of the space. It's so fun to see how they prepare the drinks. I heard some of the workers went to tea ceremony school/class! Which explains why they use certain tools and how they make their drinks! Very beautiful and authentic.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Amazing all around. Great drinks. Love the plant-based milks. Hojicha was delicious. Also liked the black sesame matcha.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very high quality and delicious matcha. We got the strawberry and the hojicha, both very tasty and good balanced flavors. The cafe was very clean, chill, and relaxing atmosphere. I probably wouldn't wait over 30 minutes for two drinks again, but it was a fun experience and delicious drinks.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
So excited for the opening of this tea bar! The design and menu are very thoughtful. Also, I’m looking forward to having a local retailer for soba cha, genmaicha and hojicha.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very high quality and they use non dairy milk by default. The genmaicha latte was lightly sweet and the flavors of the brown rice and matcha really shone through.
The wait time was 26 minutes from ordering. It was crowded when I went and people talk very loudly. There is a bathroom.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Came here with my boyfriend on an early Saturday afternoon. There was no line at the kiosk, but the estimated wait time was 50 minutes. We ordered a normal iced matcha latte (regular sweetener) and a normal hot matcha latte (with maple syrup). Both had oat milk (which I think is the default). I wish they just had regular milk since I don't have lactose intolerance issues, but they did not. Sometimes oat milk can upset my stomach.
We waited over an hour for our drinks, but we walked around Berkeley for a while and came back. They closed ordering for a couple hours in order to catch up and reopened orders at 3:30pm. So be prepared for that if you go. The earlier, the better.
The drinks were really good. You can tell they use very high-quality matcha powder by the beautiful emerald green color and lack of bitterness. I think I liked the hot matcha latte better with the maple syrup. I wish they had half-sweetness options, but it was only full sweet or unsweetened.
I will definitely be back. Apparently they will have online ordering through snack pass, but it wasn't available yet when we ordered. Looking forward to trying their other drinks. : )
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Best matcha in the Bay! Recommend getting the rose matcha latte.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Some of the best matcha I've had in the bay. I really appreciate the effort put into every single cup and it's aesthetically pleasing watching them whisk by hand. None of the matcha flavor is watered down, the syrups aren't overly sweet or artificially tasting. The atmosphere of the cafe along with how welcoming the baristas are, all contribute to a serene and friendly experience. Great place to unwind from the day to day.
Was so excited to hear about the soft opening! I tried their matcha and hojicha and both were amazing. Can’t wait to go back to try the other drinks
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
If you don’t like Matcha or matcha that doesn’t taste like Matcha come to this place. I get that they’re still in their soft opening phase, but waiting 50 minutes and then continuing to let customers order without that warning is terrible. Nothing is worth 50 minutes of waiting time.
I got the Rose Matcha and my friend got the Horjicha and both were watery as heck.
I will not be coming back. When I asked them to post a sign up about the wait time, they apologied but looked at me crazy. Dead.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
I love the herbal blue lotus tea. It's a nice flowery and warm drink for a cold day. I also had the rose matcha latte. The wait is worth it as all the drinks are hand whisked and made with care.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I haven’t even gotten my matcha yet as I’m still waiting, but this is one star review for it now being over an hour since I’ve ordered and there’s still 10 drinks ahead of mine. Don’t come here until you want to wait at least 1.5 hours when they estimate ~30mins when you order on the kiosk.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
This is by far the best matcha I have ever had. Strong and smooth flavor. Very high quality.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Hands down best matcha latte in the Bay. Very generous with matcha servings.
Staff are super friendly and easy to talk to.
Atmosphere is very relaxing and the shop is tastefully decorated.
The lines can get a bit long but definitely worth the wait!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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