Great boba drinks! Liked the spicy chicken and rice with a fried egg with some basil on it. It's a cool hangout place. This is usually my go to place.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Chicken
Evan Lee
It's been years but Cassandra K. was the worst cashier I've ever had dealt with. Bad attitude all
Food: 4
Service: 1
Rachel P
Best fried chicken in San Diego at specifically this Tap Ex (they vary). Impossible to park, so use side streets. Boba is good but not great, but honestly so many nostalgic memories w the boba drinks that love it anyways. The only boba place that it's nice to just sit in for hours, like a coffee shop, because the lights aren't super bright. So it's not an only take-out, modern, trendy new Chinese place, it's just nice to hang. Inexpensive lunch menu and snacks, and if you buy the meal you get a free tea or 1/2 off a boba drink. Huge drink menu. K-pop videos and music playing in the background, sometimes from 2005? Love !Vegetarian options: Fried tofu (amazing), fries.Kid-friendliness: Huge so lots of space for kids to do whatever chaotic things they do.Wheelchair accessibility: Double doors that (I think) can open with someone else's assistance, and large space to use chair to go to counter, tables, etc.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Chicken
Kelly K.
Parking can be tough since it situated in a plaza where Raki Raki is. A nice place to grab a quick bite/Tawainese snacks and drinks. Service was ok. They seemed not so busy whenever I go. Willing to stop by again to try others on the menu.
Cheyanne G.
Love coming here, this place definitely reminds me of my high school days! I actually never get boba here but my go to is their basil chicken and their calamari! I typically will always call it in ahead of time just because I know it takes about ten minutes to cook and I rather just come in and pick it up instead of waiting! They are always sooo friendly when they answer the phone and are just as friendly when you walk in! Their calamari is my favorite out of all the other boba places I've tried as well as their chicken! For some reason I love the spice that they use and always get a medium even though by the time I'm done eating my mouth is on fire but it is so worth it! I wish I could say I've tried the drinks but I have yet to break out of my normal habits and will just continue to get my snacks here!
Well A.
We went to get some boba drinks, at Tapioca Express. The interior and the ambience was very cozy. As we enjoyed our drinks you can see others playing some card games with their friends. Its nice to know we have a safe space that we can gather with a group of friends to be ourselves and enjoy games like league of legends, dungeons of dragons etc. We ordered 2 drinks. Passion fruit snow bubble, and The guava green tea with lychee. Both drinks were very delicious. The passion fruit was very flavorful and there was an abundance of boba in the the drinks. I really enjoyed my guava green tea, the lychee pieces in the drink really complimented my drink. The pairing of the two was pure bliss, and unlocked a lost memory of a place I would frequent back in San Jose where I would get my drinks. As for the customer service, I felt could be some improvement. We were asking questions about the drinks, and staff didn't seem to friendly or was uninterested to help. The vibe coming from the staff weren't to happy and made us feel a little uncomfortable. I really liked my guava green tea, it was very refreshing and I'm glad I ordered the drink. My dislike was customer service, and feel it can use some improvement. Peter and the rest of staff, could be a little more friendly, but they didn't look too happy to be there. My guest and I, did not feel really welcomed or acknowledged at all. We also asked for the wifi, and they weren't too happy to help with that either, but expressed with an attitude to say its at the bottom of the receipt. I'd definitely would come here again, because of the great tasting drinks and the plethora of options of drinks to choose from. For both drinks, total was about $17.
How L.
The food tastes good with affordable price. They increased the prices lately but still affordable.
ya-hui hsiao
Quality control, please. I ordered crispy chicken and fried tofu. Both were overcooked, and I couldn't even put them in my mouth. It was too hard, what a disappointment.
Food: 2
Frank P.
Food was always okay but finding hair in my food was a reoccurring issue I've seen. I've chose to ignore it multiple times by now but I've seen more than a couple hairs in this batch.
With all the boujee boba places popping up I had strayed from this OG boba place for probably 2-3 years?! Also, sadly, not all Tapicoa express chains (though they should since its chain) are the same. The one in Oceanside, teas were soo sweet or bland (tried to adjust sweetness). The one near/in Tustin off the 5 freeway (same shopping center as 99 Ranch) their tea was also just ok. Their Chrispy chx I had to stop ordering cuz it just tasted bad. This place -thai tea 50% sweet: yes! -chrispy chx: just as I remembered, good flavor and not too crazy oily Clearly, when you go get boba and fried chx you aren't doing it for your health, ur doing it for indulgence. Indulgence achieved!
Emily Fajardo
Best Thai tea snow bubble, literally every sip of so flavorful. Ive been to so many places in San Diego and nothing beats thier Thai tea. We always get the side of chicken popcorn and it’s fresh every single time.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Popcorn Chicken Combo
Hong Tieu
Mango yogurt frost is very good as expected. They didn’t put fresh mango on top though :(. Popcorn chicken is spicy standard, exactly as
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Mango Yogurt Frost
Mei Lee
Closed on Mondays.We've been coming here for years. This was the hotspot to study and hang out with friends. It's slowed way down since those old days, but the Boba is still amazing. We always love getting either the chicken snack or chicken meal. Even the calamari is good, but something about the chicken is so much better. The meal comes with rice, ground beef mix, pickled vegetables, broccoli, and a fried egg. Medium spice is not really spicy.The meals come with a drink as well. I've tried almost every drink on the menu, and they are all good. Milk teas, snow bubbles, and so much more.Service is usually always good here. When they get busy, it might be a hit or miss. But this place holds so many memories for us.Parking sucks. Just park in the street and walk up.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Tina V.
One of my favorite OG boba places! I'm a basic milk tea and green tea person, no fancy drinks with foams or layers that other places are making nowadays. This place is perfect for yummy traditional Taiwanese boba drinks! Also their food is fire! I still haven't found a place in LA or OC that makes popcorn chicken like this place, they give you extra basil too! Their combo meals are where it's at!
Food and drink is always great. But we normally prefer take out. Just not a place to hange out.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Crispy Chicken, Popcorn Chicken Combo
Great boba drinks! Liked the spicy chicken and rice with a fried egg with some basil on it. It's a cool hangout place. This is usually my go to place.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Chicken
It's been years but Cassandra K. was the worst cashier I've ever had dealt with. Bad attitude all
Food: 4
Service: 1
Best fried chicken in San Diego at specifically this Tap Ex (they vary). Impossible to park, so use side streets. Boba is good but not great, but honestly so many nostalgic memories w the boba drinks that love it anyways. The only boba place that it's nice to just sit in for hours, like a coffee shop, because the lights aren't super bright. So it's not an only take-out, modern, trendy new Chinese place, it's just nice to hang. Inexpensive lunch menu and snacks, and if you buy the meal you get a free tea or 1/2 off a boba drink. Huge drink menu. K-pop videos and music playing in the background, sometimes from 2005? Love !Vegetarian options: Fried tofu (amazing), fries.Kid-friendliness: Huge so lots of space for kids to do whatever chaotic things they do.Wheelchair accessibility: Double doors that (I think) can open with someone else's assistance, and large space to use chair to go to counter, tables, etc.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Chicken
Parking can be tough since it situated in a plaza where Raki Raki is. A nice place to grab a quick bite/Tawainese snacks and drinks. Service was ok. They seemed not so busy whenever I go. Willing to stop by again to try others on the menu.
Love coming here, this place definitely reminds me of my high school days! I actually never get boba here but my go to is their basil chicken and their calamari! I typically will always call it in ahead of time just because I know it takes about ten minutes to cook and I rather just come in and pick it up instead of waiting! They are always sooo friendly when they answer the phone and are just as friendly when you walk in! Their calamari is my favorite out of all the other boba places I've tried as well as their chicken! For some reason I love the spice that they use and always get a medium even though by the time I'm done eating my mouth is on fire but it is so worth it! I wish I could say I've tried the drinks but I have yet to break out of my normal habits and will just continue to get my snacks here!
We went to get some boba drinks, at Tapioca Express. The interior and the ambience was very cozy. As we enjoyed our drinks you can see others playing some card games with their friends. Its nice to know we have a safe space that we can gather with a group of friends to be ourselves and enjoy games like league of legends, dungeons of dragons etc. We ordered 2 drinks. Passion fruit snow bubble, and The guava green tea with lychee. Both drinks were very delicious. The passion fruit was very flavorful and there was an abundance of boba in the the drinks. I really enjoyed my guava green tea, the lychee pieces in the drink really complimented my drink. The pairing of the two was pure bliss, and unlocked a lost memory of a place I would frequent back in San Jose where I would get my drinks. As for the customer service, I felt could be some improvement. We were asking questions about the drinks, and staff didn't seem to friendly or was uninterested to help. The vibe coming from the staff weren't to happy and made us feel a little uncomfortable. I really liked my guava green tea, it was very refreshing and I'm glad I ordered the drink. My dislike was customer service, and feel it can use some improvement. Peter and the rest of staff, could be a little more friendly, but they didn't look too happy to be there. My guest and I, did not feel really welcomed or acknowledged at all. We also asked for the wifi, and they weren't too happy to help with that either, but expressed with an attitude to say its at the bottom of the receipt. I'd definitely would come here again, because of the great tasting drinks and the plethora of options of drinks to choose from. For both drinks, total was about $17.
The food tastes good with affordable price. They increased the prices lately but still affordable.
Quality control, please. I ordered crispy chicken and fried tofu. Both were overcooked, and I couldn't even put them in my mouth. It was too hard, what a disappointment.
Food: 2
Food was always okay but finding hair in my food was a reoccurring issue I've seen. I've chose to ignore it multiple times by now but I've seen more than a couple hairs in this batch.
Restaurantji Recommends
With all the boujee boba places popping up I had strayed from this OG boba place for probably 2-3 years?! Also, sadly, not all Tapicoa express chains (though they should since its chain) are the same. The one in Oceanside, teas were soo sweet or bland (tried to adjust sweetness). The one near/in Tustin off the 5 freeway (same shopping center as 99 Ranch) their tea was also just ok. Their Chrispy chx I had to stop ordering cuz it just tasted bad. This place -thai tea 50% sweet: yes! -chrispy chx: just as I remembered, good flavor and not too crazy oily Clearly, when you go get boba and fried chx you aren't doing it for your health, ur doing it for indulgence. Indulgence achieved!
Best Thai tea snow bubble, literally every sip of so flavorful. Ive been to so many places in San Diego and nothing beats thier Thai tea. We always get the side of chicken popcorn and it’s fresh every single time.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Popcorn Chicken Combo
Mango yogurt frost is very good as expected. They didn’t put fresh mango on top though :(. Popcorn chicken is spicy standard, exactly as
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Mango Yogurt Frost
Closed on Mondays.We've been coming here for years. This was the hotspot to study and hang out with friends. It's slowed way down since those old days, but the Boba is still amazing. We always love getting either the chicken snack or chicken meal. Even the calamari is good, but something about the chicken is so much better. The meal comes with rice, ground beef mix, pickled vegetables, broccoli, and a fried egg. Medium spice is not really spicy.The meals come with a drink as well. I've tried almost every drink on the menu, and they are all good. Milk teas, snow bubbles, and so much more.Service is usually always good here. When they get busy, it might be a hit or miss. But this place holds so many memories for us.Parking sucks. Just park in the street and walk up.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
One of my favorite OG boba places! I'm a basic milk tea and green tea person, no fancy drinks with foams or layers that other places are making nowadays. This place is perfect for yummy traditional Taiwanese boba drinks! Also their food is fire! I still haven't found a place in LA or OC that makes popcorn chicken like this place, they give you extra basil too! Their combo meals are where it's at!