One Milk Tea, a small-but-growing boba chain from Sacramento, is expanding its footprint in East Bay. You might have already visited this shop on Fruitvale Avenue but soon, you will also find new locations in Chinatown, East Oakland, and Alameda.
One Milk Tea has pretty much all your standard milk tea, fruit tea, and specialty flavors with options to customize your sweetness level and add different bobas or jellies for topping. But what sets the brand apart is their spiked boba drinks, which are made with soju- or sake-infused teas that add a kick to your beverage.
“We want to break the status quo,” One Milk Tea Founder Andrew Liu told What Now San Francisco in a phone call this week. “There are eight or nine boba shops near my house right now. We wanted to find a way to break the trend and separate us from what’s already out there.”
The Bay Area has no shortage of boba shops, which is why Liu’s idea to spike their offerings takes their brand to the next level. Currently using sake and soju, the boozy side of the menu has offerings such as Tokyo Tea and Tropic Kiss, which Liu says tastes like strawberry lemonade.
The alcoholic boba drinks are currently only available at the very first location in Sacramento, but soon they will be offered at the upcoming Chinatown store at 349 7th St. A Conditional Use Permit for a Type 41 ABC license is currently under review with the city of Oakland.
Liu anticipates soft opening this location next month, but it’s all dependent on when they can get the license. He hopes to host a grand opening of the space by fall. Meanwhile, Liu will also soon begin remodeling a space at 1413 Park St. in Alameda, which he expects to open in 2023.
One Milk Tea will also be popping up in Orbit Coffee at 1924 35th Ave. in East Oakland next week. However, this one will not be serving the alcoholic boba drinks, so please keep that in mind if you decide to stop by this location. For more information, visit www.onemilktea.com.
