With all the new bubble tea shops downtown, which one serves the best, classic milk tea paired with the tapioca everyone knows and loves? For this taste test, three bubble tea shops that are not as well known have been selected with the hopes of introducing somewhere new to everyone: The Alley, the Baroness, and ICHA Tea. Deciding to stray away from shops like Gong Cha, Chatime, and CoCo, hopefully you can find your new go-to place through this taste test! All drinks tried in this article are made with no ice and half sugar to ensure that the drink is not watered down. 

Starting off, The Alley! The location that I went to was 382 Yonge St Unit 1, Toronto, ON M5B 1S9 (near College station), and just a quick thought on the interior, it was really cozy, clean, and simple. Definitely a place to go if you’re meeting up with a friend or want somewhere quiet to do some work. I ordered the regular size Royal No.9 Milk Tea with tapioca which cost an extra $0.70, coming to a total of $7.29 after tax. The tea tasted as if it was a type of Ceylon tea, with a somewhat fruity taste that one might enjoy if they enjoy drinking Earl Grey. It didn’t have a particularly strong tea flavour and the milkiness was mild. The tapioca was well-cooked and chewy and worked well with the milk tea. However, $7.29 for a regular size isn’t necessarily cheap in my opinion and it does leave behind some sort of fruity aftertaste. Although, I would go back to try their other drinks because they do have a lot of interesting choices and I want to try the grass jelly. 

The next place that I went to was the Baroness (421 Yonge St, Toronto, ON M5B 1T1), which was across the street from The Alley. The interior was nice and they had swing seats at a table for you to sit and enjoy. According to Google, it closes at 12:30 am, so it’s definitely a place to go to get your late-night fix for bubble tea. I ordered the medium Four Seasons Milk Tea with brown sugar tapioca because that was the only type of tapioca they had there, coming to a total of $6.22 after tax. Just an observation, the size of the cup seems to be the same as the cup from The Alley. The tea had a really good, strong flavour and was mildly milky too, so it didn’t feel like drinking pure milk. Although, despite it being made with no ice, the drink was a bit more watery than I would have liked it. It seemed that all milk tea drinks there came with one free choice of toppings. The tapioca was chewy and well cooked and it was a light brown sugar flavour. Just like The Alley, I would go back to try more of their drinks. For the price and the quality of the drink, I would go back for sure. 

ICHA Tea (235 Spadina Ave. Unit 4, Toronto, ON M5T 2E2) was next and immediately walking into the shop it had a great atmosphere and I absolutely love the design of the place. It was simple and very cozy. They also had an area at the back for dine-in, where you can order their desserts and drinks. This shop also offered traditional tea tasting during a specific time, which was very interesting. I ordered the Classic Milk Tea with tapioca which cost an extra $0.60. It was a very good black tea with hints of nutty flavour, probably brewed along with barley to enhance the tea flavour. The tea was also dripped on the spot, so freshly made. It was not overly milky and went down really nicely. The drink was surprisingly refreshing with the slight sweetness of the tapioca. The tapioca was cooked just right and didn’t feel heavy. I would definitely go back because of the atmosphere and to try their Peach Oolong Tea and desserts.