Foodaholic Tawau: Boba Milk Tea Mania: Tawau Edition (Part 1)

Let’s just be honest here. Love them or hate them, bubble milk tea is a trend that does not seem to be going away anytime soon. And judging by the popping up of new stores almost every other week (yes, I’m exaggerating but still…) I feel that I can’t possibly ignore their existence any longer especially in a small town like Tawau.

Now because there are currently quite a number of bubble milk tea stores that are available all over Tawau (well, technically 90% of them are within the Kubota Sentral area) I have to break this entry into 2 parts. But rest assured that I will update you guys with newer info should any others decided to pop up in the future. Also, I will be focusing more on bubble milk tea specialty stores instead of full fledge eateries that features boba teas in the menu (there will be a separate post regarding that much, much later). And since I’m a self-proclaimed ‘chocoholic’ I will also be primarily tasting their chocolate series. So again, this is solely my opinion on their said flavour line and might not reflect on their other beverages.

So let’s begin shall we? In no particular order…

DING TEA

Where? TB19282, Lot A2, Pusat Komersil Bintang Kubota, Jalan Chong Thien Vun (has officially been closed - updated on 13 July 2020)

Originated from?

Taiwan

What I had? Classic Chocolate & Double-mixed Chocolate

The Good? I have actually reviewed them before (click HERE for said review & pictures) so I won’t be talking too much about them. But it is good to note that they are one of the earlies bubble milk tea franchise that had officially opened here in Tawau (at least 1 or 2 years before 'the boba crazed' reached our shores). And their Double-mixed Chocolate is still a firm favourite of mine till now

The Bad? Although i do understand that their mainly teenage-age front staff might not have a wide experience yet when it comes to service, it might be a good idea to start formally training them now so they might not come off as grumpy & unfriendly all the time

**Sadly, it has just been announced through their FB page that they're closing shop this coming March 2020 due to the Taiwanese head office not extending their contract.

*The one of the left is their Double-mixed Chocolate while the other is my mom's Mango Green Tea

TEALIVE

Where? TB65-0, Lot M6, Kubota Sentral, Jalan Chong Thien Vun

Originated from? Technically from Taiwan but has been ‘rebirthed’ in Malaysia (do check out the history behind the brand and Chatime for those of you who’re not in the know)

What I had? Bang Bang Chocolate & Milk Choc Shaka Lava

The Good? The much hyped up Signature Bang Bang series was just okay for me and their Shaka Lava drink had (somehow) gotten sweeter every time I've bought them, even with the sugar level being slightly reduced (but still pretty yummy in my opinion - one of my guilty pleasures as of late).

The Bad? I don’t know whether it was my bad luck or something but when I went there a couple of times, I somehow had gotten a rather rude cashier attending to my order (also more than once). I was given an annoyed look when I asked her about a drink in the menu. Hello miss… not everyone is a regular customer okay! I do hope that the management can take note of this since they won’t be on top of the food chain for much longer judging from the emerging new outlets opening nearby.

*This is my Bang Bang Chocolate, with my mom's Lychee Tea with Chia Seeds

*And the delicious (albeit sweet as hell) Milk Tea Shaka Lava drink

GRAND PAPA

Where? Jalan Haji Karim, Bandar Tawau

Originated from? Tawau born and bred (I think)

What I had? Sea Salt Royal Cheese Chocolate & Legendary Brulee Chocolate

The Good? From humble beginnings, they’d managed to outgrown of their small business into a franchise of sorts in Tawau and its surrounding districts. And because of that, they now had their own merchandises for any interested customers to buy. Also, I've visited the place again fairly recently and this time tried out their Legendary Brulee Chocolate and it was definitely a much better choice than the former. The taste might still be lacking something in my opinion but more flavourful than the other one (updated on 13 July 2020).

The Bad? Umm.. I have to say that among the choco milk tea that I’ve tried, their Sea Salt Royal Cheese Chocolate was probably the one that I like the least. Granted, it was also one of the most appetizing looking ones among them all but the drink that I had was virtually tasteless, like you’re drinking a bland 3in1 beverages. But then again, that might only reflect on the aforementioned and not their other drinks since I do see glowing reviews from other people.

*FYI this is their Sea Salt Royal Cheese Chocolate drink..

... and this is the more recently tasted Legendary Brulee Chocolate

U-TEA

Where? Lot 44, Kubota Sentral, Lorong Kubota Sentral 4, Jalan Chong Thien Vun

Originated from? Kota Kinabalu

What I had? Chocolate Milk Tea

The Good? The drink that I had was good but the tea taste does overwhelm the overall chocolate flavour. I did try the same drink but with added cheese and it does tasted much better after that. Also I do love that they have a selection of yummy cakes and other pastries such as the Chocolate Mousse Cake that I had (even though it was out-sourced to other vendors). Simply delicious!

The Bad? Since the brand mostly focuses on fruity and other types of flavoured teas, there aren’t as many choices for non-fruity enthusiasts I’m afraid.

CHATIME

Where? TB14922, Lot 41, Taman Sejati, Jalan Kuhara

Originated from? Taiwan

What I had? Superior Pure Cocoa, Horlicks Cocoa, Hazelnut Chocolate & Dalgona Hazelnut Chocolate

The Good? It is very near to my residential area so obviously it will be easier for me to frequent them should I choose to (as they’re one of a handful of bubble tea outlets that resides outside of the main town area and the popular Kubota Sentral). Among the chocolate drinks mentioned above, my recent fave has got to be their Dalgona Hazelnut Chocolate, as the 'dalgona' cream really does elevate its ordinary drink to another level (updated on 13 July 2020). They also have a Big Apple Donuts kiosk inside the premise so that's definitely a plus for me.

The Bad? Because of the previous controversy surrounding the brand and Tealive (do Google about the drama worthy bad blood between them) it was no wonder that you could find similarities in terms of types of drinks and even the tastes between said competitors. Also, they do not provide any e-wallet services at the moment so do take note of that should you are planning to pay using Boost or Favepay.