Top 5 milk tea shops to try in Saigon

Anyone who sets foot in Saigon probably would notice right away that we almost have a milk tea shop on every corner. It can be a little overwhelming for those who are not milk tea expert but want to give the drink a try.

Koi Thé

Koi is a Taiwanese brand with the owner’s passion to spread her love for Taiwanese to the world. Founded in 2005, Koi already had its first oversea store in Singapore just 1 year later.

The brand doesn’t just celebrate Taiwan’s tea culture but also the art of hand-made artisan tea using fresh ingredients for a perfect cup of tea.

So what to try at Koi Thé since they have a relatively big menu for all kinds of tea!?

Their signature drinks!

You can’t really miss out on the Macchiato! If you’re a fan of tea then the Black tea macchiato is a must try. This one has a the light aroma yet a rich taste of fresh tea topped with a creamy layer!
For those chocolate lovers out there, Ovaltine Macchiato is like a go-to. It’s not too sweet with a rich chocolate note, then just a bit bitterness kicks in on the first sip. You can have a scoop of ice-cream on top for some extra sweetness.

They also have a Matcha macchiato if you like the bitterness of green tea.

Now for the more exciting drinks! They’ve recently launched some new drinks.

If you haven’t heard of Yakult before, it’s a very popular yogurt drink in the asian culture. Koi took a more creative approach and added the ever famous drink into their teas with added fruity flavours. If you love Yakult then it’s really worth a try!

And also, they can’t miss out on the brown sugar with fresh milk trend!

If you have a sweet tooth then OKINAWA brown sugar fresh milk can be your best friend. Brown sugar is caramelised to create a strong sweetness that will be balanced out by fresh milk. Very refreshing yet very dessert-like!

Koi Thé currently has 23 outlets across several district in Saigon. Find your nearest store here: http://koicafe.vn/store
Average price: 40-80k/pax

Cheese coffee

Well, you can kind of tell by the name that this is not a milk tea specialty place. However, they have several milk teas that are quite loved by locals.

Cheese Coffee has branded itself as a cafe inspired by modern European styled coffee shops. They have quite a big menu from coffee, tea, macchiato and milk tea.

Below is the choices of milk tea at Cheese Coffee:

They cover some basic flavours of milk tea like oolong milk tea and matcha latte for those who like the traditional tastes.

But they also have some interesting flavours going on such as their best seller Jasmine almond. This drink is the combination of a flower scent followed with a buttery taste of almond. Definitely a must try at Cheese Coffee!

Shortbread milk tea, on the other hand, has a very chocolate based flavour. It’s like you’re drinking an iced-chocolate but a little sweeter and has more butter taste. We don’t think a lot of milk tea shops in Saigon has this drink, it’s unique at Cheese Coffee.

They’ve recently added another addition to their milk tea family. Meet their Avocado milk tea! It looks so refreshing! This drink is made freshly picked avocado and topped with milk foam.

Of course, like any other milk tea place, you can add more toppings to your milk tea. However, we recommend everyone to try the choco crunch topping here as it’s not your generic chocolate sprinkle. It tastes a bit like smashed up chocolate flavoured captain crunch on top of your milk tea, so interesting!

Address: 41 Xô Viết Nghệ Tĩnh, Q.Bình Thạnh – Số 6 Đường D2, Q.Bình Thạnh – 782 Sư Vạn Hạnh, Q.10 – 190C Phan Văn Trị, Q.Bình Thạnh – 307 Hồng Bàng, P.11, Q.5

Average price: 45k/pax

Comebuy

Comebuy is similar Koi Thé in a sense that they’re both international milk tea chain originated from Taiwan. The brand is known for using fresh tea leaves from their own farm in Taiwan, brewing the tea on the spot based on what customers order, giving every drink a unique taste only at Comebuy.

Some of their signature milk teas are Comebuy milk tea with tapioca black pearls, sweet potato and taro flavours. Besides, there are Neptune milk tea and roasted Oolong milk tea, which are also a customer’s faves

Besides, they also a drink with very catchy name which is teaccino. Teaccino at Comebuy is a range of matcha, chocolate or black tea flavoured topped with a thick layer of whipped milk foam.

Address: 120 Hồ Tùng Mậu, Quận 1 or 179 Trần Bình Trọng, Phường 3, Quận 5 or 453 Phan Văn Trị, P.5, Q.Gò Vấp

Average price: 45k/pax

Gong cha

Gong cha is one of the first milk tea shops opened up in Vietnam to start the boba tea craze. Now, they have become a big name for milk tea lovers with multiple locations across Vietnam.

Their menu is quite large with so many selections so KAMEREO will not cover the basic drinks at Gong cha. Let’s go through the interesting part, the special drinks!

If you’re a true fan of tea but don’t quite like sweetness of milk tea then these premium teas are perfect choices. The drinks are brewed from teabags, the rich aroma of fresh tea is still there when the drink is served. Some sugar syrup is then added for a bit of sweet, yet still not taking over the bitter taste of tea. You can choose to add more toppings for some extra flavours as well!

This is Strawberry Smoothie Oreo, how beautiful!

This is quite a new drink at Gong cha. It’s sweet yet very refreshing in the heat of Saigon. There is a lot of Strawberry syrup drizzled at the bottom, then a blend of strawberry and milk for a creamy taste, then finished up with crush Oreo cookies on top.

Gong cha is pretty famous with their creative and seasonal drinks. This one, Matcha Strawberry milk tea, is currently the star right now. If you like your matcha drink with a twist, this one is a match made in heaven. One layer of matcha at the bottom, then comes a strawberry blend in the middle then topped with a creamy milk foam layer. A unique drink that would look amazing for your Instagram picture as well!

Find your nearest Gong cha store here: http://gongcha.com.vn/en/cua-hang/

Average price: 45k-75k/pax

Tealive

Tealive comes from Malaysia. Unlike all other shops above, Tealive doesn’t have too many stores in Saigon, just 3 outlets at the moment. Worry not! Just because it’s not a big name, doens’t mean Tealive has nothing special to offer to milk tea lovers.

This one is a limited edition for Asian market. It’s Royal milk tea with salted egg and tapioca pearls. Salted eggs is quite popular in South East Asian cuisines, and Tealive took this as a chance to be more creative with their milk tea. The drinks has a rich creamy taste of milk, then a kick of saltiness from salted eggs syrups then finish on a sweet note of sugar.

Tealive offers a special range called Sea Salt Cheese. You can order different kind of teas topped with their signature Sea Salt Cheese, which tastes a bit like whipped salted cream and milk foam.
A must try in this Sea Salt Cheese collection is the Rose PuEr Sea Salt Cheese. PuEr tea refers to a type of fermented tea produced in the Yunnan province of China. PuEr tea is freshly brewed then topped with their Sea Salt Cheese on topped for a kicked of flavour.
Besides milk tea, they also have a big menu of other choices like espresso based coffee, sparkling juices and smoothie.

Address: