Bee & Tea

They used to have the open faced baos which were unique and so good. They also had bowls (quinoa, rice, chicken, veg, etc…) which were a solid quick meal.
Then one day, I went in, and the open faced baos were replaced with closed baos… like the ones at Wow Bao. I just don’t understand that decision. I could basically just buy those from the freezer section at a grocery store. Plus, the open faced were great! They also removed the bowls from the menu. In place of those were sandwiches. Anyone I knew that got a sandwich there (including myself) thought it was nothing special and actually not that great.
So they went from having two solid, unique base menu items, to having two generic lower quality items.
I’m not surprised to see this location having closed. I only kept going there for the boba teas. They remained excellent and untouched with the menu change. Anyone I knew that used to go there for food stopped after the menu change.
Hopefully they reopen somewhere else in Wicker/​Bucktown with the old menu.

I think drinks here can either be a hit or miss.
I usually stick to the taro milk tea. Sometimes it’s so watered down it doesn’t taste like anything, or it’s super sweet, and other times it’s just right. The more I drink it the more I feel like it doesn’t taste like the type of taro you would get in a more Asian-​bubble tea place (the menu here is catered to a more American audience). It’s just… A certain type of sweet I can’t describe. Which I generally like. They also have a taro+white chocolate or taro+coconut option. I like the latter because the coconut flavor is subtle, whereas the white chocolate is over powering and sickeningly sweet.
The smoothies can be okay. The avocado was disappointing as it was so icy (avocado smoothies are usually creamier) and barely tasted like avocado. The coconut wasn’t bad though.
I remember trying the «Pinkerton» once and absolutely hated it. Would not recommend.
I don’t think their baos are the best in Chicago but they’re decent enough for a light snack with your bubble tea.
At the very least, I’ve never had a problem with the boba here. The honey tapioca is always super chewy, soft, and slightly sweet, just the way I like it!

I’ve been trying to avoid this place the past few months while attending depaul, but my brother got me to go inside today and I can’t believe what I’ve been missing out on!!! They have sandwiches that come with chips (sea salt, BBQ, sour cream), ban baos, milk tea, acai bowls, and froyo from Forever yogurt! I’ve also noticed Forever yogurt has stepped up their froyo game because I used to hate it! I remember their yogurt being all icy and sour. Now it’s all natural and creamy (according to the froyo cup).
This place is very cute and tiny. Not good for groups.
My BBQ Chips were a little too flavorful (reminds me of eating takis chips) and my sandwich (tuna/​crab salad sandwich) was too oniony tasting.
Today, I only fell in love with the place because of the froyo, but I will definitely come back and give it another shot.

I love the bubble teas they have and all the kinds of things u can add to it. The raspberry flavor tea with lychee bubbles were my fave.
The bao were cute and tasted different. I’ve had the real northern chinger bao in china and the taiwanese bao and this is not like that. It’s a fusion and a nice one. I feel that this definitely can attract a crowd. It’s a really nice quick snack.

I gave this place another shot and I’m pleasantly surprised. The Purist finally tasted like tea! It wasn’t overly sweet like a lot of other places (I don’t get boba in mine) and had a nice blend of tea and milk.
Husband got a taro milk and that was pretty sweet though. Maybe next time we’ll ask for less sweet. But it was still tasty.
The regular size is now a normal cup size instead of the fat/​short cup. The old one was cute but very difficult to hold and did not fit in cup holders. The large size was still a fat/​short cup when I went but I don’t mind. As long as you get a choice of a normal cup, I’m a-​ok with it.

Really tasty bao and bubble tea. The bao are a bit smaller than what you’d expect from a Chinese bakery, but there are 3 – 4 per order, and the flavor us impressive. I really enjoyed both pork and shiitake types.
The mango bubble tea surprised me by being liquid tea with ice rather than a blended slush– the picture menu is a little vague, so if you’re not sure, just ask. Still tasty though.

Visiting from California, I didn’t expect to find a boba place in Chicago but I’m glad I did!
The location is right near the university and within blocks of the public transportation. I say that’s convenient!
The décor goes hand in hand with the name, as there are honey bee combs on the walls. CLEANLINESS… A+!
There was a variety of drinks, that were so appealing I could not possibly pick with just one look! However, when I did… I was not disappointed! Probably one of the best bobas I’ve had, which means a lot considering I’ve lived in San Jose for 5 years and there is a boba place on every corner!
⁴⁄₅ stars is due to the customer service, our cashier seemed like she did not want to be there and it showed in her work performance.

Tea was pretty good… not a huge fan of the container. Has a good concept to prevent spilling but can never fit this wide tub in your cup holder in the car. guess it’s a beverage that you can only hold?!
The baos were average at best. I tried the kung pao vegetable, quinoa and mushroom and salt and black pepper tofu.
It was a good thing I ate the kung pao last cuz it was by far the best. The salt and pepper lacked any real desire to finish it. And that’s saying a lot since it’s only 2 bites! I give them a point for creativity on the quinoa mushroom combo but it was also lack luster. The squeeze of lemon did brighten it up but it was still pretty bland. The kung pao packed a punch and was delicious with every bite. It had a crunch and heat that I was looking for.
If these guys are looking for a pointer or two on how to add flavor to their baos they need to try yum dum food truck. These guys definitely have a flavorful bao worth trying.

We were in the Wicker Park area and I was craving bubble tea. A quick search on google brought us to this place. I ordered the purist tea which is the standard black tea with boba. I got mine sweetened with green tea.
It was pretty good. Not as good as some the places in Chinatown that I normally frequent for boba tea but not bad either. Fortunately it satisfied my craving and I left feeling that it hit the spot.

Okay so I can’t vouch for the whole experience and this is just for the bubble tea portion as we were in the area after some burgers that we wanted a light refreshing drink of bubble tea at bee and tea, so we didn’t get to try any of their signature buns. I ordered the mocha bubble tea and I asked them to put a little less chocolate which they did but it wasn’t what I was expecting. The drink itself was very liquidy and I was expecting more of a smoothie or something thicker. So I guess the texture was just off for me, but the flavor was definitely there and they didn’t add too much chocolate which I’m happy about.
I felt like the price of $ 4 for the regular isn’t cheap but I guess it’s competitive with the area. I also felt like there were way too many of the tapioca balls or bobas as they call them here. My one friend asked for a smaller amount of them and she felt like she had too many. I didn’t ask for a smaller amount and I also felt like they give you an overwhelming amount that kind of takes away from the actual tea/​drink.
The staff, however, seemed nice here and were patient when our party of 6 was ordering since we had no clue which drinks to get. There were a few nice wooden tables as well as these funky benches here just for grabbing your food and sitting which I thought was kind of cool. Not sure if I’ll be back but if you live in the area and are looking for some light tea, why not. Just ask for less of the bobas since you will be stuffed like a boba afterwards.

I had an A-​OK experience at Bee & Tea the two times I’ve been here. I walked over the first time because it’s conveniently located based on where I live, but I have also found easy street parking here. I ordered the #1 special, which includes three bao and a bubble tea smoothie. It’s actually a really great deal and I recommend that if you want to save a little money and sample everything. It made for a great-​sized dinner at a pretty reasonable price.
At first, I was surprised and a little disappointed that the bao were open-​faced, not actual buns like I’ve had before. But maybe I’m just not well-​informed on all the different kinds of bao you can have. My favorite bao was definitely the BBQ pulled pork. It had a really great taste; lots of flavors going on. Even if I prefer the bao that are closed like a little sac, these still tasted good.
The mango bubble tea smoothie had perfectly formed tapioca pearls, so I was really impressed by that. I’ve had a lot of bad bubble tea pearls in my day and Bee & Tea totally nailed it! However, I did notice that the smoothie was a little bit icy and seemed to be slightly more ice than it was mango. Maybe this was an off day for them or maybe they were running low on mango because it was toward the end of the day? I would like to be able to give this another shot at some point.
I also really liked the aesthetic. It’s very well put-​together in its branding. The website, which I checked out before coming here, is also really cool and equally well-​put-​together with great graphics. Just my $ 0.02. Bee & Tea was A-​OK in my book, but at this point, not something I would wholeheartedly recommend.

This spot appeared promising by its on point décor [very align with the name of restaurant] and trendy website yet, unfortunately, it was a complete disappointment.
The only reason this review is getting one star is purely due to the décor. I feel that all creative juices were spent on the décor and not on the menu/​food product quality.
When I asked for recommendations, the staff was rather unhelpful, as though it was such an unusual request. My sister-​in-​law and I ordered a mango yogurt smoothie. The tapioca was still frozen and the smoothie just tasted like mango syrup mixed with ice.
If you are looking for a refreshing smoothie, I’d steer clear of this place.

I wanted to love Bee & Tea, but I left feeling a bit unsatisfied. It’s funny because the only reason this place is on my radar (apart from living in Wicker Park) is because Bee & Tea started following me on Instagram several months ago. I finally decided to give this place a whirl yesterday on a warm day. I decided to order a milk bubble tea because I’d never tried one before (I’d only ever had bubble tea with smoothies). After some deciding, I got the chai five with black milk tea, almond milk, and cinnamon. I also paid an extra fifty cents for red bean because that sounded interesting.
My drink was good, but not entirely what I was expecting. It tasted exactly like brewed black tea with milk poured in with ice and red bean. This is not necessarily a bad thing; I’m not sure exactly what I was expecting. Well. There is one thing that was pretty disappointing for me: there were no boba pearls! It’s called «bubble tea» on the menu, so I assumed that they came with every drink. That’s what distinguishes it as BUBBLE TEA and not just tea. They’re really trying to milk (ha) you for your money here by charging extra for the signature ingredient that defines the product in the first place. It’s sort of like ordering a menu item called «fries and ketchup» that doesn’t actually come with ketchup unless you pay additionally.
The décor here is pretty cool with the honeycomb theme, although still simple and clean. Something I loved about it is there’s a nook of board games! I would enjoy spending a rainy afternoon here enjoying a hot milk tea (with those tapioca pearls, of course) while playing board games.
There was also a big group of rowdy high school kids there running around amok, taking pictures, climbing on a table (!), taking snapchat videos, etc. This was pretty disruptive and I’m mystified why one of the staff there didn’t ask them nicely to settle down. I halfway wondered if one of the younger employees there might actually know these kids.

After a lovely dinner across the street at The Southern, my friend and I had a craving for something cold. After some debate, we ended up at Bee & Tea. I found this little shop to be absolutely adorable. Loved everything I got and wouldn’t mind a place like this a bit closer to me.
+They have games! Any shop that has fun board games, has my heart.
+The matcha green tea smoothie is so yum! But 75c extra for matcha? Wiggedy wack.
–Generally the prices seem a little steep on the smoothies and teas. I liked everything but just a little more than I’m used to paying for similar items.
+You can order carry out online on the website.
–Smore bao is not my thing. Marshmellows were melted and the whole thing just seemed super odd on a bao.
+Bao buns were soft and steamed just right. 3/​$ 5.99 didn’t seem too bad to me at all for bao.
+BBQ Pork and Chicken teriyaki bao were delicious!
I enjoyed Bee & Tea and think it’s a great place to grab a non-​alcoholic drink with friends, chill out and play some games.

I can appreciate the effort put into the bao sandwiches, but the combination of ingredients are a mess. i’m sorry. Even when spun as an Asian Fusion concoction, bottom line is the food just didn’t taste good. I can’t say my Groupon deal was even worth it, but we tried 6 baos (cold crab, pulled pork, 2 butter chicken, veggie kungpao, and salt and pepper tofu), the only decent one was the pulled pork. I added chili sauce to it and it tasted better. Avant-​garde combinations, but the flavors and texture didn’t blend well. The Groupon deal also includes w/​two large milk teas. Got the hot black milk tea and a cold almond green milk tea which tasted fine, but the boba balls could have been soaked longer; they were a little tough.
The congee was straight up rice with water and salt… what a tease. I got super excited seeing it on the menu but was so let down after eating it. See my picture and let me know what you think? :)
They do try to spice up the ambiance with choices of games (cards, battleship, operation, etc), but at the end of the day, it’s about the food, and imo, they can work on it some more.
Warning: no bathroom.

The 3 star description of «A-​OK» really sums this place up. I came here with my husband to use a Groupon I had totally forgotten we purchased. I’m glad we did because otherwise we probably would have never gone in and with the voucher we were able to try a couple of the options.
We each had an iced tea. My husband had the taro version with some fruit and jelly add ons. I got green tea jasmine version with peach, banana, and strawberry popping boba. Though I liked the fruit flavors and boba, I did not enjoy the underlying jasmine tea taste. The taro iced tea was great though! Definitely on the sweeter side and even though it’s not smoothie or milkshake consistency, I would put it in the same category of «dessert drink.» The menu for the drinks is a little overwhelming, but the employee was super friendly and helpful.
As for the bao, we ordered: bbq pork (would recommend), butter chicken (flavorless, bland, forgettable), beef chorizo (good), chicken teriyaki (favorite one out of them all), and asian sloppy joe (just ok). I probably won’t be coming back for the baos, especially because the actual buns used for the bao were kind of… weird. Perhaps they are premade and defrosted and just not the best quality?
In any case, once Chicago warms up, I will definitely be back for another taro iced tea and/​or smoothie!

Great food and drink at a reasonable price. Only fault I find is that while it has the atmosphere of a typical west coast tea lounge and makes me want to stay a while, the lack of a bathroom (or lack of a visible one) means that I couldn’t stay that long.
Tea is in the name and they have so many customization options. If you ask for unsweetened teas you get them unsweetened. Of course there are many flavor shots you can add and add-​ins as well. Bao were only $ 2 for a reasonably sized portion. I recommend the BBQ pulled pork and chicken teriyaki. The veggie kind pao, asian sloppy joe, and beef chorizo were okay, and I’d avoid the Smores and Butter chicken (which was recommended by the cashier as being popular although it’s quite bland).

More a 3.5.
Stopped in, as I had some time to kill.
Loved the ambiance. Décor was super cute and chill and a great place to hangout. The woman who took our order wasn’t the most pleasant and had a bit of an attitude.
I got the peach jasmine milk green tea with a butter chicken bao. The tea was very disappointing and quite forgettable. The peach flavor was barely there. Sister’s lychee smoothie was much better. I did, however, very much enjoyed the bao. It was very tasty and textures were all there.
Would like to come back and try their other baos, especially if already in the area.

It’s a cool place to hang out, but the compliment really just stops here.
I tried this place out with the groupon deal. I believe I paid $ 12 or $ 13 for two (2) regular-​sized bubble tea drinks and six (6) baos. The retail value is about $ 22 to $ 23. Sure, that wasn’t a bad deal.
I love the decors; their menu is easy to understand and written very clearly. I hate to say this, but their food was mediocre and their bubble tea was pretty bland.
Out of all the baos we had, there wasn’t anything memorable. Perhaps the chicken teriyaki bao was the best out of the bunch. Their portions were quite small. Thus, if you’re hungry (not just thinking «I can eat» level of hunger), you’re better off heading to Oiistar, George’s hot dog, or another nearby sit-​down joint to have a wholesome meal.
Nevertheless, they earned two (2) stars for having vegetarian-​friendly baos for my husband. Any vegetarian item on the menu is also marked, which was helpful for him to order what he could consume.
I really recommend you Unilocalers to skip the bubble tea options at Bee & Tea. Kung Fu tea in Chinatown or Evanston is where you should go for bubble teas. Please, take my advice! Hubby’s Jasmine tea, on the other hand, was slightly better than my Taiwanese milk bubble tea. Well, it wasn’t by much.
I do like how you can customize your tea by adding extra toppings or ingredients. However, if the tea itself isn’t outstanding, having other stuff in the tea isn’t going to make a difference.
One (1) star was earned due to their playful, relaxing ambiance and free wifi. Please inquire the clerk for the password.
Will I come back? If someone in my party insists; otherwise, I will not personally.

Walked in not knowing what to expect but was pleasantly surprised.
The staff was welcoming, friendly, and informative giving us suggestions that we’re very tasty.
We tried five baos and a black tea and jasmine tea. All delicious but my favorite was the Kung Pao veggie bao; so good and filling.
Will be returning (the food was tasty) but mainly because the staff was so friendly. Thanks guys.