CHICHA San Chen 吃茶三千 (Burnaby) — Restaurant in Burnaby

I had just finished having dinner with my cousin, and we were on the prowl for some bbt. We had our pick because there was pretty much a bbt place or two on every block. I noticed Chi Cha San Chen from across the street as looking way more sophisticated than the usual bbt stores, on account of the professional looking signage, the glass windows, and a patio. If I didn't know any better, I'd think it was a fancy restaurant. Off the top of my head, I can't think of any bbt place that has a patio, so I was intrigued.

I could literally smell the tea leaves as I stepped inside, very earthy and fresh. There were fancy looking machines that reminded me of an espresso maker, and I could see the liquid slowly dripping into an awaiting cup. They were definitely brewing some premium tea here, and that makes all the difference when we're talking about aromatic, quality drinks.

The inside was absolutely pristine, a study in simple but gorgeous decor. Vibrant plants, overhead intertwining leaves, and vividly painted hills in shades of emerald green helped to pop the white walls. The spring palette worked exceedingly well to promote them as an elevated teahouse as opposed to just a simple grab and go bbt store.

Their menu is refreshingly uncomplicated, with only 9 different bbts to choose from, 3 of which are Taro Specials. But where they shine is in their 6 different tea varieties, all award winning apparently, which you can spice up with additional flavors and toppings. Personally, I'd just grab the tea naked, as any one of the teas are guaranteed to be bursting with flavor and don't require any additives. If anything, I think they would ruin the integrity of the tea, but that's just me.

My cousin grabbed a Taro Queen, which she proclaimed was good but really creamy. I loved my Formosa Fruit Tea, which was served frigidly cold, the way I love my fruit teas.

The price of the drinks is consistent with their competitors, but the size is noticeably smaller, which is the only negative about this place. I'm sure everyone is sick of the "you're paying for quality" spiel, but in this case, I think it's actually true.

I will definitely be back for another round, and hopefully, the patio will be available. Discerning tea lovers should make their way here, as it's...

The products are great, but the customer services in the new Richmond location may need to work on it. I asked the staff for recommendations on the sugar level for a new product I had never tried before. Another staff member talked to his team about "what a question I have asked" when I am in front of him with no music background and any other customers. I didn't see him before. Most of the stores will encourage the staff to try the products and introduce the products if needed. It's part of the sales job to know about the products in their workplace. I didn't know how this person could pass the interview questions related to your products. I never knew that there would have been these unprofessional sales in the world. As a customer, I am looking for recommendations for the product in their store. Is it a stupid question I ask for a recommendation in a store? Shall I say is it too smart to talk in front of the customer rudely and with no professional sale skill at all? Not recommend hiring him as one of your sales in real. This team member is affecting the Richmond team's performance not just because he is making fun of my question in front of others but also because of his EQ and sales professionalism. Service has not been like this before. I did ask the same question in the same store a few weeks ago, and other sales answered the same question with their understanding of the products. Name tags are recommended for complaining about a particular sale instead of writing a review here. To be honest, it is disappointing to write a negative review...

My wife and I had ordered bubble tea for our wedding reception back in October 2023, and we were extremely satisfied with the quality of the bubble tea, and punctuality and attention to detail of the delivery and setup service!

We had actually first stopped by CHICHA around May 2023 as we were making in-person inquiries at bubble tea shops to see who would be willing and capable of delivering an order of ~80 drinks to a wedding reception. At that time, CHICHA was still relatively new and we loved their drinks, and we were also lucky enough to have stopped by while the franchise owner, Kim, was there. We reached back out to Kim via E-mail in July, and arranged a formal meeting at CHICHA, where Kim had her staff generously prepare a few drinks for us for testing and explained the cost, custom cup sticker design, and setup.

Fast forward to two weeks before our reception, Kim ordered the custom cup stickers and accepted our initial deposit, with the remainder paid to her directly after setup at the reception. On reception day at the agreed time, Kim and her team arrived and set up the table with the 4 flavors we agreed upon along with signs for each drink flavor. The arrangement was simple, and our guests LOVED the drinks!!! We ordered 72 drinks for 83 people, and all the drinks were gone in a very short period of time; frankly, we could have overordered and all the drinks would likely still have gone!

If you're planning on ordering some delicious bubble tea for a special event, I highly recommend...