The Alley — Restaurant in Markham

Food: 4 Stars Service: 4 Stars Ambience: 4 Stars Value: 4 Stars Overall: 4 Stars

The Alley at this location is definitely a solid spot for bubble tea! The decor is woody and cozy, with a cool, trendy vibe that makes it a great place to grab a drink and hang out.

The staff are generally friendly and efficient, though during peak hours, you may experience a slight wait. That said, they always seem to handle the rush well, and I’ve never had an issue with the quality of my drinks or my order being wrong. The staff also seem knowledgeable and can help with recommendations if you're not sure what to try.

As for the drinks, The Alley is known for its signature Deerioca (fresh tapioca pearls), which is always a winner. My personal favourite is the Deerioca Fever—it’s the perfect balance of sweetness and flavour, and I love the chewy texture of the pearls. I’ve also tried a few of their seasonal flavours, and they’re always introducing new options that are worth trying. The Ube flavour they introduced recently is fantastic—rich, creamy, and unique! If you're an ube fan, it's definitely worth checking out. Sometimes I due opt for their classic bubble tea or jasmine milk tea too.

Overall, The Alley in Markham is a great place to get bubble tea. The drinks are consistently good, the atmosphere is great, and the service is solid. If you don’t mind the slightly higher prices, it’s definitely worth the visit! I’ll continue to be a regular customer and recommend it to anyone who loves bubble tea.

xx...

I've been meaning to review this place for a while, but I haven't been able too because I travel for work.

First and foremost, I would like to say that I had an outstanding experience here as it was my first time here. I was back in the city a while ago and decided to try The Alley for the first time. My experience there went like this: As I walked in, what caught my undivided attention was the music. It wasn't the decor or the quaint vibe that the shop had, it was the music. The playlist was on point and it was BTS that was being played. It made the environment more lively and energetic. For a lack of a better word, it was soo lit :)

I ordered four Royal number 9's, since it was recommended by most of my friends and seeing that they also wanted one. As I approached the counter, the guy with the xo hat that was working the cashier was very welcoming and had a great sense of humour. He assured me that I could do no wrong with the Royal number 9. As I was receiving my drinks the guy with the xo hat said to me that he will assist me by opening the door for me to leave, because my hands were full. Tbh... I was quite shocked. Not in a bad way, but I was soo surprised that anyone would even be that considerate. You know how when people put on a facade because it is their job to be "nice" so to speak. No, this man was truly genuine and he really made my experience at The Alley worthwhile.

Long story short, I'll definitely be coming back in the...

Extremely unprofessional and terrible experience. This was on Wednesday evening Jan 4th. Warden and Gibson location. I walked in and the cashier was chatting with another man behind the plastic/glass protecter so I assumed he was a client at first. The cashier muttered something in Cantonese about us, which I was able to understand. They appeared to be chatting and indifferent about serving us. The man as it turns out, worked at the back in the tapioca prep area. I asked the cashier that instead of the brown sugar ginger milk tea, are there other ginger drink options? My partner doesn’t like sugar but loves ginger. To my surprise, she coldy responded with “no” and did not offer to follow up with anything else. For myself, I have always ordered the garden milk tea before it was discontinued at the alley. So I asked if there was a drink similar to this and she just stared at me and muttered, “I don’t know”. Her attitude and lack of customer service skills astounded me. I could barely hear her so I thought I misheard. I clarified by asking again, but this time asking whether she knew at least what the tea base was for the discontinued drink. She again, just stared at me and did not respond. I was really uncomfortable with this experience so my partner and I just left without buying anything. I will NOT return to this location, very...