CHI TEA - Hot Chicken, Burgers & Wings — Restaurant in Bolingbrook

Preface: I've tried their burger as a take out meal before, and was curious enough to try their food again as a dine in experience with another person. What I was met with was disappointment.

My order: Chi Classic Burger, "Seasoned" Fries, "Spicy" Fried Pickles

The Good:

Chi Classic Burger The burger is a decent size with decent flavor. I'm always a fan of smash burgers, and the arrangement of the condiments fit well so it didn't completely fall apart right away. I'm always a big fan of grilled jalapenos and onions in a burger, although I wish the jalapenos were stronger. All around decent burger, and good enough to raise the food rating from a 2/5 to 3/5, and their overall rating from a 1/5 to 2/5.

After that... yikes.

The Bad:

"Spicy" Fried Pickles The pickles themselves were okay, albeit ordinary, and a decent portion, but when I order something spicy, I expect at least a tingle of heat. Instead, all I was met with was the pickles simply being sprinkled with spices, zero heat. Looking at the breading, I can tell it's probably what's used for their other battered fried items, which while convenient, isn't all that special and doesn't give me a reason to want to try the rest of their similar items. All in all, if you want some fried pickles in a pinch, go for it, just don't expect anything special at all.

"Seasoned" Fries Not much to say on these. The fries are okay, but they literally had no visible seasoning, nor could I taste any. Very disappointing, just get fries from any other places nearby.

While the food itself was all around mediocre, I'm afraid that it wasn't the worst part.

The Ugly:

Service I personally would have given this a 0/5 if possible, because that's the amount of interaction we had with the employees. There's nothing wrong with being a self order kiosk restaurant, and I understand that their main register may have had technical issues, but when I put my name down for an order, I expect it to be called for when my food is ready, but we had to wait for maybe 15-20 minutes chatting before realizing that our food has been done for a while now, sitting on the counter in enclosed boxes, ruining the freshness of everything. I imagine that this might have been forgiven if their service didn't meet the poor atmosphere established.

Atmosphere Don't let the glitz and glamour of all the Instagram bait-type decorations fool you, despite dining in 5 hours before close, it felt like we were eating in a closed restaurant. To be transparent, we arrived and ate on Halloween, so having zero customers is expected. That being said, it felt like they were unprepared to serve anybody. Along with the lack of service, the restaurant was simply a big, empty dining room. No music playing, TV wasn't playing anything (despite it being on and connected to Roku), it was just a large, sad, quiet room of chairs, tables, Instagram style decor, empty space and nothing to hear except... the kitchen?

Nope, the sound of prying your shoes from the sticky, uncleaned floor.

In summary:

Bolingbrook has recently been opening a lot of great local places, such as Gung Ho or Sauce 'N Toss, along with pre-established pillars such as Mandy's, Doggie Diner, Jofen, etc. Because of this, I had a healthy curiosity to the rest of the restaurant after trying their burger, hoping it would be another staple to the community. Instead, I found myself leaving disappointed and wanting more, and instantly driving over to a...

Let’s start with the food: Burger was good, I liked the jalapeños in them in terms of flavor but there wasn’t much heat from them at all. 7/10 Seasoned fries were so gently seasoned, I didn't notice they were seasoned at all. Lukewarm when given. At least they had crunch…. 3/10 The fried pickles look like they used the same exact breading as their chicken. Not bad in flavor, there was an even amount of breading to pickle ratio. The spicy option is yt spicy. 5/10 A tinge of salt would have been nice in the food to bring out the flavors more. The Thai Tea was mid. Didn’t taste authentic and had a strong sweet creamer taste. (It tasted like the powered packets with the sugar, tea and creamer that you just add water to).The tapioca pearls were fine. And when I got it my ice was nearly all melted, drink wasn’t cold enough. Personally I can make it better. 2/10 Pricing overall wasn’t too bad for everything that was ordered.

Service: Nonexistent. There is a kiosk/ipad menu where you can order food yourself. My parter and I ordered at the kiosk and sat down waiting for our food. Funny how there was an option to leave your name to be called out, only for us to find our food sitting at the front all packaged up. No one called for our order, or told us our food was ready so I have no idea how long it was sitting there for. 0/10

Atmosphere: The overall ambience was okay…. No TV on or music in the store. So it was kind of eerie despite having such beautiful decorations. The floors were sticky and dirty so that was not great. The restaurant is set up for us the customer to be able to grab things ourselves which was fine with me but with that in mind, a self-serve water dispenser should have been available in the store. 3/10

I’ve been to the Lombard location and that seems to be far better and cleaner. Owners here just gotta step...

As a mom of three energetic kids, finding a place like Chi Tea Boba Shop is a blessing! Our recent visit there was absolutely delightful, and I can't wait to share our experience.

Firstly, the food! The Big Bird Chicken Sandwiches were a huge hit with my kids. The chicken was tender, the veggies were fresh, and the sauce was just right - not too spicy, which is perfect for my little ones. It was such a relief to find something nutritious and delicious that they actually enjoy!

And let's talk about the boba drinks. Oh boy, did they love those! The pearls were like little surprises at the bottom of their cups, and they couldn't get enough of the fun flavors. I appreciated that Chi Tea Boba Shop offers options with less sugar, so I didn't have to worry too much about them bouncing off the walls later!

The atmosphere was also very family-friendly. It's not always easy to find a place where my kids can be themselves without feeling out of place, but Chi Tea Boba Shop had a welcoming vibe that put us all at ease. Plus, the cleanliness was reassuring, especially with little ones who tend to touch everything.

Now, let's talk about Cyrelle. She was an absolute gem! She greeted us warmly, patiently helped my kids choose their drinks, and even offered some great suggestions for their sandwiches. Her friendly demeanor made us feel like regulars right away, and she made sure we had everything we needed throughout our visit.

Overall, Chi Tea Boba Shop gets five stars from this mom. It's not often you find a place that pleases both kids and parents alike with delicious food, great drinks, and exceptional service. We'll definitely be back for more boba bliss and Big Bird Chicken...