Totally Tea & Coffee — Restaurant in Dallas

Yesterday, I took my mom here for the very first time because I really wanted her to try it. As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by one of the coldest, most unwelcoming employees I’ve encountered—her name was Candice T. I smiled and said hello, but she didn’t smile back; she gave a flat “hi” and walked off behind the counter, clearly looking like she didn’t want to be there.

At first, I gave her the benefit of the doubt—maybe she was just having a rough day. No big deal. But my mom, who’s naturally friendly and loves talking to people, started asking her questions since it was her first time trying boba and she wanted a recommendation. Candace’s responses were so dry and disinterested that it started coming off as straight-up rude. It was honestly frustrating and borderline disrespectful.

After we got our drinks, I grabbed two straws—but apparently, I had picked the wrong size because the boba couldn’t even fit through them. By the time we figured it out, we were already in the car. So I went back inside to ask Candice, “Are these the biggest straw sizes you have?” She literally looked up at me, didn’t say a word, and just looked back down at the screen—completely ignoring me. That’s when I noticed there were larger straws right next to the smaller ones; they just looked very similar.

I don’t know who hired Candice T, but if the goal is to drive customers away, she’s doing a phenomenal job. Her attitude alone is enough to make sure I never want to return. You made what should have been a fun, first-time experience into something awkward...

quality is subjective, so i’m not gonna sit here like some average consumer and complain about how bland the tea was or how overcooked the boba is. instead i’ll focus on business strategy.

if you know there is a Gong Cha, a reputable and solid, boba tea place just a block down the way from your location, why would you not try to be aware of that and compete accordingly?

your prices are way too high for the lack of quality or size. the regular tea with boba cost a near $7 tab. that’s so insanely high compared to what 4-5$ could get you at Gong Cha.

the interior of your place, while relatively unimportant in my opinion if the product is good, looks like it was thrown together in a week with used building materials. it’s not an inviting or nice atmosphere. it’s not “starbucks vibes” like one reviewer stated. it’s more like “front office of a sleazy car repair shop” vibes.

if i was opening a business. i would look at where the location is contextually. if you set this tea shop up in, say, Elmo Texas. a true nothing town in the east. you’d probably be very successful! why? because there would be no competition. setting up shop less than a mile away from a gong cha though? i don’t what what you expect.

it took you close to a year, if not more, to open this shop. the idea of having a tea place within walking distance of my house was very exciting! we constantly checked to see if the shop was open to see if we could give it a try. what a shame that once it finally DID open, what awaited us was a throughly unsatisfying experience.

try a little...

Tiny corner shop next to CVS. New and clean. Staff knowledgeable. I had a Mocha Almond Latte on ice. Personally, I like iced coffees sweet so I added a little sweetener. Very refreshing. I didn't see a comfortable seat for my senior body (couch and 2 chairs low to floor or high stools with no back). By the way, this area of town has more seniors and canes, walkers, scooters than handicapped people than I've ever seen anywhere I've lived. Dont miss out on this population! We're always appreciative! One 6 seated table outside, and I didn't want to take that up. I was hoping for a tiny table outside. Seeing people outside a business relaxing seems inviting to me. So, I walked down to Sylvan and sat on their shaded bench. It's probably a favorable spot for young people. Pastries with coffee or tea would get us seniors more interested and small tables outside if...