Tastea Boba Tea LLC — Restaurant in Fairview Heights

Writting this as an ex employee and ex customer to hopefully detour people from getting sick here or buying expensive low quality drinks. I’m using an alternate email to hide my name for my privacy considering how HORRIBLE working here was.

First off, they are serving you moldy fruits. I got in trouble multiple times for throwing out moldy fruits that weren’t just in the back fridge in the kitchen, but in the cold case that stores all the fruits cut up to be served immediately. I’m talking moldy grapes, moldy strawberries, moldy blueberries. Every fruit drink contains mold. And that’s not even an exaggeration. The worst part about this is I used to buy drinks from here before I worked here and god knows how much mold I ingested before I worked there and found out what is in those drinks. Not only would I get in trouble for throwing out moldy fruits and threatened to be fired for not putting moldy strawberries in a drink, I would watch the owners and the family that works there have no problem grabbing moldy fruits and serving them to customers. and this was a DAILY if not HOURLY occurrence. It was encouraged and if you didn’t you were threatened to be fired, or that they do a three strike system and throwing away a single moldy berry was a strike. Once you get to three you’re terminated.

Second, service is so bad because being nice to customers and taking time to chat with them is strongly discouraged and you can get in trouble for trying to be nice and asking someone how their day is, and giving good service because “you don’t get paid to talk to customers, you get paid to make drinks”. At least when the owner is there to threaten you which is everyday or so. Not to mention I couldn’t even ask my co workers how their day was because once again i’m not getting paid to talk. During slow hours when NO ONE is in there i would try to get to know my co workers and get yelled at by the owner to stop talking even if i was talking and working at the same time.

Third, I have seen other reviews saying they had day old boba and the reply’s from the owner saying that they make tea fresh and boba fresh every day. It’s a lie. Nothing is made fresh untill we run out. Boba from the day before is microwaved in the morning and used untill its run out before more is made. So yes boba is not made fresh everyday. It’s made whenever we ran out which could be 1 day or two days or even three depending on buisness. Same with the teas. Only thing that is kind of guaranteed to be fresh everyday is the regular boba milk tea that’s used for the brown sugar drink. But...

Very unfortunate experience. I've gotten coconut bubble tea at 3 different places within the St Louis area and none of them were made this way. I was expecting tapioca balls with coconut flavored tea. When I noticed my drink had coconut boba in the bottom (like what is pictured) I went to the associate who served me and explained what I was expecting. They began to explain to me how this drink is usually made in china and how the other places were "fake". Despite this I told them I was unsatisfied with the drink. They refused to exchange the drink for me and the manager came out to give me a long 5 to 7 minute history lesson of how it's done in china in front of all the other customers in the store. I humored her for her speech knowing I wasn't going to get through to her. Essentially, if you went to a restaurant and ordered a cheeseburger and they brought you a "cheeseburger" from some other culture that was completely different and not what you were expecting, you'd be unsatisfied. They made no attempt to understand me, refund or accommodate me in any way without some additional charge. Instead I received rudeness and essentially a loud lecture of what I should have known before ordering my drink in front of the whole store. They could have apologized for not making their products clear with a picture or some kind of description. They also could have chosen to be kind and accommodating. Now I'm choosing to leave a poor review and never return. Businesses are struggling enough right now, so it's unfortunate this place won't be around for much longer. Maybe that will be a lesson to them in...

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Here's the review:

So, guys! I found this amazing Boba Tea shop. Here's what makes it si amazing.

First, it's easy to access, and it's on the way to and from everything in the area.

Second, the ambiance when you walk in is A1.

Next, the customer experience is outstanding. I walked in and said hi 👋, both ladies responded hi 👋 with super high, positive energy. I then explained it was my first time here, which was exciting to them, and they began to explain how their shop is different from the rest in the Middle West. She told me this is one of the only olaces in the Midwest with authentic Boba Teas with no syrup or powders. I asked what her favorite is so I could try it, and she felt I would love the Oolong. This is true, I love Oolong. She explained how it tasted and prepared it for me. The pary that was so special is how her excitement as she watch me take my first tip. She was spot on!

The Oolong was so refreshing and calming after having my physical therapy session 😌 It did have a small coffee flavor but was well balanced, and I didn't get a crash like I would with coffee.

Needless to say, I will be making this my routine stop after each session. I also plan to bring my family at some point.

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