Happy Lemon Kirkland — Restaurant in Kirkland

I am personally a fan of Happy Lemon and have been drinking their beverages since their first location opened at Bellevue Square. The reason I love this brand is because I used to drink it when I lived in China, and the recipe and bobas make me feel like I'm back in China.

Here are the reasons why I give it a rating of 3.5/5:

Customization is crucial for milk tea shops in the US, considering the diverse customer base with different tastes from various countries. During my visit to the Kirkland location with a friend, we requested to have milk in the Strawberry Black Tea. However, the cashier informed us that they were not allowed to accommodate this request, despite the menu stating that customization of sweetness and ice level may deviate slightly from the standard. It would be more convenient if they allowed for more adjustments and substitutions.

Effective management is always important, especially when you have a store manager. Unfortunately, during our visit, it seemed that there was a lack of proper management in this store. The manager we encountered appeared to be poorly trained, impatient, and repeatedly stated that they couldn't customize the drink. We were not being difficult customers; all we asked for was a bit of milk added to our drink. We explained that we were confident with the flavor since we had previously ordered it at the Bellevue Square location and loved it. However, because they refused to add milk, we requested to have milk on the side. To our surprise, they charged us $4.75 for a small amount of milk, which was quite unreasonable considering we could have bought a whole bottle of milk from the gas station next to their store.

We also asked for cheese foam on the side since they couldn't add milk to our cup. We wanted to be able to easily mix the milk with the black tea. However, when we received the cheese foam, it was not enough to fill the cup, as shown in the attached photo.

In summary, Happy Lemon needs to make adjustments to their management practices as there is room for improvement in...

[Update] Let me explain why I’m so frustrated. Over the past two years, I’ve been coming here more than three times a week—spending well over $2,500. I genuinely liked this shop. After the owner changed, the store got cleaner and better, and I was honestly happy for them. I even told my friends about it and recommended it.

When my drink came out wrong, I realized the receipt didn’t say “fresh milk.” I acknowledged that and offered to use my 10 credits to cover the cost—since that’s equivalent to a free drink. But I was still charged an extra 83 cents! I don’t understand why, and it just felt petty.

Other places—like Starbucks or even a smaller boba shop—have happily remade a drink when something went wrong. Maybe that’s “extra,” but it shows they care. I wasn’t asking for anything free—I just expected the same level of care in return after being such a loyal customer.

Instead, it felt like they were focused on getting every last cent, and none of it matters. I left feeling genuinely hurt and betrayed. I won’t be coming back!

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I’ve been coming to this boba shop about at least 3-4 times a week for 2 years. I order my drinks with fresh milk. This time, my order came out differently, and when I mentioned it, the staff member behind the counter responded with, “Uh-no, you did not say that,” the tone and response caught me off guard. It is very possible I forgot to say fresh milk this time, but as a regular customer, I expected a little more understanding. I was asked to pay for a new drink with no flexibility.

I really enjoy the drinks here, and I want to keep supporting this business, but I hope the staff can be a bit more thoughtful in how they respond—especially to...

Oh em gee! This was such a cute lil boba cafe. But more than just boba drinks; they have HOT & COLD drink options, smoothies, teas AND…bubble waffles w/ a variety of dipping sauces to choose from! I ordered the matcha bubble waffle with the salted cheese dipping sauce and it was 🤌🏽💋 Chefs Kiss I’m also a slut for anything boba, matcha and avocado so naturally I got the Matcha Avocado smoothie and added tapioca boba. It was perfection, so smooth and creamy w/ the kick that I love from the matcha, a 10/10. I visited this spot with my husband and our bestie, here is everything we ordered and our rankings. The Hubs: Strawberry Cheesecake Smoothie 10/10- Oreo Bubble Waffle with the Oreo Cream dipping sauce 8/10 Bestie Jay: Taro Black Milk Tea with Taro Boba 10/10 -Chocolate bubble waffle w/ tiramisu dipping sauce 9/10 Hi, it’s me again: Matcha Avocado Smoothie with Tapioca Boba 10/10- Matcha Bubble Waffle with Salted Cheese dipping sauce 11/10✨ Nothing disappointed our taste buds but we definitely had our favorites out of everything we ordered. The team member were sweet and helpful. I love never tried salted cheese before and they offered a sample to try. I was SOLD, that was obviously the highest ranked item out of everything. We also tried the plain cream dipping sauce and that was a 10/10 too. Happy sipping &...