Chi Tea — Restaurant in Lombard

Chi tea is famous in town. The food is delicious only one time the chicken was uncooked in the big bird. I order from here to-go and I’ve eaten many times in the Schaumburg chi tea but this one in lombard is not so interesting. Most of the times dirty and the SERVICE IS UNIMAGINABLE. If it’s fried chicken i am a loyal customer of chi tea just never got a chance to post a review. The chi tea in Lombard is terrible. The reason for this review is to let the owner know to not lose loyal customers to cheap service.

So the guy on the counter idk who he is, a student employee or owner or partner, he didn’t smile at all which again is the bare minimum. There are many places in Lombard with desi staff doing this stuff. Even if it’s the owner he is supposed to welcome and smile. And doesn’t reply to what you ask. Maybe he can’t hear me or idk but i asked him 2 times about the difference between chi and cheese sauce. Get a good looking employee who is sweet and friendly like you guys have at the Schaumburg location. I haven’t been there in 4 to 5 months but there used to be 2 people on the counter one desi and another Mexican very sweet girl. Amazing service and very neat and clean store. A beautiful or sweet girl is always a plus point in business. Idk who the guy on the counter was but i will attach a video so that you can see for yourself, and if that’s the owner then please don’t stand on the cash register. I have many pics of food too but i can’t find them in the gallery. I took those pictures like 6 months ago. I hate to do this but bad service this happened with me 3 times at this place.

I am not saying to serve me at the table because it’s fast food and cheaper than restaurants. But for the money i am paying i should get a smile, hi, hello, how are ya?, thank you, enjoy, have a good day that’s the bare minimum you can do for service.

You can even see in the video, his face towards the customer on the counter is so unprofessional.

Food is good, work on cleaning and professional, sweet or good looking staff and people will die for you. Been making a lotta money but i don’t see a single employee coming out to clean tables pr something. The Lombard location is very untidy.

Sorry if something in the review was rude And good...

This was the most hilarious and traumatic experience I’ve ever had. Buckle up because I’m about to take you on the same roller coaster I had to endure 😂

First of all, when I walked in there was no one at the counter, so I had to wait for 5 minutes. Not a big deal, but didn’t make a great first impression.

Finally, the door to the back swung open where I saw a youngster with his phone in his hand, sitting down & scrolling. He saw me and casually came out, phone in one hand, and with the other hand, WIPED HIS NOSE ON HIS BARE HAND as he approached the cash register. He stood at the cash register making eye contact with me, but did not initiate a single word or “what can I get for you?”

I wasn’t even sure if he worked there or if he was just a friend of someone who did.. but I eventually decided he was the one to place my order with since we both stood their making eye contact in silence for a solid 30 seconds.

The whole time I was placing my order, he was BLOWING HIS NOSE into one tissue after the next. Not a single pump of hand sanitizer was used by this kid. I had to talk OVER him blowing his nose. He blew his nose in 3 different tissues & dug around in his nose AS I was placing the order. I was so uncomfortable I wasn’t even sure if I should look at him or look away, but he maintained eye contact shamelessly so I did too.

At this point, you might be asking why I placed my order and didn’t just get the heck out of dodge. Well, my inner people-pleaser came out and I could not leave. I also could not confront the poor kid because I feared the repercussions of him taking revenge by sticking his snotty fingers in my drink. Besides, thankfully he was not the one making the drinks, another lady was, and he was simply the cashier.

The boba itself was fine. Good quality boba, not too hard or soft, just squishy as they should be, and the flavor was good.

Either way, I TRULY HOPE the management does some training of their staff of

1. manners & customer service and 2) cleanliness of staff.

I can’t even believe in a post-cOVID world we would have the issue of someone being that oblivious to their germs and nose-blowing… but...

please note we are regular customers as well

I had a disappointing experience with one of the staff members at Chi Tea that I feel needs to be addressed. I came in with my three young kids and placed an order in person, specifically asking for the sliders without mustard or black pepper because my kids can’t handle spicy food. What I wasn’t told — and what I unfortunately didn’t catch on the menu — was that the sliders also came with jalapeños.

As someone ordering for children and clearly concerned about spice, I believe it should’ve been the responsibility of the person taking our order to mention that key detail. It would’ve taken only a moment to clarify and would’ve saved us the trip back.

We got all the way home before realizing the sliders weren’t edible for the kids. When we returned to explain the situation, instead of being met with understanding, I was met with attitude and dismissiveness. The staff member said “I’ll scrape it off,” which was unhelpful and dismissive — I could’ve done that myself at home, but the point was that the sliders were already too spicy for my kids to eat.

After some back and forth, he finally agreed to remake them, but the tone and attitude made me feel like I was in the wrong — when all I was trying to do was make sure my kids could eat what I paid for.

I’ve always liked Chi Tea and was looking forward to supporting them, but this interaction left a really sour taste. I hope this feedback encourages better communication and more care — especially when serving families...