Bopomofo Cafe — Restaurant in San Gabriel

I have only been able to hear about this place but finally was able to try it myself. It is pretty cool to know that this place is ran by WongFu, which me and my friends have watched since they first started making videos. When me and my family first got there, the first person we saw was Phil, tending and being extremely attentive to all the customers. You can just see the heart that he puts into the place, making sure everyone is enjoying their time, and even pausing to take selfies with people if they asked. This place is very interesting. It is like they chose to have certain food Chinese food that people like (like popcorn chicken, mapo tofu) and fused it together with awesome drinks. First off to note is that it is probably easier to order ahead of time. There is outside seating but it is all first come first serve. If you happen to be vegetarian there are other options as well.

Food Since it was our first time here we wanted to try many of their items. We ordered: Honey Walnut Shrimp Burger - This was quite good, pretty much if you ever had walnut shrimp as a dish, picture that in a burger. Spicy Popcorn Chicken - This is a classic Taiwanese snack, and they do it quite well! Mapo Tots- Added the fried egg for $1.50 - This was so interesting. Being a fan of Mapo Tofu, then adding it on top of tots was actually pretty good. HEY Sesame Milk- They mentioned that they made the sesame in house, although it was quite good, I would probably ask for less sweet next time

I believe they really researched and did a lot of planning before they opened this place (and their new location in Artesia) Fusing great food, thinking about the customer, their choices. I guess you can say the food is similar to their video production, where they have thought of reaching out to as many different emotions and familiar scenarios someone can go through, but this time they are now able to through it through food and taste. I think the most interesting thing about their drinks is that I would consider them quite premium. Working previously at a boba place, it is interesting that they use no powdered creamer, no artificial flavors or syrups. I have to come back and try some of the other drinks that they have and give their coffee a try while grabbing some more Mapo Tots. Look forward to drop by again or try their other...

Bopomofo Cafe is one of many cafés in the San Gabriel Valley. Located in San Gabriel, Bopomofo cafe is owned by YouTube personality Philip Wang, one of the members of Wong Fu Productions.

As a whole, Bopomofo Cafe didn't meet my expectations. Of course, this may change as I went during their soft opening.

Firstly, the atmosphere of the cafe is well done. There is popular music playing at a reasonable level with tables and power plugs available for use. I can definitely see this as a studying area for students or for people to draw, relax, or pursue their hobbies. The decor is simplistic, yet modern. At the time of this review, there weren't very many decorations except for the paint and some small trinkets on the ordering counter.

Secondly, I feel like their drinks are a hit or miss. For instance, I had two drinks: Assam Black Milk Tea (75%) and Carrot Matcha Milk Tea (25%). Their Assam MT was good. It had an earthy taste which I expected and the sugar level was surprisingly not sweet for 75%. As for the Carrot Matcha MT, I disliked it a lot. For starters, I actually enjoy carrot flavored items such as carrot cake. However, the drink had a powerful taste of carrot which overwhelmed the matcha. In fact, I couldn't even taste any matcha anymore. At its sugar level, I was surprised by how the drink tasted as matcha is slightly bitter yet full-bodied especially if you use higher-quality matcha (Ex: Ceremonial). Yet, when I drank my milk tea, the matcha flavor was practically non-existent and I was hit with tones of carrot.

Thirdly, I feel like their line management/crowd control is sub-par and it might be troublesome in the future -- especially during days where there will be a lot of people. For instance, when you walk into the cafe, the ordering station is almost immediately to your right. This causes traffic if there is a line as it will extend outside of the building, but it also blocks people who are trying to go out. I can foresee this as a major fire hazard.

Overall, I wasn't impressed with Bopomofo Cafe at its current state. I didn't like it, nor did I dislike it which is the reason why I am giving it 3-stars. Eventually, I hope to come back in the future and try things again. If things pan out better, I will definitely revise my review; however, until then, I am neutral...

5 Star. Overall. A quality, hard-to-find boba shop in the San Gabriel Valley that uses real ingredients, no artificial additives, and lactose-free milk. Definitely a well thought out business in this over-saturated-territory. I'm a fan. Will return if passing by the area again. Although...judging by appearance, the customer base appears to be more of a fan of the YouTube star Philip Wang (from Wong Fu Productions) who opened this business (who was working during my visit) rather than there for the menu itself. The cafe was quite packed with people on a weekday early afternoon...

5 Star. Decor. Modern. Classy. Clean. Love the cute kids-size wooden picnic table & cornhole game boards. Makes the cafe lively and fun. Especially love the "no smoking sign" on the exterior tables. A place where my kids can hang out at.

5 Star. Service. All the workers were friendly, polite, helpful and courteous. Does appear they put in an extra effort to make the customers feel welcomed.

5 Star. Drinks. $5 Orange Wang! + $0.50 Boba + 3/4 sugar = A well made natural alternative than the regular orange bang drinks with a nasty artificially flavored after taste. $5.25 Strawberry Basil Ginger Lemonade + $0.50 Boba + 1/2 sugar = refreshing and light, perfect for a hot summer day, with real bites of strawberry. I like the Asian balance, tossing a dash of ginger to balance out the 涼ness of strawberry/lemon.

4.5 Star. $7.50 Popcorn Chicken. Soft and easy on the salt. Love the basil aioli dipping spin. However, I prefer them in slightly smaller chunks for the super crispy exterior & soft interior combo.

4 Star. Menu. A very small menu selection of 15 drinks & 8 food items. Not much to choose from, but everything tastes pretty well made.

Note to owner: would love to see more non-caffeinated drinks selection & perhaps some healthy vegetable items to balance out all the fried stuff (appreciated by people like me who eat out...