Boba Love — Restaurant in San Jose

Family from the east coast was visiting and we wanted to get some boba and sit around and socialize for a bit as they were leaving the next morning. My mother says she knows the owners of this establishment but I told her I would not name drop. When we came here. Navigation led me to the spot but I ended up in the back parking lot which has an establishment sign over their back door. It was a bit confusing at first because it was dark outside and raining and it looked like the restaurant was closed. Fortunately I figured out it was the back of the restaurant and walked around the building to the front which looked clearly open. Upon entering the establishment I was impressed by how well decorated and designed the space was. They were a couple tables as well as a seating area that included chairs and a loveseat which made for cozy seating. I stood out front waiting for my family to arrive but during that whole time there was one other person at the counter and nobody was coming out to either greet me or take my order. If I was alone this would have been troublesome but because I was waiting for others I didn't mind so much. We ended up ordering a few drinks and some side snacks. I don't know the names of the mall but you can see my photos. One was the shrimp food and the other was the seafood fries. The shrimp snack was particularly good and I would recommend you come here and try this if you've never had it before. I want to say it's a variation of a known Vietnamese dish but with a spin. Sort of a crispy shell and was really well done and presented beautifully. I especially enjoyed the carafe sized container for the dip which is known as nuoc mam. It was such a cozy setting. We stayed for about 2 and 1/2 hours until closing time at 8:00 p.m. did the attention to detail in the establishment is very high from the food and drinks down to the decor. It is a very small space so I don't think you'll be having any significantly sized parties staying here and I like in this to a Vietnamese version of like a small Korean or Hong Kong cafe. You will even find dishes on their menu that range from Japanese to Korean to Vietnamese and possibly others. This place is worth a try so give it a shot! I'll likely be returning here...

I would give this shop a 0/5 but that isn't an option, so I will be giving it a 1.

First of all, the speed of which they produce the food is terrible. There are like 5 other customers, and they made my order in at least 30 - 35 minutes. Compared to other boba shops, the 30 - 35 minutes is very slow.

Second of all, the taste and quality of the food is not what I was expecting. I ordered the Oolong Tea with Salted Cream and it was terrible. The cream was... sour??? Like I expected something salty (like other boba shops) but the cream was very sour. Maybe the cream was expired (if it was then this is a big problem). Next time, I recommend making the salted cream more salty than sour.

Also, the Oolong Tea didn't...

It felt like I was in a weird Vietnamese hipster nightclub during day lounge that served boba. There was this soft couch with a neon sign on the wall. Christmas green and red lasers were shooting toward the back wall at the 3 foot pink Christmas tree. I'm not sure how safe that is because my eyeball was in the path of those lasers while waiting for my milk tea $6.50. The staff was nice. The older women was eating this shelled shrimp dish with her hands on the cashier counter. Luckily the younger teen helped me with my order and made my milk tea. The tea was not as fragrant as I would have liked. Perhaps I took some edge off because I asked for unsweetened. Still, good milk tea. More tea, less milk would have...