Odd One Out Tea Santa Monica — Restaurant in Santa Monica

I’m always excited to see new boba offerings on the west side. We live in Brentwood (moved from SF Bay Area about a year ago) and Santa Monica/ Sawtelle areas are the closest to us with decent Asian eateries generally. I’m not exaggerating when I say that Odd One Out well exceeded my expectations. The shop is small — in a pergola type station on Third Street promenade.

The owner was extremely friendly as they’ve only recently opened this month and he offered samples of their award winning Champions Milk Tea with silk boba. He also encouraged us to sample all the gelato — including tons of many different flavors like early grey lemongrass, watermelon basil, and kumquat rosemary. All the boba drinks feature unique teas from Taiwan. As a tea aficionado I was surprised to try the Champions Milk Tea made from Red Oolong, a tea I’ve never heard of as it comes from a small region in Taiwan. Also their silk boba is an in house formulation and is like a cross between jelly and boba, perfect chewiness (QQ as the Taiwanese say) and less sticky than regular boba. I love it! The owner confirmed the Silk Boba is vegetarian friendly: made with agar and tapioca starch, no gelatin.

TLDR: Odd One Out Boba and Gelato is super legit with high quality tea offerings....

Signature Icy Peak boba 25% sweet with Jasmine jelly is excellent.

Jasmine milk tea 25% with Jasmine jelly was good but the jelly gets lost in the milk tea sometimes. It did add sweetness to the drink since I got 25% sugar. I’d get it again

Rose black milk tea with 25% was good, more of black tea than floral rose flavor but that might be from the less sweet.

Red oolong milk tea- This was a nice roasted oolong flavor. I got 100% sweet which was too sweet. I probably should get the 25%-50% sweet next time again as I couldn’t taste the flavor of the jasmine jelly. I probably overcompensated since the rose wasn’t sweet enough.

Updates- less sweet was almost perfect, still maybe a touch too sweet but much...

had an amazing experience at Odd One Out Tea The boba tea was top-notch, with the perfect balance of sweetness and richness. I ordered the classic milk tea with tapioca pearls, and the pearls were chewy and fresh, just the way I like them. They have a wide variety of flavors, including fruit teas and customizable toppings, so there's something for everyone.

The ambiance is cozy and welcoming, making it a great spot to relax or catch up with friends. The staff was also super friendly and patient in helping me pick the perfect drink.

If you're a bubble tea lover or just curious to try, I highly recommend this spot. I'll definitely be coming back for more!!

Love the service, people are very...