Top 5 Chatime Must-tries

We’d like to think we were one of the early fans of the bubble tea craze. Chasing down branches of Serenitea when people thought we were still referring to peace and calm. So when Chatime opened in Pioneer, we weren’t in a rush.

Thanks to a lot of friendly prodding though, we trudged all the way one weekend. And have been addicted ever since! Even buying three drinks at a time (sayang yung wait e ;p). If you’ve been too timid or overwhelmed by the choices, here’s a quick guide for dipping your toe before diving right in.

Classic
ChaTime Roasted Milk Tea

If you’ve already tried Chinese style milk teas before, this hits the taste you’re familiar with.

A refreshing mix of the dark roasted tea flavor lightened by the creamy milk. Once you’ve tasted Chatime, you’ll realize what a big difference there is between the ready-to-drink, bottled variety and Chatime’s handmade serving.


Interesting but still safe
Brown Rice Green Milk Tea/Green Tea

If you enjoy the tea they give for free at Japanese restaurants, then give this a try. Who knew it would work as a cold drink? The milk addition puts some sweet into the earthy, turning this into one of the most refreshing drinks that got us through summer.

Exhilirating
TieGuanyin Tea Mousse

If you thrive on energy drinks and coffee to stimulate your senses, this tea was made for you! It literally drives you into all-neurons firing, all nerves tingling overdrive – without overwhelming your palate. That’s the danger actually, it tastes so good (try with mousse!) you’ll drink a lot of it, then before you know it you’re on full throttle the whole day. This writer was literally palpitating! But if you have the heart for it, go go go try it!

Warning though: do NOT drink at night, unless you don’t plan to go to sleep.


Fullsome
Taro Red Bean Milk Tea

If you want a fuller taste to go with the creaminess, the red bean is the perfect match for Quickly-popularized taro milk tea. Add mousse to complete this dessert drink.


Crisp and light
Grapefruit QQ

If you’re still in a summer flush and aren’t that into teas, try Chatime’s fruit drinks. Grapefruit is a more novel, still tangy, very refreshing alternative to your iced teas, orange or mango drinks. Sweet and beats the heat!


Add-ons
Don’t miss out on Chatime’s add-ons. The quality is really superior to most bubble tea places.

The pearls are fat and chewy with a tantalizing almost-chocolate taste.

Their mousse is a m-m-mmmmmust try. Don’t think thick gelatin blob congealed in the middle of a Red Ribbon cake (we love it there though), but more like a moderately heavy cream that sits delicately on top of your drink.

Their pudding is egg-y and fresh. Light in the mouth.

Haven’t tried it ourselves but a lot of fellow Chatime fans have sworn by their Grass Jelly too.

Tea you there next time!


Chatime can be found at Pioneer Center, Pasig; Robinson's Galleria Supermarket; Landmark Bridgeway, Makati; One Archers Place, Taft; SM Mall of Asia, Manila

Oh Mine Shine

Loyal fans of this crisp, sweetish drink will remember its sudden, panic-inducing disappearance from exclusive retailer 7-11 around 2008. (Coincidentally around the same time as the milks-with-melamine ban. Completely coincidentally.)

Remember that time of withdrawal, I mean, slight disappointment? Well! Those trying, I mean, inconvenient times are back. Mine Shine has disappeared again! Not a drop of its 800kcal goodness in sight. (Please email me immediately should you find one. Immediately! Or if you have contact details of the importer, I'd really like to have a word, I mean, find out what's up.)

Last seen at 7-11 President's Ave one month ago

True, prior to the 2008 months-long disappearance, its supply has been patchy. But post-melamine, I mean, post-reformulation, it has been on steady supply - encouraging dependence!.. I mean confidence!

For fans who are missing it as much as I am, I've found that ChaTime's ChaTime Roasted milk tea (arguably their most populist tea flavor) a very worthy replacement. For one, it IS freshly made upon order, adding a richer, deeper tea taste. The fat chewy pearls add quite a bit of happy in your mouth too.


Of course, if you find yourself too loyal to Mine Shine, ChaTime has a looong list of non-similar flavors to choose from. Feel free to stray and sample how else milk tea can be done. (As we certainly did. Stay tuned for Bogchinoypi's ChaTime favorites in an upcoming post.)

In the meantime, lemme just check that tucked-away 7-11 branch inside that building. Not that I'm looking for anything in particular.

HELLO, 911-1111? IF THIS WERE 911 INSTEAD, I’D BE DEAD BY NOW.

Hello. I’m the latest addition to Bogchinoypi’s line-up of writers. I should caution you though: I’m completely new to this, whether “blogging” in general, or writing about food. I guess I’m saying this to all the readers who frequent this site—yes, both of you—in the hopes of lowering your expectations and, therefore, inflating your opinion about this article.

For my inaugural post (and quite possibly my last post, depending on whether this blog’s "chowers that be" decide I’m too offensive or annoying to keep writing here), I decided to write about pizza. Pizza Hut, in particular. Their delivery hotline, to be even more precise. Yes, this is not about the quality of their toppings, or how crunchy or golden brown their crust is, or how their pizzas generally taste (Answer: their pizzas are pretty good; sh*t, this “food blogging” thing is easier than I thought).

Instead, I want to write—rant, really—about the spiel which their call center agents give me each and every single goddamn time I call 911-1111 to order a stupid pizza (so, for everyone who came to this blog looking for useful tips on where or what to eat, you’ve been warned about the enormous amount of your time that’s about to be wasted. Continue reading this profanity-ridden, amateurishly formatted and pitifully unfunny post at your own risk).