In summer's heat, nothing beats cooling off with an iced tea or milk tea — and we've found a lineup of places in Seattle that will quench your thirst. Here are the newest places to check out the next time nothing will do but tea.
Realfine Coffee - Capitol Hill
616 E. Pine St., Capitol Hill
Coffee lovers in the know will remember Realfine Coffee's recent opening of a second location in Capitol Hill, but the new spot also serves tea both hot and cold.
In the muggy summer weather, patrons may want to try the joint's mango iced tea to accompany a pastry by Josh Grunig's Standard Bakery. (Seattle roaster Herkimer Coffee provides the shop's beans.)
With a five-star Yelp rating out of six reviews, the future looks bright for the new café.
"The staff is super friendly. They asked me for my name my second time I was there. The shop itself is very inviting and has good decor and ambiance," wrote Yelper Alix B., who also praised the café's "excellent mango iced tea."
And Yelper Drew B. also noted the positive atmosphere of both the original and Capitol Hill locations of Realfine: "Seriously, if you sit in either of these places for any amount of time you'll see folks coming in and out with huge smiles. People love it here, the customers and the staff."
Realfine Coffee is open from 7 a.m.–7 p.m. daily.
Bao House
514 S. King St., International District
Bao House is an Asian fusion spot for bubble tea, smoothies, shaved ice and more. Located at 514 S. King St. in the International District, it also offers snacks like fried popcorn chicken and roasted duck bao.
On the tea menu, you'll find plain iced teas like the pineapple green tea and jasmine oolong tea, as well as milk iced teas flavored with matcha, taro and more. Toppings include regular and mini tapioca balls, sweet red beans, and lychee or rainbow jelly.
With a 3.5-star rating out of 26 reviews on Yelp, Bao House has received mixed reviews.
Yelper Thuy N., who reviewed the café on June 27, wrote of the milk tea, "It felt watered down and didn't have that oomph as opposed to their surrounding competitors. The ladies there was really nice though."
But Nhuchi D. disagreed: "They make teas fresh and their milk teas are phenomenal! I didn't like my initial order (more my fault than theirs) and they promptly fixed it with a smile."
Bao House is open from 11 a.m.–9 p.m. daily.
Blackball Desserts
651 S. King St., International District
Also in the International District, you'll find the newest Seattle outpost of Taiwanese shaved ice and bubble tea chain Blackball Desserts, located in the former space of Gossip Espresso & Tea at 651 S. King St.
Organic and natural ingredients are a highlight of the new spot's milk tea and grass jelly desserts, as we recently reported. Look for specialties like the winter melon tea with lemon, freshly brewed matcha milk tea, lychee green tea or shaken iced tea with cheese. Patrons can also customize the sweetness levels to taste.
Blackball Desserts's current rating of three stars out of 59 reviews on Yelp indicates the newcomer is still finding its way.
Yelper Karen B., who was one of the first users to visit Blackball Desserts on August 12, noted some inconsistency in the milk teas: "Good customer service overall, and the milk tea is good but not my favorite of all milk tea places."
And Diana N. loved the cheese foam drinks, but said, "The shop is very small and gets very cramped when they're busy. There's not much room to even wait for drinks when all the tables are taken but they also have an upstairs if you're looking to stay for a bit."
Blackball Desserts is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and 11 a.m.–midnight on Friday and Saturday.
