In our Dessert Detectives series, El Estoque staff members scour local bakeries and cafes, rating the quality and cost of popular menu items. Preserving the alphabetical theme of the series, we ordered drinks and ice cream from Xing Fu Tang, a boba tea shop located in Milpitas. Originating from Taiwan, Xing Fu Tang specializes in the quality of their boba pearls, which are made in-house in a hot copper bowl and displayed behind a glass counter for customers to see.
Brown Sugar Boba Milk ($6.50)
Though it is Xing Fu Tang’s most popular drink, the Brown Sugar Boba Milk inevitably suffers from its simplicity. Upon first impression, the Brown Sugar Boba Milk has a strong milky taste that overpowers other flavors. With only a few main ingredients, the drink lacks depth in flavor. However, the chewy yet soft texture of the boba pearls stands out in the drink, and the warm pearls contrast with the icy milk to make for a fun sip. With a big reputation to uphold, the Brown Sugar Boba Milk does an OK job. It’s clear that this drink was made to showcase its special boba recipe, though after a few tastes, the drink gets quite redundant.
RATING: 2.5/5
Brown Sugar Boba Soft Serve ($6.00)
In addition to milk drinks, tea and fruit smoothies, Xing Fu Tang recently added soft serve to its menu. The icy texture of the soft serve adds a cooling sensation when taking a bite, which, in addition to the signature warm brown sugar boba pearls at the bottom, creates a pleasurable mix of warm and cold. The light milky flavor of the soft serve allows the brown sugar taste to stand out, and the soft serve’s light texture with the chewy and bouncy texture of the boba pearls makes for an exciting bite. While enjoyable at first, the pitfall to this dessert is that the soft serve melts quickly due to the warmth of the boba pearls. However, the light and balanced sweetness of the soft serve makes a quick eat seem pretty plausible.
RATING: 4/5
Dalgona Coffee Boba Milk ($6.00)
The Dalgona Coffee Boba Milk comes served similarly to the Brown Sugar Boba Milk drink but is also topped with a creamy Dalgona coffee foam. A spinoff of the traditional Korean candy Dalgona, the foam adds a unique and welcoming depth that the Brown Sugar Boba Milk lacked. The strong coffee flavor, combined with the sweetness and milkiness of the brown sugar milk, goes pleasantly well together, making for a flavorful yet light drink. The chewy texture of the brown sugar boba continues to be an appreciated addition to each dessert, adding a fun springiness to a potentially dull drink. Although the drink can taste bitter after trying the other treats, the Dalgona coffee is a nice option for those without a sweet tooth. Overall, the Dalgona coffee feels like it should be the most popular drink — it showcases the texture and flavor of the expert-crafted boba pearls like the brown sugar boba milk, just better.
RATING: 3.5/5
Bunny Jelly Mango Smoothie ($6.50)
While it’s arguable that Xing Fu Tang doesn’t like to stray from the popular brown sugar flavor, the Bunny Jelly Mango Smoothie takes the customer’s taste buds for a fruity and light detour that’s less represented on the menu. In addition to its fun presentation, with a sleeping bunny made from coconut jelly, the strong mango flavor adds a tangy and fresh punch that is a pleasant break from the rich brown sugar flavor in most of their drinks. This dessert is incredibly refreshing, with an icy smoothie texture. While the mango flavor nicely dominates the drink, the poor quality of the strawberry boba pearls downgrades it. Unlike the superb chewiness of the brown sugar boba pearls, the strawberry boba is gummy and slimy, and its strawberry flavor fails to come through. Overall, the smoothie was a much-needed break from the repetitive brown sugar flavor, but it’s clear their brown sugar boba pearls are their specialty for a reason.
RATING: 3.5/5
OVERALL: 3.5/5
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Xing Fu Tang knows it’s good at its brown sugar boba pearls and sticks to it. The desserts are flavorful, enjoyable and the perfect amount of sweet, but the textures can be inconsistent and flavors can get repetitive. Their trendy storefront was kept clean, making for an enjoyable and smooth customer experience. We were impressed by the quality of what they do best, which has caused us and most likely many others to crave more — in moderation.
