JThur01"s July SGV Openings Rundown

Americas - USA West Los Angeles
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Just hit up wushiland. They’re not a branch of Oo tea in San Diego, both of these are actually overseas branches of 50lan tea from Taiwan!

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!

Unfortunately, they’re having some teething issues, and the taste is a bit off compared to 50lan in Taiwan.

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On a related note, their sweet level is much lower than nearby tea places (which are all insanely sweet)

I asked for 50% sweet in my ovaltine latte and it was barely sweet. 70% sweet is like 30-50% sweet at other places. Which is a good thing imo, but just FYI. Next time I’ll just go regular sweet.

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Thanks blimpbinge. Wushiland was a rarity in that I didn’t go in and speak with anyone, instead going with some info I was given (that obviously turned out to be wrong!). I’ll try to make a change over at Eater LA. Failing that, I’ll at least put it in a comment.

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Indeed! It doesn’t look related unless you see the 50lan name.

The way I verified, was just to ask the employees, I asked, “are you related to 50lan in Taiwan?”

Their reply was “we ARE 50lan! We first opened in SD as Oo tea”

So in a way, I took their word. Googling the names didn’t yield the usual business filings, unfortunately.

But then! They were also interviewed by ETTV, a taiwanese TV network here:

Seems like good verification, but the more the merrier I think

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I have to ask @blimpbinge @ipsedixit @chandavkl and all the SGV experts…

Is there a special Fish Boba Ice Tea, or why does their logo feature a Fish with their Boba Tea? :smile:

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Thanks! Well, that’s what I get for not going in and talking to someone. It’s rare that I don’t and it caught me out this time.

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No, fish boba, it’s just “Larry” :slight_smile:

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Hi @JThur01,

Thanks. :slight_smile: Is Larry their mascot’s name? LOL.

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Maybe it’s like Sweet Dreams on Valley Blvd. which serves fish shaped waffle desserts.

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It’s part of their trademark logo.

#Branding

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Thanks @ipsedixit. With your Fish Bao thread, I started wondering if they’d make Fish Boba Balls with the Tea. :smile:

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Please don’t give people ideas …

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By the way, if you really wanted fish balls in your boba, talk to Elton at Labobatory.

If anyone can do it, Elton can (and will).

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Dude is one crazy cat…

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Hi @ipsedixit,

Ooh. What is this place? I see their menu has a bunch of “created by (person’s name)” entries. Are they just customers who requested some crazy concoction and he made it for them? :slight_smile:

And where’s your @ipsedixit tartar sauce boba drink?! :smile:

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Elton’s claim to fame was doing one-night boba pop-ups in Chinatown, doing funky creations like alcochol boba teas.

Then he started his own shop in SGV via kickstarter. A true rags (almost) to riches (almost) story.

https://www.kcet.org/shows/the-migrant-kitchen/labobatory-raising-the-boba-bar

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I just remember him from boba 7. They did ok… But kept getting kicked around because they had issues with the alcohol license, which imo, lead to financial issues.

His new place is a bit pricy, but the drinks ain’t bad. I’m a fan of the Ube / taro drink (purple something?) , but just can’t stomach the prices ($6 for purple whatever, $4.50+ for everything else), so I rarely go.

I know it’s only a $1-2 more than other places, but sometimes u just gotta know where to draw the line *shrug *

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Thanks @ipsedixit

What do you think of his Boba drinks? Worth the drive all the way to the SGV? Transcendent? :slight_smile:

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Very good, may be some of the best in the SGV.

Absolutely. If you already live in the SGV.

Transcendent? Perhaps, if Elton starts making boba drinks with THC …

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Absinthe, with wormwood…

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