By Karen Aney (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: March 21, 2012
137-10090 152nd Street
Surrey, BC
604.585.3399
Hours: Monday to Thursday and Sunday 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m.; Friday and Saturday 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m.
Prices: all menu items under $10.00
Bubble tea. It’s a trend out of Asia that’s found a home in our melting pot of a province. The cute cups and sealed plastic covers—often with cartoon characters—make excitable folk everywhere squeal, and its thick straws and little balls of tapioca strike fear into the heart of anyone with a gag reflex.
Some bubble tea joints—like Bubble World in Guildford—offer food as well as bubble tea: snacks and dinner to nibble on while you enjoy your drink that might as well be a meal all by itself. Though Bubble World is a chain of bubble tea establishments, each location offers unique items and services – for example, most do not serve the full menu of food that the Surrey location does.
We visited the restaurant on a Thursday night just before 10 p.m., and there was a 20 minute wait for a table. Waiting wasn’t a pleasant experience: this place is loud, and the proximity to the often-opened door (with nothing to block the cold air) combined with an apparent lack of heating equated to a very chilly wait. When it came time for us to be seated—there was an empty table and it was our turn—the hostess started to seat someone else who had just walked in the door, despite the list of people already waiting and the people themselves sitting directly in front of her. It took speaking up and mentioning that we had been waiting 20 minutes already for the table to be given to us (which was slightly embarrassing, as we had to cut off other guests), yet the hostess still seemed reluctant to seat us.
This wouldn’t have been a huge deal – both my guest and I have been long-time service industry employees, and don’t irritate easily. However, once we were seated, it took another 20 minutes for our order to be taken. Three other people were seated, had their orders taken, and in one case their drinks delivered, before we were even approached by a waitress. Even then, we had to flag her down ourselves by leaning out of the booth and calling “excuse me,” as her eyes were determinedly locked on the floor while she walked through the tables.
At this point, our patience as diners was starting to fade, but hunger overrode any plans to go elsewhere. Our drinks and food (delivered one item at a time, with breaks in between) thankfully came out fairly quickly after that, given how busy the restaurant was.
For drinks, we ordered opposite ends of the spectrum: for one, a honey green tea with pearls and mango stars, and for the other, a hot honey logan tea with ginger – yes, this bubble tea establishment serves hot drinks. Conveniently, they’re marked on the menu with a steaming mug next to items that can be served hot. The drink was tasty, served in a mini French press with actual pieces of ginger in it. We asked for less ginger, and recommend you do the same – even for a ginger lover, the drink was quite strong.
The cold drink was ordered as a gauge: anyone who has had bubble tea before knows that it’s easy to find a sickly sweet concoction that would elicit lectures from your dentist. However, it’s a little more difficult to find something to satisfy those of us who prefer our tea to taste like – well, tea. The honey green tea was nice – a somewhat muted tea flavour, and what tasted like a honey-flavoured syrup. It wasn’t overly sweet, but it wouldn’t satisfy those who love a strong tea taste. However, the pearls and the mango stars were great – a nice consistency, without the slime that accumulates on the pearls of some bubble tea locations.
We ordered two food items, the first of which was “Coconut Toast” ($3.95). This was a thick two-inch piece of toast, slathered with condensed milk, topped with coconut, and then broiled. The result was delicious, if a little difficult to eat without utensils (none were offered, and the servers consistently dropped things at our table and left without giving us a chance to ask).
The second item was the “Deep Fried Fish Fillet with Noodle in Soup” (sic) ($7.95). This dish was of excellent value: on the side were four fish filets, battered with lots of Panko bread crumbs. This resulted in a light coating that wasn’t overly oily. With the fish, they served what tasted like a lemon pepper mayonnaise, which was the highlight of the meal – chock full of flavour, and a perfect complement to the light filets. The soup was adequate: warm and flavourful, with thick noodles and an assortment of vegetables.
For those who have dietary concerns, this probably isn’t the restaurant for you – and this last dish is an example of why: no description of the dish was offered on the menu (aside from the name), yet the soup was also served with what seemed to be chunks of some sort of beef. This questionable meat wasn’t alluded to at all on the menu, and while it was tasty enough that it didn’t offend this particular customer, their practice of not offering menu descriptions is sure to alienate some others.
Even this error would have been forgivable if the service was enough to compensate – but it’s nearly impossible to track down a server to question, and when you do, the likelihood of them being able to answer you is slim. However, while the service is bad enough that it is certain to stay on your mind after you leave, the food is adequately tasty and a fairly good value. The portion size was easily large enough for two people to share, and the food was unique enough that it may be worth the visit. If you’re an adventurous eater and don’t mind having to fight for service, it’s worth checking out.
