Most of you would have already heard of my bubble tea index as a rough guide to the health of the local economy. At one point, I believe there were half a dozen bubble tea shops within one block of the intersection at Elizabeth and Albert Street. Recently this has died down a bit, especially with the uprising of the new competitor Mixue, but one store that has managed to stand strong despite the competition is Charley's Tea.
Although I've noticed them for a while, I didn't manage to go until their first year anniversary because their prices are fairly daunting, with plain tea going for $6.50 and their most expensive specials going for $12.80. They ran a promo during their anniversary for a buy one get one free (select) drink, so we went with some other foodies after dinner.
Ordering at the counter, seating was fairly limited but most customers had takeaway so it wasn't hard for us to find a spot.
On the first night we went, the anniversary promo drink was the ceylon glory, being a ceylon black tea with cream and pecans on top. When we ordered, there was a friendly warning that drinks here are less sweet than the usual, so order less sweet with caution. With this in mind, I had mine with half sugar. The drinks were very aesthetic lined up, although I would have preferred a see through cup instead. The drink itself was definitely well above the Brisbane average, with a fragrant but creamy ceylon tea, decadent light cream and crunchy pecans on top, making it one of the better bubble tea places in town (after milksha and machi machi).
Not wanting to limit my review to one drink only, Dr L and I returned soon after to try their other menu items. This time he had the seasonal special, Ultra Taro for $12.80, being the most expensive bubble tea either of us have had, whilst I had the Super Matcha. Again both drinks were delicious, he particularly liked the generous amount of fresh taro in his drink, the fragrant tea and chewy taro balls. My matcha was really enjoyable with a good balance between the bitterness of matcha and the fragrance of jasmine tea, neither overpowering the other.
In summing up, I'd have to say you get what you pay for at Charleys. The drinks are expensive but you do get quality for what you pay. I'll definitely be back, but only when I'm in the mood for treating myself.
Taste: 8/10
Value: 6/10
Service: 7/10
Environment: 7/10
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