Shiny Tea

A tiny bubble tea spot at the entrance of World Journal Bookstore. They pride themselves as an authentic Taiwanese bubble tea with locations in many parts of Asia, Canada, San Francisco, California, and lucky for us — Flushing, Queens! Shiny Tea is a low key and modest, for this is their only store in the East Coast. However, those who love tea or enjoy quality tea will know where to find it!
My best friend and I are bubble tea fiends (still are), therefore she will be the best person to try this place with. I got the Osmanthus Tie Guan Yin with White Pearls and she got the Grapefruit Green Tea with Tapioca. We both opt for no sugar at all and to our surprise, the drink was still amazingly good!
Osmanthus Tie Guan Yin, I really enjoyed this drink and loved how tea tastes so naturally refreshing. The bitter-​sweetness taste was a great combination. No sugar needed, if you want to enjoy the tea as it is.
Grapefruit Green Tea, it’s real grapefruit juice! This is probably one of my favorite variations of the drink. Fresh grapefruit juice and natural green tea mix was just perfect together! This was my favorite between the two.
Shiny Tea is the perfect afternoon tea spot, if you are in the mood for real tea!

I love this place! Favorite tea house in Flushing, for real tea. The ice peak oolong tea with less ice and 80% sugar is refreshing.
This place is really just a counter (in front of World Journal bookstore) to order and get drinks from. No seats to hangout as.

Was recommended by my friend mike Chen on YouTube (strictly dumpling and doublechen) to try this. We went out a food crawl and he brought me here to try their bubble tea because he said it’s the best.
I think ??? I got the original milk tea haha and with little white tapioca and regular tapioca. TBH it’s good but it wasn’t mind blowing and didn’t taste toooo different from the other bubbly tea shops. It’s good though because the tea Flavour is strong. Maybe I should come back and try their other flavours. But I still love my kung fu tea.
They do have good quality tea tho! So if u just want tea then this is perfect.

With the copious amount of bubble tea shops in Flushing, Shiny Tea differentiates itself by offering authentic Taiwanese teas. Despite the option to choose your sugar level here, you won’t find yourself lowering the amount of sugar, if at all, because they use real tea for their bubble tea. I made the mistake and asked for 30% sugar once and it was super bland.
The passion fruit green tea is my go to drink here; it’s so good that it’s the only place I get passion fruit green tea from.

Came here after getting pizza at Lucia’s since my friends were thirsty from the pizza slices. It’s a small shop located in front of a bookstore. I got their Tiegianyin milk tea with small white pearls and I found the drink to be delicious. The tea tasted very authentic, probably not made from a powder, and at 50% sugar, it was just the right amount of sweetness. The little white pearls were not too hard to chew on and had a great texture as well. I got to try some of my friends Tieguanyin milk tea with red bean and I found it to be pretty tasty, albeit a little on the sweeter side. Overall, I would say Shiny Tea is a pretty great bubble tea option in Flushing! Prices are standard and the teas were tasty. Give it a try!

Legit tea. First time trying mini white bubbles. Also check in for an extra topping! Also tried the regular bubbles it was nice and chewy! Will come back to try the Sri Lankan and oolong tea

Shiny Tea is one of the rare bubble tea places that does not use powder for their drinks. When you first arrive at this location, you might wonder why you’re entering a bookstore — fear not, Shiny Tea is a stand located inside the bookstore (it’s not uncommon for «stores» to be within another store in Flushing). From there, there are plenty of drinks to choose from. I love their passion fruit green tea without tapioca as you can taste the pureness of the tea more. The passion fruit is really highlighted here — this is THE drink that made me a passion fruit fan. Before that, I just stuck to ordering the regular bubble milk tea. The bubble milk tea is good here as well as you don’t end up feeling like you’re drinking straight up sugar even if you do not lower the sugar level.
Tip: Show your student ID for a 10% discount.

Another bubble tea place in Flushing amongst the sea of bubble tea shops. This one has the distinction of being «authorized» by the so-​called inventor of bubble tea (which may or may not be true). Tea here is good and they brew fresh. Flavors are fairly standard and the service is good.

My favorite place to go to when I’m craving for some really good bubble tea; it’s a treat that’s well worth it. I really like this place because you can taste how authentic the teas are. It’s not just your average brewed-​from-​lipton-​teabags tea. My usual order is Tei Guan Yin milk tea or the Jasmine milk tea. They’re very fragrant and mixes well with milk. What I also like about this shop is that you can mix the black tapioca with the white sago (for free!)
Tip: Also, don’t forget to ask for the stamp card if you come here frequently.

This is my friend’s favorite bubble tea shop in the city. I’m not sure if I’m as enthralled, but I do appreciate the claim of Taiwanese lineage from the owners. The Oolong Milk Tea is quite good.

This is definitely my favorite tea place in Nyc and my go to spot whenever I have the chance (all year around). How many tea places are there where you have multiple tea flavors to choose from?! And I’m not talking about regular tea with fruity flavors. They are actually selling tea! They brew different type of green and black tea. Any drink you order, you will be able to taste the tea flavor instead of milk and sugar.
The service is great. The staff is always courteous and they decorate the place for all occasions.
My favorite drink is osman TGY. It’s so refreshing in the summer and I order with no ice in the winter and always less sugar so I can taste the tea better (I can do no sugar too). I do not add boba because honestly I don’t care for it. Disregard this review if you are into boba instead of the actual tea.

Really small shop inside/​next to a Chinese bookstore. I saw the great reviews and L really wanted bubble tea so I had to check it out. Ordered a passion fruit green tea. I got a free coconut jelly add on (.50) by checking in. Normally I don’t care for bubble tea… tastes weird. maybe not all places make them with quality ingredients, but Shiny Tea is fantastic. It’s sweet but not too much. It doesn’t taste artificial… I loved the coconut jelly. Tastes almost like pineapple fruit candy. $ 4.50 for a large. Bit expensive, but I think most bubble tea shops are around these prices unless you’re going for those cheap 2 for $ 2 deals that I’ve seen walking around Flushing. Those cannot be good…
This place could convert me, I normally just drink water, coffee, and the occasional healthy juices.
I really like coconut jelly and prob wouldn’t bother trying the other toppings.

I tried to come to this spot everytime im out in flushing… and when i say every time… i mean like weekly
This is one of the few stand alone stores in NYC that i know of that is consistent and pretty damn good. You will always have your Kung Fu Tea, Chatime, Gong Cha and so forth but you only have one Shiny Tea.
I like how they also offer sago or «white pearl», havent had that in ages!
The black milk tea is creamy, slightly bitter (kinda like coffee but not really) and its smooth. I have yet to try anything else but i will be back!
Im craving one as i type…

Came in because of the dope reviews, it’s a new place so I’ve never been here before. I was a little disappointed by how the pearls were too hard :(I expected chewy sweet soft beautiful goodness.
The tea was really lovely though! Tasted authentic and fresh at «less sweet.» I got the tieguanyin milk tea with pearls, I love how there’s an extensive amount of tea options here!

Okay.
We came in because of the great reviews and was a little disappointed with one of the two drinks we ordered.
–Panda milk tea: not good. I’m not sure what kind of tea they use, but it wasn’t very good. The tea taste was very mild and nothing special; tasted watered down. This drink comes with both large, black, tapioca and the small, white, tapioca. Both pearls were either old or not cooked all the way through, as they were both hard and difficult to eat. This drink was under their specialty teas, but it was far from special.
–TieGuanYin milk tea with red bean: really good. Strong tea taste without being bitter, and the sweetened red bean really complimented the milk tea. The drink itself is $ 3.00, but the red bean is an additional $ 0.50. Worth the additional $ 0.50.
This place is intended for takeout only. It’s pretty spacious, since the business is inside another business. You will have no issues with either a stroller and/​or wheelchair.
They sell a variety of drinks, so definitely kid friendly.
FYI, they also offer punch cards.
Cash only.

This tucked away tea shop is hidden, small, but definitely deserves more attention. Without Unilocal,I wouldn’t have found it. I got the Tianguanyin milk tea with white pearls (mini tapioca basically) and I loved it! Around the area, I’d probably rotate between Shiny Tea, Kung Fu and Coco. If you’re feeling like having more unique tea flavors and toppings this is the spot for you. The cashier behind the counter was also very patient and helpful in answering my questions.
Why not 5 stars? I got 80% sugar and it was a little too sweet for me, and even though I asked for less ice there was literally no ice. Bummer on a hot summer day!

Shiny Tea, what a hidden gem, and that is only time I will ever use that term, I swear.
Indeed, it is tucked away on a side street off Main, inside a bookstore. Like Kungfu Tea, they give you the option to adjust your sugar levels (and amount of ice). I went for the Tieguanyin milk tea (tie guan yin is a popular oolong tea). It was so refreshing! And because I chose 30% sugar, it was not cloyingly sweet like your typical boba.
I believe they do offer tapioca pearls, but I got the white pearls instead – they looked interested. They are much smaller than tapioca, slightly translucent and similarly starchy. They create a kind of popping effect when you eat them, not unlike eating salmon roe (not sure if I did you a disservice by making that comparison). In any case, I was very happy with my bubble tea.

Bubble tea with real tea! This place is a real gem hidden away in a Chinese bookstore. Even though place is small (aka one stand) with a real janky waiting area, the great tea flavor and decent prices are well worth it. The drinks average about $ 3, with an extra $ 0.50 for each topping. HOWEVER, a check-​in on Unilocal gets you a free topping — which makes the drink price very comparable to the rest of its kind in Flushing.
Five Stars to Shiny Tea for —
— decent price + free topping (yay Unilocal)
— real creamer & freshly brewed teas
— adjustable ice/​sugar levels (10−100%)
— wide variety of traditional Chinese teas
— my new favorite bubble tea place (ranging from california to new york!)
My personal favorite —
Jasmine Green Milk Tea w/​Bubbles

So, I’m from Taiwan, and maybe I’m subconsciously biased in that way but I’d never actually heard of this place when I used to live in Taiwan before actually stumbling in. It’s a small storefront located right in front of the World Journal Bookstore. I ditched Kung Fu Tea and Coco after discovering Shiny because the tea just tastes better, even though prices are pretty comparable, and also because Shiny’s white pearls are amazing. I’m not a fan of tapioca pearls but I’m a huge fan of these white pearls. I usually get some variant of milk tea (green, tieguanyin, etc) which is perfectly refreshing. The fruit teas are pretty decent too imo.
People bitch about their drinks being overpriced but honestly, what else do you expect? This is Flushing, NYC. You’re not in Taiwan or China or HK. I’m sorry but you’ll never find a «cheap» bubble tea in the US unless you stumble upon one of those two-​for-​one type of promotional deals. Be prepared to pay $ 3.50-$ 4 (if you want extras like tapioca) for a medium, that’s just the bubble tea norm here.
Keep an eye out for the free upgrade of the week, which is written on a blackboard by the cashier. One caveat is that free upgrades don’t qualify for the stamp card (which you can ask for, it’s the typical collect 10 get 1 free type of thing). You can adjust the sugar and ice levels just like every other bubble tea shop and contrary to another review, I’ve never had a problem with that. The staff are friendly enough — at least there’s a smile on their face.

Shiny Tea is located at the front of the World Journal Bookstore. Dubbed «the place pearl milk tea was invented,» Shiny Tea sure has some hype to live up to, especially with that signage strategically placed for all to see… and it does.
Shiny Tea may be one of the most legitimate, if not THE most legitimate Taiwanese milk tea shops in Flushing (and maybe actually all of the boroughs). They go outside of the normal «black, green/​jasmine, oolong» spectrum and give you teas such as tianquanyin (I don’t even know if I spelled that correctly). I think Shiny Tea’s population of regulars are those who actually care about REAL, GOOD tea (i.e. most of the population of Flushing).
As with most bubble tea shops, you have your choice of sugar level, ice level, etc. However, here, they offer the small white pearls in addition to your regular black, larger, tapioca pearls — it’s worth a try.
As others have said, there is a frequent buyer’s card, so make sure you pick up one o those. They also have daily specials advertised.