Avid foodiePrints readers will have noticed that Don and I love bubble tea and are constantly on the lookout for the best local bubble tea shop. Thus far, we have visited Bubblicity (both Chinatown and Dalhousie locations), Nihao Tea House on Holland Ave. (now closed), Maple Valley, and finally, Ottawa's newest competitor, the Toronto-chain Teashop 168. On my last bubble tea entry, I had updated foodiePrints' list of top bubble tea shops in Ottawa, but did not reveal number one. I shall now fill in that blank spot.

Last summer while looking for something spontaneous to do with my younger sisters as we waited for an order of pizza, we decided to walk from Hintonburg to Chinatown's newest bubble teashop, My Sweet Tea for something cold, sweet, and refreshing. Granted, My Sweet Tea has been in business since July 2008, but it was my first trip there. My youngest sister, who could probably live on a diet of bubble tea, claimed its drinks tasted just like those in Vancouver and Toronto and that I would not be disappointed. Sufficient to say, she was correct.


Signage My Sweet Tea

Located in the heart of Chinatown, My Sweet Tea provides great competition to another bubble tea shop on Somerset Street, Bubblicity, a popular Ottawa chain. Upon entering the shop, I was struck by the sheer delightful fruity smells in the air. There is nothing more comforting when entering a tea shop when you can smell recently made bubble teas of various flavours and tapioca pearls. The fruitiness is enough to put a happy grin on your face and the knowledge that you are in store for a great treat. The chic decor and furniture gives the shop a casual, yet sophisticated feel, and adds to the relaxing atmosphere inside.


Bubble tea barista making a customer’s order

Checking out the menu.....
My Sweet Tea serves a variety of bubble tea drinks in many flavours including ice tea, ice slush, milk tea, ice cream smoothies, yogurt drinks, blooming tea (hot drink). In addition, snacks of fish balls, chicken wings, toast, and chicken popcorn along with cake are also available.

I ordered my usual staple, a lychee bubble slush ($3.99 + $0.50 for jelly) . It was sweet, cold, and delicious. The lychee flavour was strong, but not overpowering. It also had just the right amount of lychee jelly pieces and there were no hard bits or shards of ice. More importantly as the slush slowly melted, the lychee flavour continued until the very last drop. I was in bubble tea heaven.


Lychee bubble slush served in a tall narrow glass cup

Don chose one of his favourites, a black tea based milk taro bubble tea. According to him, it was cold, sweet, milky and smooth, the right consistency of a taro flavoured drink. Feeling adventurous, Don decided to add red beans to his drink, rather than the usual tapioca pearls. The red beans were perfectly cooked and sweet. At $3.99 + $0.50 for the red beans, it was money well spent.


Milk Tea Taro-flavour (black tea base)


A close up of red beans

Looking for a Snack…
Despite finding a drink quenching my thirst, I was also in search of some food. Choosing from a curious selection of flavoured toast on the menu, I decided to try the honey toast. Not knowing what to expect, I was surprised to be presented with a thick slice of toasted white Asian-style bread drizzled with honey on a glass plate. Each bite had a lovely crunch, but found it somewhat greasy with honey tasting of the typical store-bought kind. I am not sure if I will order this dish again in the near future.


A snack of honey toast

Take Out Bubble Tea
Don’t have time to relax and hang out in the tea shop? No problem! My Sweet Tea also has a take-out option, serving the drinks in plastic cups and sealing them in a thick, but clear plastic sheet with teddy bears and a riddle written in Chinese.


Refreshing bubble teas to go! Delicious!

In the top left hand corner is a mango flavour bubble tea with mango jelly pieces, a favourite of my younger sister. Beside it, a black tea based taro-flavour milk tea with tapioca pearls. Below in the bottom right hand corner is a green tea based lychee-flavour ice tea with lychee jelly pieces. Finally in the bottom left hand corner is my drink, a lychee-flavour bubble slush with lychee jelly pieces.

Since the summer of 2009, Don and I have re-visited My Sweet Tea on numerous occasions and feeling satisfied each time. As a result, My Sweet Tea is foodiePrints’ pick for Ottawa’s best tea house!

4. Teashop 168
3. Bubblicity
2. Maple Valley
1. My Sweet Tea

Particulars:
My Sweet Tea
824 Somerset Street W.
(613) 321-3481

Here at foodiePrints, we are always on the lookout for Ottawa's best bubble tea house. Thus far, Don and I have been to the two locations of Bubblelicity (Chinatown and ByWard Market), the Nihao Tea House (now defunct on Holland Avenue), and Maple Valley (also in the ByWard Market). Since the summer, we have been eagerly awaiting for Tea Shop 168 to open on Wellington Street W. (1356). In business since 1996, Tea Shop 168 is a Toronto-based chain that has over a dozen locations, mainly in Markham and Scarborough.

After months of renovations, Tea Shop 168 finally opened its doors last Saturday (November 28, 2009). To celebrate, everything on the menu was 50% off the entire weekend. This week, all purchases are discounted 10%. Starting next week, lunch will be offered and the menu will include lots of Taiwanese-style snacks, such as fish balls, won ton dumplings, toast, etc.

Welcome to Tea Shop 168!

With the majority of our errands run, we decided to give the newly opened bubble tea house a try that Saturday evening. Upon walking into the cream and yellow coloured house that was previously a hair salon, we were enthusiastically greeted by a young Mandarin-speaking woman (who happened to be the owner), her staff, and several of her friends. Playing was Japanese pop music from the early 2000s, a greatest hits mix of Ayumi Hamasaki.

Inside, there were two tall glass bistro-style tables able to sit groups of three and tall gray metal stools lining a bar set against a large bay window. On the other side of the room was another long counter with menus, Chinese and Japanese fashion and gossip magazine, and a cute brown miniature shopping cart for tips beside the cash register. Behind the counter was an ice maker, an induction burner, a rice cooker (for cooking the tapioca pearls), two commercial grade blendesr, and rows of jars filled with colourful powders, each a different flavour.

Bistro table with a clock

Gazing outside from the bar counter

A variety of flavours in jars and squeeze bottles

After consulting the menu, I decided to order my usual, a regular size lychee bubble slush with lychee jelly pieces. Don ordered a black tea taro flavoured milk tea with pearls. All drinks, eat-in or take-out, are served in a plastic Tea Shop 168 cup, either sealed with plastic or with a lid.

Checking out the menu

My lychee slush was surprisingly pleasant. It was not overly sweet, nor did it take on a yellowish colour from too much syrup. When bubble slushes take on a colour, it is often too concentrated. I did not find any chunks of ice and there was just the right amount of jelly pieces.

Lychee Bubble Slush with lychee jelly pieces

When ordering tea-based drinks, you can choose to have it served hot or cold. In this case, Don requested his to be cold. However, when the server handed him his drink, I was rather surprised it was just slightly room temperature, warm for bubble tea. The taro milk tea was slightly powdery and the tapioca pearls too soft.

Taro Milk Tea with pearls

Although the drinks were a bit of a hit-and-miss, Tea Shop 168 is certainly worth checking out. The menu offers a variety of teas and slushes. While the staff are still in training and are experiencing a bit of trouble finding the requested powder (suggestion: organize it in alphabetical order!), the preparation of each drink is impressive. Everything is carefully measured and then shaken in a cocktail shaker.

That evening, each drink cost only $2.10 (regular price: $4.19) for a total of $7.11, tax included.

Thus far, foodiePrints' ranking of the top tea houses in Ottawa are as followed:

4. Bubblicity
3. Tea Shop 168
2. Maple Valley (foodiePrint's review)
1. ???

Stay tune as foodiePrints will be revealing its favourite bubble tea shop very soon!

Particulars:
Tea Shop 168
1356 Wellington Street
(613) 695-2686

Sometime early November, Cassandra Evanas of DivineCaroline published a blog, listing "Seven Terrible Ideas for Breakfast." Among them were Jimmy Dean Pancakes and Sausage on a Stick (the blueberry pancakes looking oddly diseased), Vanilla Milkshake Pop Tarts, Kraft Apple Cinnamon and Cream Cheese Bagel-fuls , and Liquid Cereal. Liquid Cereal happens to be packaged in a pop can and reminded me of two equally questionable foods I came across this summer.

The first, I tweeted about a week ago as something I would "not be trying again", a hash-tagged list of foods one regrets trying that was initiated by the pioneering food blogger Pim Techamuanvivit of Chez Pim:

#nottryingthatagain "barely embryo" milk black tea from the "Go For Tea" bubble tea house in Markham, ON: http://flic.kr/p/7eK49c

Please don't get me wrong, the "Go for Tea" bubble tea house in Markham, Ontario (Unit 2-230 Commerce Valley Dr E) is a fine establishment.

Go for Tea Logo on Menu

Super Cool Wireless Device to Call Waitress
My judgment just happened to slip, when I let someone order me a "new experience" in bubble tea.

Barley Embryo Milk Black Tea $3.99

Barley Embryo Milk Black Tea with Tapioca Pearls Served

Unfortunately, the "Barley Embryo" milk black tea with pearls was not a new flavour experience.

Cereal-tasting Bits
Instead, it was a combination of old experiences that proved disconcerting. It was a mixture of weak tea, enriched with what tasted like whole milk, and cereal-tasting bits. Its texture reminded me of soggy cereal. Add to this softened tapioca pearls and you have something that I'd rather not try again.

The second, is bottled coffee, which I have read is popular in Japan. Loblaws and Loblaws Superstore even included a brand of canned coffee in its "Chinese New Year" sales last year. Having no experience with the specific brand, I opted against trying it. When I was in a Toronto T&T this summer, I changed my mind.

Nescafe Canned Coffee
After all, Nescafe is a trusted brand of instant coffee in North America. What came out of the can was precisely what I expected, cold instant coffee, with milk added. It was rather bitter and had me wondering why such products even have a market. There are times when convenience should not supersede quality. I only wonder when Starbucks will start marketing canned "VIA."

Lessons learned:

• Neither cereal nor coffee should come out of a can.
• Bubble tea should not taste of or like cereal.

Particulars:
Go for Tea
230 Commerce Valley Drive East, Thornhill
(905)886-0221

I spent part of Canada Day tending to the unwieldy back log of images foodiePrints has amassed over the past two years or so. My digital camera's image numbering reset itself once again (3rd time) and I had to establish yet another "unsorted" folder of images in the archives. In their defense, I don't think Casio ever figured a food blogger would be lugging one of their cameras around with him everyday. The camera's on board software is only capable of incrementing 4 digits of numbers in its file names. And yes, this means that a little over 30 000 pictures have been taken throughout the years.

That evening, Jenn and I watched Ottawa's annual fireworks show from a vantage point outside of the downtown core, on the Scott Street bridge, across from the Bay transit stop, thereby avoiding the crowds and making our Canada Day festivities quieter than usual.

Jenn and I did however walk by Parliament Hill two evenings later, to find the surrounding areas picked clean of litter and the main stage being dismantled.

Parliament Hill 2 days after Canada Day
Along the way, we decided to see how much of our own neighbourhood we could walk during the upcoming weekend.

Wellington West
That Saturday, we took a stroll with a family friend into Wellington West to go to an outdoor art exposition and fundraiser, called "Art in the Alley." It was organized by local artist Alison Fowler of Ali Cat Art and proceeds went to the Ottawa Humane Society.

Art in the Alley

The event was held in the alley way beside the Chick Pea children's store (1395 Wellington Street W), which shares the building with the Ali Cat Studio.

Gorgeous Paintings
Featured artists also included Tammy Shane and Andrew King, whose art we recognized from the the galleries in the Hintonburg area.

Speaking of which, if you frequent Holland Avenue, there is a large piece by Allison Fowler in front of the Foolish Chicken eatery (79 Holland Avenue). Interestingly, Saturday's chalk sandwich sign advertised something beyond rotisserie at the Foolish Chicken.

Jerk Chicken with Dirty Rice
Given our previous experiences with the restaurant, we took a pass.

On our way to the outdoor art exposition, I insisted we take a detour to see Allium's monthly menu. We found the restaurant (87 Holland Avenue) closed and a paper sign stuck to the door.

Closed for Renovations
Accordingly, Allium will be closed for the month of July, re-opening in August. Reason: renovations. I guess Jenn and I will have to wait until next month to sit for a Monday tapas night.

Across the street from Ali Cat Studio, we noticed that the former location of Hair Rods Salon and Spa (1356 Wellington Street W) has been replaced by a soon-to-open Asian tea-house, TeaShop 168.

TeaShop 168
This Toronto-originating chain of tea-houses specializes in bubble tea. I last visited one of their establishments in downtown Toronto on Yonge Street (768), near the Bloor intersection. No doubt, it will give the local tea chain Bubblicity some much needed competition.

We also noticed that Harvest Loaf (1323 Wellington Street W.) was advertising something very seasonal on its menu: strawberry shortcake.

Limited Time: Strawberry Shortcake
With the disappointment from seeing Allium temporary closed, we picked up a cake. For $8.95, the tall and luscious confection generously serves 6 people.

Tall and Luscious

Cross Section

Slice
Covered in a light pastry cream and garnished with quartered strawberries, the shortcake consisted of layer of more cream, sliced strawberries and airy slices of vanilla cake. Realizing that we couldn't possibly make a dent in the cake ourselves, we invited our neighbour to give us a hand.

I should note that, on our way home, cake in hand, Jenn discovered a new beverage enterprise that employs some very innovative marketing.

50 cent lemonade

Available almost daily
Honestly, have you seen anything so daring? And, the advertisements are water proof! Besides, the lemonade is aggressively priced. As our neighbour pointed out, a glass of lemonade downtown during Canada Day easily cost $5. Unfortunately, business must have been brisk because we could not find the young entrepreneurs that day.

Hintonburg and Chinatown
Sunday, we walked to Chinatown to satisfy my craving for pho (Vietnamese noodle soup), taking some of the lesser trafficked roads to avoid the construction on Wellington Street.

On our way to Chinatown, we passed by Credible Edibles (78 Hinton Avenue N.). Finding it closed, we took a picture of something that may interest local cyclists.

Cyclists' Discount
According to the sign, to "reduce greenhouse gases and support good health", Credible Edibles is offering a 10% discount on their "edibles" if you ride your bike to eat-in or take-out. Good stuff!

We also came across the most darling birdhouses along Armstrong Road in Hintonburg.

Water Melon House

Tea House
Cute, adorable, and food-related!

Pho, Fruit Vinegar, Fruit Ice, Mayonnaise, and Scallion Pancakes follow after the jump...

More after the jump...

Few dishes define a good tea house better than the dumplings it serves. Dumplings are an integral element of a tea house's menu. Oriental tea houses straddle the line between café and bistro, providing a relaxed atmosphere to socialize, chat, eat, and, most importantly, enjoy tea. As such, the food tea houses should not take away from the primary activity, drinking tea. Typical dishes consist of small bite-sized morsels; nothing larger than a Chinese bun. Hence, when I visit a tea house, my first order tends toward dumplings: bite-size morels of meat and/or vegetable, neatly wrapped in a flour wrapper, that can be easily picked up with a pair of chopsticks.

Regarding tea house cuisine, there are some wildly successful food blogs that are devoted to teahouse eating. Here's one that I visit often: ChaXiuBao. The blogger was recently (episode aired in September 2007) featured on an episode of No Reservations with Anthony Bordain.

Regarding NiHao, ever since it opened, I have been wanting to try its dumplings. Since the tea house only serves dumplings weekdays during lunch as a special, I never found the opportunity to try them. I make my living quite a ways away from either NiHao establishment. Happily, during a day off, I rectified the issue and sat at a table for lunch in the Wellington Village's NiHao tea house.

For $4.99, I received a plate of 10 steaming hot dumplings. My chosen condiments included red chili oil and soy sauce.

10 dumplings for $4.99
The dumplings were simply wrapped and home made. This is evident from the pronounced wrinkling of the dumplings' skins. Mass produced frozen dumplings wrinkle somewhat less.

Dumpling Filling
The filling consisted of pork and nappa. The dumplings themselves were flavorful and moist.

All-in-all, I was more impressed by the iced green-tea that I ordered with my dumplings. The tea came chilled and lightly sweetened. Moreover, the tea was made from quality tea leaves that were gently brewed. My iced tea was flavorful and refreshing. It had none of the bitter notes that come from tea leaf dust in tea bags.

Total for lunch: $7.84 after taxes, before tip.

For dumplings at home, I direct you to Ottawa's Yen Fung Ding dumpling shop or frozen dumplings that can be purchased at any of the larger Asian markets in Chinatown.

Frozen Dumplings

Particulars:
Nihao Tea House
81 Holland Avenue
(613)722-0088