Krak Boba

With cute interior art and animated menu boards that beautifully spotlight its tea and coffee drinks, Riverside-based Krak Boba now has five locations in Orange County, and is a solid option with a couple of uncommon (if not unique) beverages. You’ll likely immediately notice their King and Queen Brulees – caramelized brown sugar milk drinks either mixed or ice-blended with creme brulee – and Guerrilla Thai, a blended slush that arrives streaked with Thai tea, matcha, and cheese foam cream. Maximizing colors and presentation are Krak’s fortes; a “Dragon Slayer” uses bright pink dragon fruit, orange mango, and white lychees in a slush that’s sure to light up your Instagram feed as well as it does Krak’s TV-based menus. These and other “specialties” drinks go for $6.85 each, as do smoothies made with fruit, cookies, or yogurt.

Simpler fruit or milk teas with one additional flavor – black tea, jasmine green tea, winter melon, matcha, caramel, Thai tea, or strawberry – are $5.85 each, affordable by current standards, though you’ll need to pay 85 cents more for boba, jelly, pudding, or salted cream. Coffee drinks, notably including a hybrid coffee base with a matcha cream top, go for $5.85 in small cups, or $6.85 in larger ones.