One thing that I always lamented about downtown was the lack of bubble tea and casual Asian eats available. I was used to my old stomping grounds in Richmond where there were a multitude of options available to me if I wanted to have bubble tea or go for some Hong Kong-style cafes or Taiwanese food. With several options opening up along Cambie Street, including, Corner 23 and Copa Cafe, there were some places close by but downtown options were still a bit lacking. Louis told me one day about the new Well Tea location opening up on Dunsmuir and Seymour so we knew we had to give it a try.
My first trip to Well Tea was actually with Tarri. We had been wanting to meet up for lunch for a while and when I told her that Well Tea had bubble tea, we decided that it was the place for us to meet up. I decided to order the Taiwanese sausage with rice set meal. It was actually pretty standard…the sausage itself was a little bland tasting and it was also a bit smaller than the servings I’ve had at other places.
The veggies that came with my meal were also a bit bland. The celery and cabbage tasted pretty similar (top and middle) and the potato salad had too much mayo for my taste.
I decided to go all out and ordered some bubble tea as well. Actually, I ordered milk tea with no pearls, so technically, I suppose it wasn’t bubble tea. 
One thing I like about the milk teas at Well Tea was that they give you the option of choosing how much sugar you want in your drink. I usually go with 25% sugar because I find bubble tea is normally too sweet.
About a week later, I went back with Jenkins for a quick bite to eat before going to the movies. I decided to have a hot pot item this time and chose the lemongrass chicken hot pot. I expected this to have a lot of chicken, but it was actually more of a cabbage hot pot with some chicken and fish balls. I also found the lemon flavour stronger than I would have liked, and I think it was because slices of lemon were also added. With so much cabbage added to the hot pot, this turned out to be a very filling dish but not really my cup of tea.
Jenkins decided to go with one of his favourites, the three-cup chicken. This was a pretty well made version of a Taiwanese classic. Unlike some other three-cup chicken dishes that we’ve had, spring onions were also added, which gave the dish a slightly different spin. The pieces of chicken were also pretty meaty and Jenkins noted that he was quite full afterwards.
I’ve been to Well Tea quite a few times now and although there seems to be a lack of consistency with their dishes, they are generally executed quite well. Service also seems to be a bit spotty at times but I think it’s due to the fact that they’re still trying to iron out the kinks. All in all, it’s not a bad option to check out if you’re ever in the mood for some bubble tea of Taiwanese food in the downtown core.
Details:
551 Seymour Street, Vancouver
Tel: 604-681-9777
Summary:
Food: 
Service: 
Price: $$
Thanks for the 
Twitter
Facebook
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Ooh – it’s right by my office! If you ever want to go again, let me know
elletee – oh, I didn’t know! I’ll let you know the next time I’m there!
Have you been there around the evening hours about a month and a half ago?
I keep going back regardless of the food …but because of the service I got from a sweet waitress that usually works evening (I rarely see her except once during lunch peak hours in the mid summer)
But I found out from a friend who knows an insider, that the girl doesn’t work there anymore — apparently she wasn’t good enough and too slow.
I feel horrible because I wasn’t there to back her up!
That poor girl had to look after the whole store by herself in the evening hours and now that I think of it, that man and woman I often see sitting near the front to-go waiting area seat and behind the counter..they never came out to help her!
Insider tipped this off: they are the “managers” or co-owners of some sort.
But no offence, I believe anyone else in that restaurant can manage better than them, every time I walk by or even just drop in to buy a to-go..they’re constantly talking on their iphones, playing their computers and what-nots. Definitely not helping whichever waitress that was working that night. *yikes*