I recently visited Boba Up, a self-serving boba place, and I'd like to share my experience. The concept of being able to create your own boba drink is exciting, and Boba Up offers a decent selection of toppings, green tea, and milk tea options. I opted for a jumbo glass and decided to go with a combination of flavors. I chose a refreshing mango slush as the base, and I added the subtle and fragrant rose milk tea to create a unique blend. The combination of these two flavors was enjoyable, providing a refreshing and slightly floral taste. To enhance the drink, I selected a variety of toppings. The strawberry popping boba was a fun addition that added bursts of flavor with every sip. The lychee jelly provided a nice texture and added a mild sweetness to the drink. I also chose rainbow jelly, which contributed a colorful and playful element. While my boba drink at Boba Up was enjoyable, I must say that the overall experience was just okay. The limited range of options was a bit disappointing, and I would have liked to see more variety in terms of flavors and toppings. It would be great if they expanded their offerings to cater to different preferences and to provide customers with more exciting choices. The self-serving aspect was fun and allowed me to customize my drink to some extent, but I felt that the options were somewhat limited. Nonetheless, the quality of the ingredients was good, and the drink itself tasted pleasant. If you're looking for a basic boba experience and don't mind the limited options, Boba Up can be an okay choice. However, if you're seeking a wider variety of flavors and toppings, you may want to explore other boba places in the area that offer a more extensive menu.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10

We were visiting Seattle and happened to find this place, what a blessing. There's not a ton of parking due to it being on campus, but we didn't have a ton of trouble. This is a self-service aka build your own boba experience. It's usually busy, lively, and fun in the shop. You pay for your cup size and you have at it. We got the bucket because it's massive for such a good price! You can mix and choose your toppings, with plenty of options of milk teas, various fruit teas, and some slushies, etc. There were little sample cups if you want to test the flavors you're interested in. There were so many choices, it was so fun and such a creative option for boba. I stuck with the jellies and did mostly fruit teas and slushies. There's even extra sugar you can add if you like really sweet drinks, but the flavors are premixed and you can't really dilute unless you add ice or leave room to add water. If you get the tub, staff will close it for you at the end. Really endless spectacular creations and so affordable. Staff was super nice, accomodating, and welcoming! The shop has a decent amount of seating, but got busy. There's board games available to borrow if you want to stay. I recommend this place for a boba, casual date, a new experience, to make your own drink, or just a sweet treat.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Dinner
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 5
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5
Recommended dishes
Aloe, Lychee Jelly, Aloe Lychee Jelly
Parking options
Paid street parking

The dispense/make your own boba combo is a unique concept for Seattle. You can make your drink 80% toppings if you want. You pay at the register ( choose a cup size). They hand the cup and a glove over. Once you fill up your cup, you drop it off to get it sealed. They have sample cups for you to try out the flavors. It is a great place since lots of options for drinks and decent amount of seating. Food options are typical of a bubble tea place ( bubble waffle, fries, popcorn chicken).They have wifi too! There are boardgames that you can play. They have 3 decks of cards, one had a card missing. The others were in bad shape. They have classics like Jenga, taboo, sorry, life monopoly and scrabble. The drinks are already sweeten but you can add more sweetener at the end. This place has boxes stacked up high and a ladder in the hallway to the way to the bathroom. It makes this place fairly inaccessible. The hallway is narrow due to all the objects. The toppings counter and the drinks are not at an accessible height either. They have gender bathrooms. The ladies' restroom had two stalls, ok clean. Parking is difficult since it is the ave. It is going to be street parking.
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Dinner
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 3
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 3

My friends and I really wanted to try the self-serve boba, so we came up from Seattle. The shop is a little poorly designed, as you have to go to the right side to get your cup, not towards the counter with menus. There are a lot of tables and space inside. There's also a lot of board games available. We ordered a popcorn chicken and three regular cups. The toppings are on one side, drinks in the middle, and sealing on the other side. Boba seemed pretty fresh and the other toppings were neatly there. We began to try the different drinks and they were pretty disappointing. The drinks were extremely sweet and there was no sugar-free options to make them less sweet. There is fresh milk, but tea would be better for mixing. I ended up getting a taro slush with boba. I went to the counter to seal and asked about my popcorn chicken. They said they would announce when it was ready. After sitting for 15 minutes, I went to the register and asked about the chicken. They went to check and called it after 10 minutes. When we opened it, the chicken wasn't really what we were expecting. They were really dry and were more like mini chicken strips. We wouldn't come back, as there's definitely other boba places. While it is cheap and service is nice, the drinks and food aren't good.

This place is THE BEST boba place I've been to. It's like a Boba buffet. You go and choose the size of the glass (small, regular and grande) and pay upfront. Then they give you the glass and handglove to go and pour whatever and however you like. There are like 5-8 types of boba/pudding etc to choose from. You can also taste them first before adding. Then you move to the tea selection, so many types/combinations you could try (Taro, Lavendar, Rose, Thai, Okinawa, Brown sugar etc) and add/skip sweetner and ice accordingly. You go to the counter and they seal the glass for you, no questions asked. I have tried the following combinations and they have worked really well for me. Taro + Rose + Regular boba + Strawberry popping bobba Lavendar + Okinawa + Pudding + Strawberry boba Love this place and gonna visit again soon enough!
Food: 5
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5

First timer here and it was so fun! Got the biggest cup they have and was explained how it works. I liked that we're allowed to taste test the toppings before deciding which one/two/three/all that we want in our cup (not sure if we're allowed to taste test the drinks). Ended up going with boba, lychee jelly, mango jelly, peach fruit tea and mango passionfruit tea. They also have loads of board games for you to play and enjoy your bubble tea in the meantime. It was a fun experience and definitely will want to come back to try other stuff that they offer! Parking was luckily easy as the UW students are not back in college yet and after 8pm is free!
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 5
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5

Finally, something new to shake up the boba scene around here! If you're indecisive like me, Boba Up is the perfect place to get the whole gamut of boba flavors and toppings. What I like the most about the DIY concept here is the opportunity to taste everything and create the perfect recipe. If you end with something you dislike, you'd have no one to blame but yourself honestly. If you find the tea to be too sweet, water down a little. If it's not sweet enough, add syrup! Simple as that! Worst case scenario, you can always go with the classic taro milk tea with pearls, mess around with the sweetness and call it a day. I highly recommend going here, especially if you have a friend who's new to boba and has specific tastes! Enjoy!

I never write reviews but felt this one was necessary. I’ve never been to a business with such horrible management. Owners are very rude and stereotype you as soon as you walk in. The owners daughter will stare you down (I’m assuming to make sure you don’t refill?) It’s very uncomfortable. She is unprofessional and it is unpleasant speaking to her. On top of that they steal tips from their employees. There are better boba shops on the ave that treat their customers and employees better.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Dinner
Price per person
$10–20
Food: 1
Service: 1
Atmosphere: 1
Wheelchair accessibility
Not Wheelchair friendly

Nice build your own boba place. Used to be really cheap (been going here since before the pandemic), but still isn't too bad price wise. I really like the concept; my only complaint is that the tea is too sweet; I really wish the sugar was added separately. They have the option of watering down the different tea flavors to lower the sugar level, but I'd much rather have a strong tea that isn't too sweet. Edit: Appreciate the response and did not realize there was an option to water down the tea with unsweetened tea. 5 stars and great place!
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 5
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 5

I love coming here! The place is usually full by around 2pm unless you go early in the day. I try to come when I can as it’s a bit of a drive for me but I tell my friends it’s one of the best boba places. It’s definitely the most fun! You can build your own cup and put however many toppings you want. I always put a lot of pudding in mine. The drink flavors are all tasty! You can mix as many drinks as you want if they fit in your cup. They have milk teas, slush and more. They even have plain green or black tea
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Lunch
Price per person
$1–10

My kids really enjoyed the experience so we went a second time. The bubble tea isn’t gourmet but it is fun to make your own mix. There are lots of flavors of teas and slushies, several jellies and two options for boba. I have attached photos of the flavors so you know what you are getting They provide board games if you want to hang around but the tables and surfaces constantly need a wipe down so you wouldn’t want to “stick” around anyways. Parking is a challenge but that is to be expected since it is on UW campus
Food: 4
Service: 3
Atmosphere: 3

I'm surprised a boba bars are not more popular because this was amazing. For a place that needs to keep a supply of everything available, the selection of teas and toppings is quite large (and in my personal experience, more than most!) and the boba is made perfectly. Great that you can get as many different toppings and of varying amount. Definitely coming back and highly recommend.
Service
Take out
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 5
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5
Recommended dishes
Aloe

I recently tried out a "build your own boba tea" place, and I was initially drawn to the concept. However, when I tasted their boba, it didn't quite meet my expectations in terms of both texture and taste. I ordered a slushy with rainbow jelly and a milk tea with boba, but the milk tea didn't quite hit the mark for me. On the positive side, I did enjoy the mango slushy they offered.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 3
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 3

The bubble tea is AMAZING!! Its self serve, u buy a cup and fill it with any Buble tea and any toppings. Toppings include tapioca pearls, strawberry popping boba, aloe, lychee jelly, grass jelly, and more!! At the end, they seal it for u. U can also have samples of the bubble tea or the toppings!! Btw no refills. Overall this is a wonderful and highly recommended place !!!! Ps. Boba attached is not full, i already drank some of it..
Food: 5
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 3

This store is one of the best boba stores, in my opinion. The fact is that you can create your custom boba drink with a massive variety of toppings, teas (milk or plain), and other things. You have complete control of your delicious and tasteful boba drink using sample cups to taste beforehand. The only thing you need to do is pay for the size of the cup (3 sizes- I believe). Again, I hope you enjoy and have some fun here
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Lunch
Price per person
$1–10

Lively little boba shop that had a good selections of boba and teas to choose from. We had got the matcha slush or, Thai tea and jasmine tea. Taste was good. Ambience was pretty. Definitely crowded but fast service. Priced appropriately. Loved the self service and the mix and match idea. Will definitely come again!
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Lunch
Price per person
$1–10
Features
Dine in: Yes
Outdoor seating: No
Takeout: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Curbside pickup: Yes

Even though there's plenty of tea places around me. Not one can compared to Boba Up. This place is the spot. Just love how you can get your own samples to taste all of the different options they have available. Then, once you decide, you serve yourself and also put as many and as much topping you wanna choose from.
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Dinner
Price per person
$10–20
Food: 5
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5
Recommended dishes
Fries Combo

This place is going to put everyone else out of business! It's the best place I've ever been for boba drinks and good food. They have free WiFi and cool places to sit with friends or alone. I can't believe how many options they have for different types boba and fillers and tea, slushie, and milk. The most yummy is Rose Milk with real rose in it! I love that they have sample cups and welcoming staff and Miyazaki art in the walls. I'll be going here every day forever.

Ordered a Taro milk tea with regular boba and bubble waffle. Loved the fact that we could try all the different flavours and even try out lychee jelly, rainbow jelly, popping boba and regular boba before taking. They had board games too which we could just pick up. Loved the vibe.
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$10–20
Food: 5
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 4
Recommended dishes
Lychee Jelly

This is a great place for boba. Normally you’d get to order at any boba place but this one lets you make your own and they’ve some awesome toppings available. Lychee jelly being best of the lot along with the regular boba. The taro as usual went amazingly well with the toppings and the whole experience was a fun filled one. Definitely worth a visit. You will have fun.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10

This was the best boba place I've been to. I love how you you just go around and pick what you want in it and select your beverage. You also can taste things before you select. We didn't get any of their food items, just the boba tea. I highly recommend it! Wish they were not so far away from home!
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 5
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 4

One has to lower their expectations when going into a self serve tea shop. Boba Up is fun and a great experience. The toppings were pretty good, the tapioca was hard, and the tea was definitely a powdered mix. I loved the atmosphere and the overall experience in the shop. I would definitely go again. Best way to describe it is buffet quality boba.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10

Self serve boba in U district which is open till late at night which is nice. This is a nice little place and they offer several options of slush and milk tea along with different jellys, boba, popping boba. I always take Taro milk tea and all available jellys. I hope next time I can avoid the confusion on the right combination and try others.
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10

A completely new experience for me as a bubble tea lover where I got to make my own bubble tea.! Best part is you have sampler cups so that u can taste and put stuff that you like. No extra charges for any number of toppings.! The brown sugar boba tea was great and i made it with boba, jelly, and all good things
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10

Create your own boba drink! A huge variety of toppings, teas and you choose everything on your own. You just need to pay for a glass (3 sizes) and then you put everything according to your taste! Very quick and fun :)
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10
Features
Dine in: Yes
Outdoor seating: No
Takeout: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Curbside pickup: Not sure

I think this is a fun and unique concept! It’s not the most authentic boba tea you could get but it’s tasty and fun to pick out your own combinations. I also had their popcorn chicken and that was tasty. I’ll def be back to try other drinks.
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Lunch
Price per person
$10–20
Recommended dishes
Popcorn CK, Rainbow Drink w Lychee Jelly

the most disappointing boba i’ve had. do not recommend coming here. there’s way better boba shops in seattle. the place is super dirty and the toppings are also dirty. i think they don’t clean enough . the owners are also not the nicest people either. i’ve heard them mistreat people who come in. do not come here!!!!
Food: 1
Service: 1
Atmosphere: 1

I do not traditionally drink boba but I enjoy the smoothies. I brought my daughter here who thoroughly enjoys them and we both had fun with the experience of making them ourselves. Parking is not so bad when it's not busy it is all street pay to park. We had a good experience and enjoyed ourselves. They were quite busy so I'm sure lots of people enjoy it.

We had a awesome experience getting to make our choices for what we wanted in our cup. we also loved the Bobo waffle. it's also a lot like a Pancake or waffle tasting it's Very good. We wish we had one closer to where we live because it would be awesome to go back a lot.
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Dinner
Price per person
$10–20

Love the self-service option. Very nice to be able to test different flavors. The details next to the teas is nice to know. Ex. Caffeinated, dairy- free.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$10–20
Kid-friendliness
My daughter loves to come here. It’s her favorite place to visit when we are in the area.

The boba itself was great, but goodness me it felt like the staff really didn't want to work here. Super distracted, didn't want to come to the register to start billing, didn't use gloves while sealing the cup, just plain disappointing.
Service
Take out
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 5
Service: 1
Atmosphere: 1

Pleasantly surprised when we found this place. Self serve boba tea— Different topping and flavors, mix and match — is fun.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 4
Recommended dishes
Lychee Jelly
Recommendation for vegetarians
Somewhat recommend

Love the concept of DIY Boba! Wish I would've seen that the cups have fill lines indicating how many toppings/how much ice is suggested. I may have went a little crazy on the toppings lol. Everything was super good though - especially the taro milk tea
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10

Self serve Boba tea let's you pick the amount of toppings you'd like, and you can even mix and match flavors. I can't comment on the food but the Boba was pretty good. Love the strawberry popping bobba!
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 4
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 3

Gets a lot of hate but honestly for the price its pretty good boba. Hours are a huge plus and its a very cozy place with plenty of board games and actually pretty sanitary for self serve.
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Dinner
Price per person
$10–20
Food: 4
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5

wide selection of toppings and tea, with slushes and fruit teas and milk teas. popcorn chicken is very yummy as well! fairly affordable and great energy here! free wi-fi! and even has split cup option!!
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Lunch
Price per person
$10–20

Establishment was clean, and the customer service was friendly and straightforward. The variety of teas and toppings was extensive, and though it took a few visits and some tinkering to get the flavor to be what I wanted, that was part of the fun. I will be going here regularly.

Incredible place !! I’ve never been in a self service bubble tea place. Over 12 kinds of milk tea/shush/green tea , and over 6 kinds of toppings for you to put as much as you want for a fixed price of a cup! I’ve had Thai tea with boba, aloe and pudding - excellent and yummy!

GREAT CONCEPT & love it! That alone deserves more than a 5 star! Took 8 more people in to try! They all loved it, as well! Will definitely be back! Boba was alright but the strawberry popping boba is definitely a must! Also, the staff is outstanding, thank you & kudos!

Great selection for self serving Boba drinks. They also have food. Keep in mind it's not endless refills.
Service
Dine in
Meal type
Other
Food: 4
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 4
Recommendation for vegetarians
Highly recommend

LOVE this place. You are able to choose your jellies and tea, I got Taro milk teas and a variety of the jellies. You are able to get a sample cup to try everything first, too.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$1–10

A unique place to have Boba. You can sample and customize your boba based on your own choices. Tried this experience for the first time and it is a must try. Especially love the strawberry boba.
Service
Take out
Features
Dine in: Yes

We’ve been bringing friends here for over a year now. The available self serve drink ingredients are top notch, and being able to self serve cuts down on service time. Takes longer to find parking than to get some of the best Boba in the city….

Place is lit even at nights. Best buffet style boba tea. Get the regular size. Mango pudding+ taro tea is my favorite
Service
Take out
Price per person
$1–10
Food: 5
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5

Awesome place to hangout and create your own drink! There is a shelf of board games available too. I tried the brown sugar milk tea with boba. I love being able to do it myself and they are open late!

Lovely place with lots of options of bubble teas. Tasted most of the flavours available before finalising our drink which was yummy . Lovely.
Food: 4
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 5

Came here for Seattle Boba Fest and it is awesome. The self-serve boba is a great concept and it's soo good. Highly recommend the brown sugar milk tea with straight normal boba combo.

Make your own boba? Can’t get any better than this right? If/when you visit, check in with the guy/girl At the register for the “how to” so you know the best way to make your boba.

There are lots of options and unique combinations. You purchased your cup and make your own boba. Split cups are pretty cool.
Service
Dine in
Price per person
$1–10

Favorite boba place! They give you a cup and you can make your own boba. They have many different toppings and teas/slushies you can choose from to add.