Last summer, Sharetea’s Meyerland location officially opened its doors to customers, advertising a variety of primarily tea-based beverages. With over 30 years in the tea and beverage industry, Sharetea promises “high quality and tasty bubble tea” with ingredients shipped from Taiwan, the home nation of bubble tea.

Originally founded in Taipei City, this Sharetea is one of the four locations in the Houston area. It’s walking distance from Bellaire, making it a convenient spot to grab a refreshing drink after school. But is it really worth trying? We tasted some of Sharetea’s beverages to find out.

Classic Milk Tea (5/10)
Claire
I ordered the classic milk tea with a green tea base and 50 percent sweetness to get a basic understanding of the kind of teas Sharetea offers.
When I got the drink, I was surprised by how much milk was in the tea. Usually, the creamy white color dilutes the more earthy colors of tea, but this drink looked like just a cup of milk.

It ended up tasting exactly like that, a cup of milk with a fraction of tea added to it. The slightly bitter, herbal green tea was an aftertaste to the low-fat dairy that completely took over the drink. I’m not sure if this was because there was a larger portion of milk than tea or if it was because Sharetea’s milk has a strong flavor, but I really wished that the classic milk tea had more actual tea in it.
I would recommend this drink if you don’t like tea that much and are more of a dairy person. It might also be a good idea to get black tea as a base instead of green tea since it is known to have a stronger flavor. I was pretty disappointed trying this drink because it really did not taste like I was drinking tea at all. I don’t even dislike milk, milk just wasn’t what I ordered. Overall, I would rate the classic milk tea a 5/10.

Kiwi Tea with Boba and Aiyu Jelly (9/10)
Johanna

I ordered a kiwi tea with aiyu jelly and boba, and the tea arrived in about five minutes.
It was a brownish tea, ordered with little ice, jellies and boba at the bottom. I tried both 100 percent and 75 percent sugar in my tea, and the difference is noticeable; with 100 percent, it’s perfectly sweet to me, although with 75 percent you can taste more of the fruit tea and its tangy citrus flavors. The boba was very sweet, likely saturated in brown-sugary syrup after cooking. The transition from the taste of tea to the taste of boba was immediate and noticeable. The kiwi chunks and jelly were a perfect combination to complete and complement this fruit tea. I highly recommend this drink if you’re looking for something fruity or something to cool yourself down on a hot day; this is on my tea list of repeats. The kiwi tea with boba and aiyu jelly deserves a 9/10.

Thai Milk Tea (9/10)
Johanna
What sets Thai milk tea with boba apart from other milk teas is that it’s made with condensed milk and often with spices like star anise, crushed tamarind, cardamom and others.
The color is a warm orange, and the boba rests at the bottom.
The tea at full sugar is very sweet, a result of the condensed milk and sugar. So if you’re not a sugar person, I recommend 50 percent or below.
The tea is smooth and creamy, making it one of my new favorites. However, you cannot taste the spices or the tea as much, as the cream overpowers the other flavors.
If you order your Thai tea hot, make sure you let your drink cool before you try it, as taking a sip the first thing leads to burning consequences. The colder drink leaves room for flavor while having it hot subdues the cream and taste of tea dramatically. If you want more bang for your buck, order your drinks with little to no ice. I would give this drink a 9/10 (4.5/10 for hot.)

Matcha with Fresh Milk (8/10)
Johanna
Another tea I’ve never tried before (somewhat embarrassing as I’ve been a tea fan for the longest time) is matcha. I ordered a cold matcha with fresh milk and boba at the full sweetness and less ice.
The cool green tea had warm boba resting at the bottom and white milk at the top alongside the ice.

Matcha cookies, cake and Pocky really don’t compare to the taste of tea. I never thought of describing tea as umami before, but that’s what it tastes like: not bitter but not completely sweet either, despite ordering it how I did. I am a sugar fan and ordered it with 100 percent sugar, but there was no dilution of the tea whatsoever, unlike the other milk teas. Even Thai tea wasn’t as strong as matcha! I like it, but I wouldn’t say I’m head over heels for it. Matcha is a very interesting and unique flavor, and I recommend it to anyone willing to try something new. I would rate the matcha drink an 8/10.

Lime Mojito (8/10)

Haset

This drink was a safe choice for me. I knew I would like it. I mean, what was there not to like? I’ve always loved sour tastes, so choosing a lime mojito was a no-brainer.
The mojito was a yellow-golden color with lime rinds and chunks topping it. There was no ice, but the drink was still cold.

The drink was almost perfect. It was refreshing, delicate and tangy all at the same time. The balance between the sweetness of the drink and its sourness checked all the boxes. The sugary taste paralleled the aftertaste of the sour lime, which made me want to take another sip. The drink became addicting because of this balance. The only negative of the mojito would be the fact that as I was finishing it, an overwhelming amount of lime rind got in my sip. The bitterness of the lime threw me off a bit, but I didn’t mind the flavor much and was still able to finish the drink. I easily give this drink a solid 8/10 and strongly recommend it to anyone who enjoys lemonades or just a citrus taste in general.

Wintermelon Lemonade (5/10)
Haset
I wanted to go out of my comfort zone and buy something I was unfamiliar with, so I ordered the wintermelon lemonade with 80 percent sugar.

The drink had a goldish-caramel color. As the ice rose to the top, the drink became a soft ombre.

One word to describe this drink is a curveball. I’m not sure what I was expecting with this drink, but a vanilla flavor was definitely not it. At first sip, the drink doesn’t come off as anything special, but its aftertaste was what did it for me. After that first sip, the overwhelming sweetness of vanilla flooded my taste buds. I’m not a big sweet person, so this vanilla taste was simply not my cup of tea. The drink almost reminded me of a cold horchata because of its vanilla flavor. I wouldn’t say this is my favorite drink, but I do think that if I had ordered a lower sugar level, I would have enjoyed the drink a bit more. I recommend getting this drink at around 50 percent sugar. I give this drink a 5/10.

Strawberry Ice Blended with Lychee Jelly & Ice Cream (7/10)
Claire
I enjoy drinking fruity drinks and icy treats, so I felt like the strawberry ice blended with lychee jelly and ice cream would be right up my alley. I decided to order it with the ice cream on top of the drink instead of blended into the strawberry ice to keep it how it’s presented on Sharetea’s Top 10 menu.

The lychee jelly settled at the bottom of the pink strawberry ice while a small scoop of vanilla ice cream sat nicely on the top of the drink.
While I’ve definitely had better ice-based fruit drinks, I wasn’t at all disappointed by this ice blend. It would have been nice if the ice had been more finely crushed, but the strawberry flavor did still come through nicely with each sip. The lychee jelly added a floral sweetness that wasn’t as prominent in the ice itself. As someone who doesn’t like too many textures in my drinks, I did wish that there were fewer bits of jelly. Also, because of the lychee jelly settling at the bottom of the drink, the sweetness wasn’t evenly distributed, making the taste of what you were drinking vary depending on where you put your straw. I ended up not even eating all the lychee jelly since so much was left over after I finished the strawberry blend. The vanilla ice cream had already seemed to be a bit of an odd addition to an iced drink from the beginning, and I was right about it not really adding anything. It was such a small scoop that even as it melted, its flavor didn’t spread much into the rest of the drink. Even in the places where the creamy flavor was present, the ice cream did not pair well with what was essentially frozen, diluted juice.
If I were to order the strawberry ice blend again, I would just skip out on the ice cream.
Overall, this was a fun drink I wouldn’t mind ordering again with a few modifications. It adds some variety to the menu and would be refreshing on a hot day. I rate the strawberry ice blended with lychee jelly and ice cream a 7/10.