Behold: Milk Bar, aka a three-in-one stop where patrons can sip on bubble tea, feel aesthetic with a bowl of Thai-rolled ice cream or get nostalgic via a classic-made-gourmet bowl of cereal.
“We keep it real over here,” Kevin Chen says with a laugh, referencing the newly opened Milk Bar storefront in Hyde Park. Alongside childhood friend Jimmy Lin, the duo seeks to serve up authenticity.
On a Wednesday evening, I sipped on a jasmine green tea with a milk cap — meaning the drink was topped with a blend of cream cheese milk and pink salt. The amber tea floated below, with boba (for the uninitiated: black balls of tapioca) snug at the bottom. You can get it already blended, too, or opt for a fruit tea sans milk. (Their cups are reusable, and they encourage customers to take them home. Milk, cereal and ice cream containers can be recycled.)
Regardless of which option or combo you choose (hint: there’s a lot), all tea is freshly brewed and made with real tea leaves — the latter of which the pair said they taste-tested for perfection before settling on their respective variations.
In part, this dedication stems from Chen and Lin growing up with the beverage, which is especially popular in Asian countries and communities (it originated in Taiwan).
“I (grew up) in New York, and they serve bubble tea. The thing about bubble tea is, using fresh tea versus using tea powder is a completely different level,” Lin says. “New York, most people use low-quality (tea) and powder, so it doesn’t really stand out. But California, such as San Francisco or L.A., they use fresh tea just like us to brew. People there, they know tea; they’ll drink those kinds of tea. If you use New York-style or powder, you’re not going to survive there. So, I think this is pretty cool.”
He adds that they approach their other options similarly. The ice cream is made with heavy cream and fresh fruit as their base — again, no powders here. The base is then placed on an anti-griddle and mixed with flavors and toppings where it then solidifies and is rolled into scroll-like bites.
Variations at Milk Bar include Choco Loco (chocolate syrup and vanilla), Java Lava (coffee and condensed milk), Monkey Business (banana and Nutella) and Campfire Delight (graham cracker, chocolate syrup with a marshmallow on top). Plus, patrons can add whatever toppings they’d like — i.e., fresh fruit, M&Ms, Jolly Ranchers, coconut flakes and more.
Their favorites? Chen is a devotee to “Unicorn poop,” aka Fruity Pebbles with a caramel drizzle, while Lin opts for Mango Madness. The most popular? Anything Oreo-related.
“Rolled ice cream is customizable. I could formulate a new ice cream every single week if I want to, just by throwing different ingredient in there,” Lin says. “That’s the difference than traditional ice cream. Once you sell it, you have to use whole bucket.”
But they’re taking it slow. The menu, they say, already can overwhelm customers. First, they want people to get to know them and for their employees to perfect their techniques.
As far as their third variation, “Cereal Killer,” the nostalgic choice was just that — a backtrack to childhood flavors. It’s the kind of cereal that kids might eat on a weekend morning, spoon sloshing in milk. But with a twist and additional (and sweet) toppings. I opted for a Cinnamon Apple Pie bowl: Apple Jacks, Cinnamon Toast Crunch with graham crackers and a drizzle of caramel. Rejoice: They serve the milk separate to avoid sogginess.
“So far our reviews is perfect online. People have come back already. On our soft opening, people just come in to check it out and now new people are coming,” Lin says. “Right now, we didn’t make any advertisement on anything, just word of mouth.”
Chen adds that they don’t want to hand out anything half-assed. It’s their attention to detail that they hope brings in customers.
The storefront has a sister store in Raleigh, N.C. — Lin once lived there — dubbed Milk Lab. But the logos aren’t the same and their menus vary.
“Tea can be big, it’s just a matter of time,” Lin says, reiterating that theirs is real, freshly brewed and healthy.
Milk Bar Cafe is located at 3880 S. Paxton Ave., Suite M, Hyde Park. More info: facebook.com/milkbarcincy.
