Popular Boba Chain from Taiwan in Rowland Heights - Tiger Sugar

Tiger Sugar is an extremely boba chain with locations across the country of America and many other countries including Europe, Asia, and Oceania. They grew to popularity with their brown sugar fresh milk drink which is just what it sounds like: brown sugar and fresh milk. Their name is derived from the pattern that the brown sugar syrup leaves on the cup which contrasts with the color of the milk, creating a tiger-like print throughout the cup. This is an extremely iconic look for the shop and many boba places have tried to achieve a similar look, but Tiger Sugar takes the crown as the first ones to do this and the one to do it the best according to popular opinion.

I personally went to the closest location to me which is located in Rowland Heights, California, the closest location to Los Angeles!

Brown sugar and milk sounds rather simple enough, however, it's truly the quality of the brown sugar and the fresh milk that makes Tiger Sugar stand out and a major player in the ever-expanding and highly competitive boba industry. For one, Tiger Sugar claims to use all fresh milk in their drinks instead of the dairy or non-dairy creamers that other places often use. The reason other boba places might opt for creamers rather than fresh milk is because fresh milk often goes bad rather quickly while creamer, in powder form, can pretty much last forever. By using fresh milk, Tiger Sugar is able to stand out with the familiar rich and creaminess of using real milk while also providing nutritional value to the drink.

@sanfoodiego/Instagram

They also claim that all of their boba is freshly made, making it extremely soft with great texture to go with the drink. This is crucial to many boba drinkers and acts as a true test of quality for the place. Last but not least, they use their secret and exclusive brown sugar recipe which creates the perfect ratio of ingredients to perfect their brown sugar syrup. The brown sugar is also simmered daily with low heat, creating layers in the flavor profile.

One thing kind of fun and funny about their drinks is that they recommend that you shake each of their drinks 15 times, no less, no more, but exactly 15 times for the best results. Of course, I had to follow these instructions carefully and shook it exactly 15 times, and here are my thoughts on the drinks:

In my personal experience, their drinks are truly quite spectacular and the flavor and aroma are much deeper and richer than most brown sugar drinks I've had. I would definitely say that it is one of the best and most unique brown sugar drinks I've had, but I wouldn't necessarily say it is the best brown sugar drink I've had in my life because there are some top contenders that are on my mind. I do think their boba is really fresh and of good quality, it was very soft and tender with the perfect texture.

The one thing that really stood out to me and incomparable to any other place is actually their egg pudding. I definitely recommend getting their egg pudding in your drink, even if you generally don't like egg pudding from other places because theirs is different! The egg pudding I've had at most of the other boba places actually has more of a jello or gelatinous texture to it and the flavor is pretty faint, but the egg pudding here tastes very fresh and like it is actually freshly made with their own ingredients. I know a lot of other places use an egg pudding mix that you just buy at the store and add water or milk to, but this one tastes like they have their own recipe and real ingredients are actually used to make it. For one, the texture is completely different, it is much softer and doesn't budge the way that the gelatinous egg pudding does. It gives very easily and there is no "pop" when you bite into it, it has the actual texture of a firm and dense pudding, rather than jello. In addition, the texture is very creamy and smooth and the flavor is rich and pleasant but not overwhelmingly sweet. This was definitely one of the highlights of the drinks I tried!

@sanfoodiego/Instagram

Tiger Sugar is really good at what they do, that is, brown sugar fresh milk, but their options are rather limited in that all their drinks are simply different versions of their brown sugar fresh milk with different toppings and forms. However, they do have some other more basic drinks like their teas, tea lattes, and coffee. They also recently added a new line to their menu: their Japanese mochi series! This is extremely exciting as mochi boba is not something common in the industry and can work to add a new type of boba to the game. I personally was not able to try this series as I visited before the release of their new line, but I definitely excited to try it the next time I visit!

Follow my Instagram @sanfoodiego for more food-related content!