Creekside Coffee Factory

Needing some catch-up time with two childhood church friends, we met up at Creekside Coffee Factory for a cup of early morning caffeine.

I've been aware of this cafe's existence for a very long time; the cafe with the giant Costco stuffed bear that is usually filled with Korean people (many of my Korean friends mention that their mom's chat with other ahjummas here, totally something my mother would do too). Oh, and its directly across from Sushi Town. If my friend hadn't suggested Creekside Coffee, it may have been a much longer time before I discovered its awesome-ness. (Oh no, here comes Peanut-Crumpet-influenced vocabulary..)

Some of the items for sale

The cafe is fairly busy on a Saturday morning at 10am. And to my surprise, filled with mostly Caucasian folks; I guess they know where to find quality coffee~ There are a handful of small tables and most of the customers were sipping on a hot beverage while splitting a giant scone with someone. Those massive scones are very reminiscent of the well-loved scones from Purebread, which I raaaaaaved about. At Creekside, one scone costs only $2.35! I must try one for myself next time. There are also seasonal(ish) baked goodies to pair with your drink or some simple sandwiches for a heftier meal.

Green Tea Latte, (unknown coffee dirnk), Coconut Chai London Fog

The Coconut Chai London Fog ($3.89) written on the 'special drinks' chalkboard caught my eye; I've been really into chai lately and adding coconut to it can only get better. A London fog drink is half a cup of strongly brewed tea plus half a cup of frothy milk. The coconut chai teabag is used in this particular one. I was lucky enough to score the last one they had! 

This drink did not disappoint; warm spices and a hint of sweetness from the coconut, in addition to the creamy milk was very enjoyable on a chilly November morning. This tea-based drink is a nice alternative for those that don't really like coffee. The serving is large and the mug keeps the drink hot for quite a long period of time. Even an hour later, my drink was still warm.

Sorry I can't comment on the other two drinks, but they were both presented beautifully!

Quoting my friend, "Starbucks is too mainstream". With prices that are essentially the same as Starbucks, I would recommend Creekside Coffee Factory over Starbucks any day. Yes, they don't have them red Christmas cups (which I admittedly will purchase from Starbucks each year to hold one), but their drinks are definitely of a higher quality and not laden with sugary flavoured syrups. I should try their Pumpkin Spice Latte next time to make a comparison to Starbucks, as I was quite disappointed by the 10 year-old famous PSL. Why no pumpkin flavour? D: 

Creekside Coffee Factory is a fantastic place to grab a hot drink to-go or sit down for long periods of time for chatting. The atmosphere is very cozy and warm, and the drinks are delicious. I can definitely see myself meeting up with friends here in the colder months (and Ninja Bubble Tea in the summer...?).



Love from Coconut Crumpet's Corner ♡

Ninja Bubble Tea

After a trying out the new Vietnamese restaurant, Delicious Pho, my best friend's family and I wandered around the corner to see what other new businesses have popped up in the new building. There is a new Brown's Socialhouse, a dried fruit & nut store, a little Chinese cafe that serves bubble tea and some random Northern Chinese dishes, a pet boutique, and the trending Ninja Bubble Tea. 

For the last few weeks, I've seen several status posts on Facebook checking in at this new bubble tea joint. This Filipino-run bubble tea joint is known for their candy bar bubble teas, reminiscent of Bubble Queen in Richmond. Some of them have strange names like "Yeahhh Nutella"... someone was running out of creative juices... At first glance, it seems like their prices are ridiculously high. I mean, bubble tea is already expensive; for some reason we are willing to pay $4 for sugar + milk. At Ninja Bubble Tea, be prepared to pay $5 for a single drink, and that is excluding pearls/jelly. 

Ninja Bubble Tea Menu & Prices

BUT, I did not feel like the five dollars went to waste. I've visited Pearl Fever before and was severely disappointed with how watered down my coconut milk tea was. At Ninja, the drinks have a thick texture, like a smoothie or milkshake, and the cups are massive. I repeat, MASSIVE.

Varieties of candy bars used in their 'Famous Smoothies'

I decided to give the Taro Ice Cream Smoothie a try. It had a little 'Best Seller' banner next to the name and it was a flavour I had never tried before. They have a stamp card system where every 10th drink is free. If you check into Ninja Bubble Tea on Facebook and show the cashier, there is an instant 10% discount too. I just didn't bother asking them for their Wifi password, but I probably should have.

Be prepared to wait a while for your drink. There is only one person making the drinks, one individual serving at a time. Watching my drink being made, I could tell the mixer wasn't strong enough to process the thick slush (they should've invested in a Vitamix!) so that doesn't really help with speeding up production.

Left: My friend's Oreo Ice Cream Crumble Famous Smoothie and Right: My Taro Ice Cream Smoothie

Just to clarify, in the Taro Ice Cream smoothie, the taro and ice cream are separate ingredients. And to be more specific, the taro is taro powder. My jaw was close to dropping when I saw half a cup of purple powder being dunk into the blender, and a teeny tiny bit concerned about the No-Name brand ice cream... or 'frozen dessert'. I'm sorry, it's just my health-conscious side kicking in. Thankfully, this didn't taste half-bad. It was thick and slushy so I know they weren't cheap and watering it down with..water. The taro flavour was somewhat faint but I suppose that can be expected. I'm really glad that the drink wasn't overly sweet, just sweet enough for a bubble tea and enough to satisfy a sweet-tooth craving.

This bubble tea joint is getting busier and more popular by the day; eventually they'll have to figure out a way to add more seating! At the moment, there are three tiny tables plus one mini counter, each seating around four people. For the large servings and above-average quality, I would definitely recommend Ninja Bubble Tea as one of the best bubble tea places in the Tri-Cities, with Bon Vivant Fashion Cafe following very closely. I'll be back when I'm feeling like splurging on my calorie intake. Next on my to-try list is the Reece's peanut butter one!



Love from Coconut Crumpet's Corner ♡