STEEP Creamery & Tea

Came by for boba and Steep didn't disappoint! I've been wanting to try out their drinks for a while, but their hours are pretty limited. I ordered a Strawberry Matcha with Crystal Boba and it was really yummy! The matcha flavor was good and the sweetness of the strawberries was a perfect compliment. The Crystal Boba was nice and chewy as usual. The only complaint I have is that the drink felt a bit too creamy for me (possibly because of the vanilla flavor?), since I tend to like a stronger tea flavor over milky flavor. The shop itself is small, and ordering on their kiosk is quick and easy -- you don't have to interact with anyone until they hand you your drink! Will have to come back for their ice cream!

Please keep updated your schedule. I walked to your place for a few blocks to see that it closed!

My go to neighborhood boba shop. You order at the touch screen kiosk and the staff will create the drink, you can also ask them for recommendations.Since I'm an unofficial caffeine addict, I always order the matcha red eye, which is matcha with a shot of espresso. Their other teas and ice cream based drinks are good too, aka the yin yang. To go orders are the norm here but they do have stools around to wait or eat your ice cream in. Yes, they also have in house ice cream. The 4 star review is because the menu items isn't always fully stocked. So they won't always have egg waffles or a certain drink you want to try.TIP: Beware of Giants game days (or special music concerts at the Stadium), those are the days when most toppings will be sold out. So go early or at a reasonable time if you want the drink that you want.

Walk in and order on a kiosk, pretty self explanatory. Ice cream is sold by "scoops" but it seems like they sell rolled ice cream, so it might be a bit hard to visualize this or quantify the amount of ice cream. There was a Yin-Yang drink that includes tofu ice cream which is super interesting, but not sure if I would get it myself. I was going to get it assuming it's a classic black sesame but the tofu definitely intrigued me (while also deterring me a bit).Dark Roasted Oolong Milk Tea with Boba - boba was chewy but not "bouncy" - still good though. Actually pretty sweet too, so it stood out from other spots as there was flavor. Tea was more milky and creamy at first sip but there's a tea after taste, seemed pretty freshly brewed. They have some slogan that reads "more than milk, not just tea" which I guess is a decent way of explaining it. Definitely some middle ground where both flavors are explicitly obvious. I got 50% sugar and the sweetness was very mild so they definitely accommodated. Less ice was still about 1/3 ice in the cup so that could've been less.

We came quite late while a Giants game was ending, so quite a few mishaps happened. They somehow missed our DoorDash pickup order, so they hadn't started the order by the time we arrived. They had also already sold out of the vast majority of their items, so we had to change our order multiple times. Not fully blaming them though, it was quite busy!We eventually settled on a matcha strawberry latte and a jasmine milk tea. The matcha latte was really good! Strong matcha flavor, and the strawberry wasn't overpowering like how I find it at most places. The jasmine milk tea was a little less flavorful, with a stronger milk flavor than tea. I also wished it was a touch more sweet (but this is on me, I got 25% sugar). The pearls were also great! Quite bouncy and chewy, but not over cooked by any means.Will definitely be back sometime! Probably some of the better boba in the lower Soma/Mission Bay Area.

I love their cream HK milk tea and their matcha milk tea! So bummed that they'll be closing soon. It's my favorite place for these two drinks. Please let it be that you're closing temporarily! Come back with your wonderful drinks because we need a boba spot here in the Embarcadero/South Beach area.

They DONT have rolled ice cream anymore due to covid. They really should have a sign saying that vs we find out after we have paid already. The lady also was not apologetic even though their wall still have the big sign saying rolled ice cream is better. We drove all the way to them to get rolled ice cream. Oh well. At least they provide HUGE scoops of ice cream. We got double scoop of sweet cream and loaded cookies and cream and single of loaded cookies and cream. Was good We also got the matcha strawberry drink. The little holder is so cute but the drink was not memorable.

Tried the taro drink and the Hk sweet cream. The taro drink was interestingly just taro ice cream forward which is very interesting, my friend got it at 25% sweetness and it was still sweet. The HK sweet cream was not as sweet in fact 75% it still allowed the tea flavors to come through so that was great. Unfortunately some staff member rolled her eyes at my friend for asking a clarification on the menu which was a shame and kinda disappointing.

Review is for boba only!4.5 starsI finally noticed this STEEP was open on weekends!The closer one in Mission Bay is closed on weekends, which is a huge hassle.Nonetheless, I am to this location one afternoon after a movie at the Metreon. (I know Sharetea is there, but I refuse to get ok boba just because it's more convenient.)This spot has a boba guys feel for sure. It's clean and white, a bit industrial interior. It was my first time here and it took a while for me to figure out what I wanted.One of my pet peeves is when a place offers sweetness adjustment, but doesn't ask what you want? Yes, i'm ordering and i should specify, HOWEVER, different cafes start their drinks off at a different baseline sweetness (i've seen cafes where 50% is there standard and 100% would be an adjustment; I've also seen places with lines out the door and they still just mention 100% sweet/ice is what it's at as a reminder). It also wasn't busy at all on this Saturday afternoon.On to the drinks: really good! I got the Hokkaido milk tea with boba and 50% sweetness, and he got the black milk tea with boba.I really liked my drink despite the fact that I don't usually love toffee (just felt like trying something different that day).I can't say that the ice cream base really makes a huge difference, but it's definitely a thicker tasting drink (not really any actual texture difference, but) possibly smoother?The flavor and sweetness definitely is longer-lasting, but you don't get any lingering ice cream mouthfeel.It was pretty cold out, so I popped the remaining half of my drink when I got home into the fridge, and finished it about 4-5 hours later. It was still delicious! It definitely tasted the exact same as when I got it, which I can't say is the same for other boba spots even some of my favorites.My guess is the ice cream base keeps better/differently.The boba wasn't the best. It was a little too chewy outside with the inside a little bit hard (pre-refrigeration, of course). I'm a fan of agar boba, so maybe i'll try that next time.The cashier also didn't ask about the reward system at all, which is specifically in place to drive returning customers. After making our drinks he kinda hid in the back and I had to wait around a little for him to half-reappear so i could ask to join!I really enjoyed the drinks here, but boba guys is less out of the way for me and nearly the same price point, so unless i'm really craving something different i'll probably still stick to boba guys!

STEEP understands the meaning of what they are named after. Their drinks and ice cream do taste like they have been adequately steeped!I first visited when I worked nearby in SOMA, luckily before a band of techie hipsters came in to bulk order cause they were doing a team building activity! I ordered the matchapolitan ice cream roll, which was matcha and strawberry ice cream with real strawberry pieces and matcha boba! The matcha boba was flavored agar - quite dense and gelatinous, but fun. I think the way they rolled them with the pink on the inside and green on the outside, and the placement in the bowl made these some very cute looking ice cream rolls. However, they were definitely smaller than standard ice cream roll places. The bowl fits in the palm of your hand. I still liked them, because I can't finish a standard serving of ice cream by myself anyways, and they had a harder freeze and thicker density, so the rolls retained their shape even when I was finishing it.I also had their strawberry matcha lemonade, which I thought was unique because matcha drinks are usually just matcha with milk. I really enjoyed this combination of flavors, and love the vibrant shade of green on the organic matcha! The balance between the bitter matcha, sweet strawberry puree, and tart lemonade made for a mouth full of delightful sensations.Due to COVID-19, STEEP overhauled their offerings. They have been focusing heavily on their ice cream, doing some deliveries here and there, or running a one-day popup for their ice cream at various locations throughout the bay (check their Facebook for updates). $9-16 for a pint of ice cream is fairly STEEP (get it?), but I do like the strong, bitter flavors of their matcha ice cream mixed with fresh strawberries in the matchapolitan, and the black sesame for the matchapolis. The black sesame ice cream has such an earthy, nutty, strong sesame taste! The Straus ice cream base gives these a pretty rich, thick creaminess, and the ice cream is quite dense as well, so it stays cold for longer, but it's harder to scoop... one of the hardest ice creams I've had to scoop, actually, not that I mind - just need a better scoop!I also had their smoked oolong milk tea with herbal jelly at 50% sweetness delivered. There was no ice due to the transit nature, and I really liked that they left it out so that it wouldn't dilute the drink. Unfortunately wasn't able to have their boba for the same transit integrity reason! Anyways, the smoked oolong was strong in smoky roast tea essence, and 50% sweetness was perfect, even a bit more on the bitter side. The herbal jelly was very smooth!The folks here are very nice and are coming up with very tempting Asian flavors every so often; I wish I had more freezer space! You should definitely get their ice cream if you like Asian flavors or strong tea!