The Alley

Visited SD's Store front with a Spy family promotion active. I tried one of their promotional drinks which was the passionfruit orange drink and it was quite refreshing.The seats were nice as well and i felt like this store embodied the Alley feeling. I appreciated the service i received from the worker who assisted me with the redemption of the spy family promotion.

I first had The Alley in Vegas and fell in love!! I had the ube brown sugar deerioca crème brulee milk (say that five times fast lol) and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Since then I have been patiently waiting for them to open up near me. Now that they are open, I feel like I go less than I thought I would! I do love their flavors and that drink, but it just feels a bit pricey especially since you can only order a large at this location. The space itself is small so I usually just order to-go. I still enjoy The Alley as an occasional sugary treat. They have good caffeine free options as well. They also offer alternative milks, I usually get oat milk with my drinks here. Parking is usually no issue, it is located in a plaza near the Vons.

Went here for after dinner boba. We had about 30 mins before closing to order and I really came here for their croffle. We ordered the brown sugar boba milk tea and unfortunately they were not serving the croffle. But just know it's really good. It has nice texture and the crème on top is fluffy, mildly sweet. The brown sugar milk tea is one of there best drinks bc the brown sugar with the warm boba is a nice combo. Pairs well with the milk tea since it's really sweet.The store is pretty small with two large areas for groups and smaller seating for couples. Service is standard and drinks came out relatively quick.

We decided to try a new boba place and I've heard about The Alley before so figured why not. The plaza that it's in has a very large parking lot although it does get a bit busy. The line moves pretty quickly and ordering was easy. I ordered the Peach Oolong Tea ($5.75) with Boba, less ice and light sweetness. They give you a receipt with your number which they will call once your order is ready.While I liked the boba flavor, they were cooked pretty unevenly, with a few of them being harder in the middle and other being fully cooked. The tea itself was good, but wasn't anything too outstanding. Just your average oolong tea with peach flavor pumped into the cup. There are only a few tables and chairs inside, so it's more a place to just order and grab your drink and then go. If you do manage to grab a table though then it's a nice place to hang out with friends or study. This is just another average boba shop, nothing really stands out about it. Yeah, i wouldn't be opposed to coming back if my friends really want to hang out here but it wouldn't be my own preferred boba shop.

Glad The Alley has made its way to SD. I used to always have to make a stop at this chain when I'm up in OC. The Ube Brown Sugar Deerioca Crème Brûlée (add extra crème brûlée) is my go-to. Price can be a little steep but they have to keep up with inflation pricing these days... Shop is bright and clean.

I really love their purple rice yogurt drink! The service is fairly quick and the ambiance of the store is quite spacious. I would find myself studying and bringing friends over someday.

This is a small spot right next door to Crumbl cookie! It's in a very busy parking lot, but plenty of spots available. It's very clean, neat, and bright inside with limited seating. Good ambiance and music. The menu is very limited. The servers are very friendly and welcoming. Overall, I was quite disappointed considering multiple people recommended this spot. I wouldn't come back here for boba. Food review:Jasmine milk tea boba: (2/5) The flavor wasn't what I was expecting. It was a very bland/boring drink. It definitely had a jasmine flavor, but lacked sweetness. I couldn't finish it honestly. Ube taro brown sugar: (4/5) Super sweet, but really good strong ube flavor. Good combo of flavors. Would order again!

I came here with my daughter and we really enjoyed our drinks. She ordered the Orange Peach Oolong and I got the Assam Black Milk Tea w/boba. Both drinks were good, but if I had to pick a favorite, it would be the Orange Peach Oolong. The drink was both fragrant and refreshing.This boba shop was very clean and has lots of tables, perfect for students to bring their laptops to study (which was what my daughter did while I ran some errands).Service was fast and friendly, and lots of free parking in a shared lot!

I've tried The Alley in Irvine Spectrum and this location holds up its reputation. I always get the Brown Sugar Deerioca Crème Brûlée Milk. The cold milk with warm boba is such a good combo. The croffle is served warm each time and the top is very flavorful and creamy. The service is about standard, and nothing really amazing. The chairs squeak here loud af if you try to scoot in/out.

We ordered the Ube & taro brown sugar milk with boba and the lychee yogurt smoothie. I think both drinks were winners. They don't have a super big menu here, but they do have a number of non-caffeinated options as well as caffeinated ones, which is always appreciated. The Ube taro brown sugar milk has a fixed sweetness, and luckily the drink is actually not too sweet. There's real taro paste inside, and it's super creamy and delicious. I'm happy to also report that the texture of the boba is on point, and it's sweetened with brown sugar & not flavorless. We got it with light ice and they did not overdo it on the ice like some other places do.The lychee yogurt smoothie can be adjusted for sweetness, so I got it at 50% sweetness and that was the right move for sure. It was good, but I wish it had more of a pronounced yogurt flavor. I like how there are real pieces of lychee in this drink. I wish that they had served mine in a see-through cup instead of the odd choice of having a seasonal holiday cup mid-March lol. I'm one of those people who like to take pictures of their food and I like the aesthetic of being able to see my drink. (Yes, this is nitpicking, and no, I didn't mind it that much.)The environment is bright and while there aren't that many tables, it's still a good location to chat. We stayed here for a little bit enjoying our drinks.I docked it one point because the price point is pretty high. It was $7.25-7.75 for these drinks. I've paid that much for boba before, but those usually have a bunch of toppings or have more expensive ingredients like matcha.