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Boba shop Ten One Tea House opened in Harvard Square earlier this month, delighting customers with their wide selection of “artisanal healthy drinks.”
Located at 54 JFK St., Ten One operates in the space previously occupied by Möge Tee, another boba shop that opened in February 2023 but closed less than one year later. Ten One joins Tiger Sugar, Gong Cha, and Kung Fu Tea as the fourth boba tea shop in Harvard Square.
On opening day, free drinks were given to the first 30 customers and samples of “croffles,” a mix between a croissant and waffle, were given out while supplies lasted.
Ten One’s menu boasts an expansive selection of drinks, including slushes, taro teas, and classic milk and fruit teas. The store also sells croffles that are made in-house.
The chain offers four types of boba: brown sugar, white honey, blue butterfly, and dragon fruit.
The new Harvard Square location is the sixth for the chain, which has four locations in the Boston area as well as one in Providence. There are also plans to open another shop in Amherst, Mass.
At Ten One, dissatisfied customers can get a 100 percent refund on their drink or exchange it for another drink as long as 80 percent of the original drink remained.
Many customers spoke positively about the taste of the drinks and menu offerings at Ten One, drawing comparisons to the other boba tea shops in the Square.
Amy J. Hwang ’26, who has been to the new store four times, described Ten One’s drinks as more “artisanal” than Kung Fu Tea and Gong Cha — particularly their fruit teas. “Their fruit tea actually comes with real fruit in it.”
Tiffany L. Wong, a Somerville resident, said she likes “that they use organic milk and it’s all natural.”
According to Hwang, Gong Cha’s “bubble consistency” is a little better, but Ten One’s location is ideal for students living in the River West upperclassmen Houses.
“I don’t know if I’m willing to compromise walking that long just to get a little bit chewier of a bubble,” Hwang said.
On menu prices, Joshua B. Stevens said that the prices are “on par” with the other offerings nearby.
“I like their tea quite a bit. It’s very floral, which I find is different from a lot of the other tea places in the neighborhood,” Stevens said.
Stevens visited the new Harvard Square location as he is a “big fan” of the Ten One shop on Newbury St. in Boston.
“It’s been my go-to on Newbury,” he said. “It will be my go-to here in Harvard too.”
—Staff writer Caroline K. Hsu can be reached at caroline.hsu@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @CarolineHsu_.
