Itea Alameda

This branch is way better than in Castro Valley they have tables and chairs to eat inside and great decor(ambiance) clean, and they are friendly and fast service?

Hi there all the time they always have great drinks. FYI this is updated from 1 star

I rarely leave bad reviews, but the customer service shown today warrants it. Store personnel refused legal coins (Jovita Idar quarters) for a bag fee. Personnel stated the quarters weren't real and made a show about not accepting them. This behavior was done towards two young Black women picking up a mobile order. First, I've never had a bag fee demanded at mobile pickup. Second, I've never seen other customers treated like this. I'm writing this review because my experiences have been positive until now, but if this is how store personnel treat people they THINK don't warrant respect or good customer service, then this was the last time they'll get my business. Update: I want to thank the manager for their prompt reply to my review. I also want to address some points made in the statement. I spoke with the young women after their experience. They were visibly confused and upset by the treatment at your store. They didn't refuse to pay the bag fee. The quarters offered were legal, but your staff treated the coins as though they were counterfeit and then behaved rudely towards the young women. One young woman explained that since she'd been traveling, she thought she'd first given a Canadian coin, but then saw the second was the same as the first. She showed me the quarters and they were both 2023 minted quarters with Jovita Idar on the back. Even if your staff were unfamiliar with the new quarters, they didn't bother to slow down and consider how unlikely it was to be handed counterfeit MINTED coins to pay a $0.10 bag fee. I've never witnessed such close scrutiny of coins. $20, $50, $100 bills, yes. Quarters, never. Your reply mentioned the bag fee option for mobile ordering offered since 2017. I and my friends have picked up countless mobile orders from your Park St. location. Not once were we asked for a bag fee at the pickup counter. I've requested a bag at pickup usually after I realize I'm not able to carry everything safely home or to my car. Bag fees are pretty standards these days, so I wouldn't have even argued about it if asked. But I wasn't. So the drama around this fee was unusual to witness and now seems subjectively applied by staff. I want to repeat that I don't leave negative reviews. I actually don't even write reviews, because I prefer to give feedback (positive/negative)at the time of service. After seeing how staff behaved I didn't feel they were receptive to feedback, so I came here to address the issue. I wrote before that I'd personally never received poor service, so I was shocked to witness it. For me grabbing a boba tea and snacks is a treat and fun experience. iTea on Park has been my go-to spot for years. Not anymore. One of those young women is local. She was sharing what she planned to be a fun experience with her visitor. It wasn't fun. Instead, it was frustrating and upsetting. You've likely lost her business. Her visitor had a negative experience in your store and in this city. Her business will not return. I was a regular customer who also recommended iTea for anyone who asked about where to get boba in Alameda. Not anymore. I hope this review sparks change in your staff's attitude towards providing good customer service to ALL of your customers. You have a Black Lives Matter sticker in your front window, I assumed that also meant that Black customers and their money deserve respect in your store. Yet, the behavior I witnessed showed that the sentiment is not understood or upheld by your staff.

Ordered crispy chicken but they used white meat. I thought i was chewing the White House.

3-stars because I don 't want to be that person who only rates when bad experience happens, but!!! I ordered online, tipped. Arrived 15 minutes later and got no notifications on wether if my FOUR drinks were ready or not, i checked in with the cashier who looked so bothered standing there doing nothing. She told me my drinks were ready on the other side of the counter, not impolite but unfriendly, so I thanked her and went to pick up my drinks. Another worker pushed the drinks out one by one (4 drinks), and as she handed me the straw I thanked her, and asked if i could have a bag. Straight as she could be, 'a bag is 10 cent '. I was bothered since there 's no option to pay for a bag online, so i thought they would offer alternative way to hold more than 2 drinks as once. NOPE. I did not even say anything to her and pulled out my phone ready to pay for the bag, she said 'cash only '. I said I do not have any cash with me, i ordered online, and asked if they have any paper tray. She said 'tray is also 10 cent '. I was like tf i tipped, you might not know that, but how on earth do you expect a single person to carry all 4 drinks efficiently? I had to run to my car, look for a dime, then came back in to get my drinks. Honestly, I regretted that i tipped, since i don 't think their service deserved it. Drinks are okay but not as good as other I-tea though.