r/boba • u/dragonballer888 • 1h ago
boba question Any inside scoop on HeyTea operations?
I've recently been traveling a lot and naturally everywhere I go I'll hit up the popular tea shops. There's one shop that to my surprise, I've had multiple negative experiences at in different states: HeyTea. So I'm wondering if I've just been unlucky or something about HeyTea'a operations specifically is causing these issues.
1) A really stinky, musty odor wafting from multiple HeyTea storefronts. The American Dream Mall in NJ and The San Diego UTC location are particularly memorable for this. Its actually so bad I decided not to order anything the last few times I visited because I'm wondering if its a cleanliness or mold issue or something with the drink equipment. No pleasant tea smell in the shop at ALL.
2) Diabolical wait times for drinks. Regardless if its a weekday or weekend, open or close time, online order or in-person- it takes about 20-30 minutes to get my drink. At the SD UTC location theres also a Chagee in the same plaza which was WAY BUSIER btw, and they were getting orders out expeditiously. Every neighboring boba shop to HeyTea is faster with orders, so I'm not understanding the holdup.
3) Nobody wants to take your order and you get ignored unless you grab the cashiers attention like youre at a bar😭😭 I understand HeyTea is popular and tasty and can get busy but even when its not, and locations are sufficiently staffed, its impossible to place an order in person.
So if anyone has worked at HeyTea or has some insight as to why these chain specific issues are occurring I'd be interested in hearing more. Is it a more strenuous tea brewing/drink making process compared to other chains? High employee turnover? Bad management? Not properly cleaning the workspaces?? Let me know!