Hana Tea

Hana Tea's Dillingham Boulevard location sits in Kalihi, a short drive from Chinatown, in the kind of strip-mall address that rewards locals who already know. The program is Taiwanese tea done seriously: brown sugar milk tea topped with warm brown sugar boba, Hong Kong-style milk tea, Thai milk tea, assam chai milk tea, and a fruit tea menu that runs deeper than most shops attempt. Toppings include cake whip, cheese foam, brulee, and chrysanthemum jelly. Boba is cooked through the day so the texture stays right. The Dillingham crowd is regulars, not tourists, and the line moves through them. Sweetness customizes down to 25%, and even there the brown sugar version still tastes like itself. Order the brown sugar milk tea with boba if you want the signature. Order the Hong Kong-style milk tea if you want the version of Hana Tea that the regulars defend.