Hi Tea, a Singaporean home-grown brand was created by five under-30 Singaporeans and opened its first store at Far East Plaza in November 2017. Their latest and second outlet has opened at Northpoint City South Wing just last month. with the aim of modernising tea drinking culture here in Singapore, Hi Tea’s drinks are made with contemporary techniques such as cold brewing to bring out the flavours of the tea.
Hi Tea is not a franchised brand. It was something that the five started from scratch after getting inspiration from the bubble tea culture overseas and here in Singapore.
The Far East Plaza outlet is located nearer to Goodwood Park hotel. The outdoor outlet has seats sheltered by large parasols though in this Singapore’s climate, it can get extremely warm which can be countered by the refreshing cool beverages from Hi Tea.
Hi Tea has a menu selection of Cold Brew Fruit Teas, Cloud Teas (with cream froth on top) and Pure and Fusion Teas. Whilst there are many flavours to suit different customers, there were some favourites for me.
The Watermelon Snow tea is great for the hot weather. If you are perspiring too much from the heat. Go for this. It is my rendition of ‘Liang Teh” (cooling tea). A much more palatable version. No wonder, the Watermelon Snow is Hi Tea’s top seller. I am sure the Grapefruit Ice, Rockmelon Ice and Strawberry Snow will give you the same cool-down effect .
And if you are still feeling peckish after lunch or dinner, the Mix Fruit King with Cold Brewed Oolong is perfect. You get your drink, and also fruits to munch on. Like a two-in-one solution to desserts and a post-meal drink.
The D24 Premium Durian Jasmine Tea is its latest beverage in the menu. It is for a limited time since the fruit is also seasonal. It is expected to be available till July this year. At first, I was apprehensive at the Durian and Jasmine Tea combination but that was also what piqued my interest to attend the media tasting. Afterall, I rather have the fruit on its own, where I can savour the flavours of the King of Fruits on its own. But after have a first few sips of the durian tea, it grew on me. It wasn’t too thick and cloying, so a serving of the tea was easy to drink down and not overly filling. It wasn’t overly sweet and you could taste the Jasmine tea as an aftertaste.
