1228 Tea House @ Box Hill

There are some places in Melbourne that hold fond memories for me. This teahouse is one such place. Some years ago, a few girlfriends and I would make this our get-together place for dinner and chit-chat once a month. I don’t go there quite as often now, but I still love going back there with friends for a quick dinner and bubble tea. You can never go wrong with bubble tea.

The name is that of a Tea house, but this little colourful cafe doesn’t serve just tea, or even just bubble tea. Looking through their menu, one will find a variety of food from Taiwanese and Korean Cuisine. Their ordering system consist of an order form and a pen and is available at every table. You scan through the menu, pick out your dish and then tick the corresponding box on the order form. Pass along the order form to the waitress and sit back to wait for your dishes to arrive.

Service is fast and the mood is a casual one. It being in Box Hill makes it fairly regularly frequented by local asian students and young adults alike. The interior is colourful and the service friendly. There are two flat-screens on the walls that are constantly playing mtvs or live concerts of asian singers. They do tend to let the DVDs loop so after awhile it gets boring. But if you are going with company, this shouldn’t be an issue unless you object to the music looping.

A staple of a friend of mine is the above shown dish. It is mince beef on rice, topped with a sprig of parsley and a touch of soy sauce and oyster sauce. Incredibly simple yet incredibly tasty. It’s a little addictive, I must admit.

Personally I’m a fan of the Taiwanese style spicy fried chicken with Rice, and 95% of the time that will be my order. I am not the only one. Taiwanese fried chicken is one of the more popular dishes in the restaurant, and for a good reason: it is bite sized and rather convenient finger food. Before you know it, it’s gone and you have just finished a whole bowl of fried greasy goodness.

I have tried other dishes at this Tea house, and everything I’ve tried so far have been delightful. But I do have a tendency to revert back to the fried chicken. So the last time I visited, I made a conscious attempt to try something completely different. Namely, the korean side of dishes that they have to offer.

They didn’t disappoint.

Just like the other Korean restaurants that I often frequent, the side dishes made their appearances:

I ordered Boo- Dae Ji Gae which was a mildly spicy soup with assorted meats and vegetables topped with noodles ($25 shared between 3 people). The serving was generous and the soup tasty. And while the meats weren’t exactly your top-of-the-line gourmet meats, it still made a rather tasty meal, one I wouldn’t mind ordering again especially on a cold winter night.

And if you like your sweets and haven’t gotten your fill from the Bubble teas, you can also order desserts from limited dessert menu. I tried this fruit salad: a concoction of red bean, different jellies, peaches, tapioca pearls and condensed milk. It was incredibly sweet (most likely a result of the condensed milk) and after getting through half of it, I started feeling a little sick from the sweetness. However if you have a rather strong and active sweet tooth, then definitely go for this!

Of course, what is a visit to the Tea house without Bubble tea? Don’t forget to order theirs! The tapioca pearls at this joint has always been properly cooked, their jelly not too hard and coconut jelly has always been delightful. There is a minimum charge of $3 per transaction, but a regular cup of bubble tea will cover that easily, so it is not a worry. So if you are in the area, and in search of a quick good meal, definitely try 1228 Tea house.

1228 Tea House
936 Whitehorse Road,
Box Hill, VIC 3128
Phone: (03) 9890 1688