Mark and Ellen Lii opened the Chinatown branch of Ten Ren’s Tea Time in 1984. Mr. Lii, the president of Ten Ren Tea and Ginseng Co, came from a long line of tea farmers who had been in the tea business for four generations. His great-grandfather was a tea merchant. In 1953, his uncle opened the first Ten Ren teashop in southern Taiwan. In 1978, after completing an engineering degree, Mr. Lii began working in his uncle’s tea factory in Taiwan. His uncle encouraged him to learn the business and take it to America.

In 1980, Mr. and Mrs. Lii came to the US from Taiwan. Their mission was to introduce Americans to the best teas in the world. Unfortunately, they found few non-Chinese customers were willing to give their products a chance. It wasn’t until 1985, when the New York Times featured them in an article that business finally picked up.

In 2001, the store began selling bubble tea. They even claim to be the first bubble tea shop in NYC. Nowadays, you can get their OG bubble milk tea, fruit slushies, and even traditional Chinese teas in their Mott Street storefront!

📍 Ten Ren’s Tea Time
73 Mott St, New York, NY 10013