Finding a bubble tea in the 11th arrondissement of Paris is not hard: the Oberkampf neighborhood has several, between international chains, delivery-only spots, and street kiosks. What is rarer is to land on an address where bubble tea is genuinely handmade, with real Taiwanese teas and pearls cooked that same morning. MAISON LE TE, at 136 rue Saint-Maur, is that address. No powder, no industrial syrup, no reconstituted pearls: a Taiwanese bubble tea thought out and made the way it would be in Taipei, right in the 11th.
The difference starts with the tea itself. Most bubble tea spots in Paris 11 begin with a powder base reconstituted in hot water, sometimes artificially colored. At MAISON LE TE, every drink starts with a real infusion, brewed on-site with a high mountain Oolong from Taiwan, a malty Sun Moon Lake black tea, or a delicate jasmine. The tapioca pearls are cooked several times a day and sweetened with muscovado: the center stays tender, the surface keeps that signature chew. It is real hands-on work, with everything that implies in terms of honest inconsistency.
Syrups, fruit purees, and toppings are house-made. The milk is fresh, and there is always a plant-based option: oat or soy depending on stock. Sugar is adjustable from zero to one hundred percent, and ice is set to your liking. This granularity is not a marketing gimmick: it exists because an industrial bubble tea is not tuned, it is dispensed. A craft bubble tea, by contrast, is built with you at the counter.
MAISON LE TE's bubble tea menu is built around three main families. First the Taiwanese classics: black milk tea, Oolong milk tea, matcha latte, and taro. These are safe picks, smooth and comforting, working just as well for regulars as for anyone tasting a real bubble tea in the 11th for the first time. Next the pure teas, served iced with pearls: Ali Shan Oolong, lightly roasted Dong Ding, jasmine, or osmanthus depending on harvest. Finally the seasonal fruit creations, changing monthly: mango-passion fruit in summer, strawberry-lychee in spring, pear-osmanthus in autumn, yuzu-ginger in winter. Each pairing starts from fresh fruit or a house puree, never from concentrate.
For toppings, anything is possible: classic tapioca pearls with muscovado sugar, popping boba that burst open (mango, passion fruit, lychee, strawberry), coconut jelly, azuki beans, or cheese foam for a richer version. The full MAISON LE TE menu lists the recommended pairings, but nothing stops you from improvising. The unwritten rule: no more than two toppings per drink, otherwise you lose the tea.
MAISON LE TE is at 136 rue Saint-Maur, 75011 Paris, between Place de la Republique and the Belleville neighborhood. From Goncourt metro (line 11), it is a five-minute walk down the street. From Parmentier (line 3), seven minutes along rue du Faubourg du Temple and then rue Saint-Maur. Oberkampf (lines 5 and 9), the most famous station in the area, is eight minutes on foot. Bus lines 46 and 96 serve rue Saint-Maur directly, and a Velib' station sits at the corner of rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, two minutes away.
The restaurant is open daily from 11am to 10:30pm, non-stop and without reservations. Bubble teas are available on site, for takeaway at the counter, and for delivery via Uber Eats and Deliveroo. In the evening, the dining room stays open late and many regulars drop in for a bubble tea after dinner elsewhere in the neighborhood, or on their way to a concert around Saint-Maur-Parmentier. For people working in the 11th, it is a plausible afternoon break between 3pm and 7pm, when cafes are packed and bars have not opened yet.
The bubble tea format works for any situation. Inside, in a thirty-seat room with understated decor, it is sipped like a proper hot or iced drink, often alongside a plate or an onigiri. At the counter, for takeaway, it leaves with a sealed lid and a wheat straw: the length of an errand on rue Oberkampf, a meeting by the Canal Saint-Martin, or the walk back to Goncourt or Parmentier. In delivery, the straw is packed separately and the pearls are sometimes sent in their own pouch when the distance is long, to keep the texture. The delivery radius covers the full 11th, part of the 10th and the 3rd, up to Belleville in the north and the Bastille in the south.
Prices stay in line with artisan bubble teas across Paris: a touch above the big chains, clearly below the upscale tea salons of the Marais. The difference shows in the taste, the amount of actual tea in the cup, and the quality of the pearls. A properly made Taiwanese bubble tea always costs a little more than an industrial version; that is the price of same-day pearl cooking and leaf-brewed tea rather than powder.
Facing the menu for the first time, hesitation is expected. A bubble tea menu has nothing in common with a regular coffee shop. The easiest approach is to start with the tea. Milk lovers tend to go for the black milk tea or Oolong milk tea, the drink that started it all, the one Taiwanese people have been having for four decades. Those who prefer something lighter order an iced jasmine tea with mango or lychee popping boba, bright and cooling. The taro latte draws in the curious without startling them: a purple root, sweet, almost vanilla-like.
Sugar is set from zero to one hundred percent: for a first visit, asking for fifty percent makes a good compromise. You taste the tea without being overwhelmed. For pearls, the classic tapioca ones are the easiest to start with; popping boba (mango, passion fruit, strawberry) burst on the tongue and appeal to those who like surprises. At the MAISON LE TE counter, the staff takes time to explain. This is not a chain where orders scroll past on a screen. Here, you taste, you get it wrong, and the next bubble tea will be different.
Bubble tea is not strictly a summer drink. In the heat, the MAISON LE TE menu leans iced: pure teas loaded with ice cubes, fruity creations with mango-passion or strawberry-lychee, yuzu juice with passion fruit popping boba that burst in your mouth. Come autumn, the fruits rotate (pear and osmanthus, mostly) and drink temperatures climb. Oolong milk tea gets ordered warm, tapioca pearls are served hot in a gently steaming glass, and the taro latte starts to resemble a violet hot chocolate. In winter, hot bubble tea becomes the majority order: a strong Sun Moon Lake black tea poured over still-warm pearls, with steamed oat milk. You drink it to warm up, and that is what you want on a December evening walking up rue Saint-Maur from the metro.
The seasonal switch is not abrupt. In March and October both registers coexist on the menu, and it is common to see an iced tea and a steaming milk tea on the same table. The MAISON LE TE team also adjusts tea concentration by temperature: an iced Oolong is brewed stronger than a hot one, so that ice dilution does not wash out the flavor. This technical detail goes unnoticed at most chains, but it makes a difference in the 11th when you order the same tea in July and in January.
The 11th arrondissement has a particular trait: it can be crossed on foot, neighborhood to neighborhood, in about twenty minutes. From the Belleville market to Place de la Republique, rue Saint-Maur cuts the district in two like a thread. MAISON LE TE sits right on that thread, midway between both squares. From Goncourt station, you just follow the street south. From Oberkampf, the walk takes eight minutes along rue du Faubourg du Temple, then rue Saint-Maur. From Parmentier, seven minutes cutting through rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud. Bus 96 runs the route directly.
This placement has a practical advantage for bubble tea: you walk past it on the way to somewhere else. Many MAISON LE TE customers discover the address while strolling between the Canal Saint-Martin and Pere-Lachaise, or between an exhibition on rue Oberkampf and a gig on rue Amelot. Bubble tea fits into a walk; it does not necessarily cause one. That is what sets it apart from metro kiosks or delivery apps: the drink is had in the neighborhood, at the pace of the people who live here.
Rue Saint-Maur begins at Place de la Republique and runs straight south through the 11th. From Republique metro (lines 3, 5, 8, 9, 11), walk south along the street for five minutes: MAISON LE TE appears at number 136. The walk takes you past cafe terraces, a couple of organic grocers and a wine shop. People who work around Republique know this stretch well, it is a natural pedestrian route between the square and the Belleville market. Bubble tea fits into that walking habit: you pass by and step in on your way somewhere else. On market days along boulevard de Belleville (Tuesday and Friday mornings), many locals extend the stroll down rue Saint-Maur and discover the address along the way.
Cyclists take this route too. The bike lane on boulevard Voltaire connects to rue Saint-Maur via rue du Faubourg du Temple, and the Velib' station at the intersection with rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud sits two minutes from the restaurant. From the basin at Place de la Republique where Parisians gather on weekends, MAISON LE TE is the closest craft bubble tea around, faster than heading to the Marais or Chatelet by metro for Taiwanese tea made this way.
MAISON LE TE belongs to the same group as Le Te, the Franco-Taiwanese tea house at the Palais-Royal, founded by Hsuan-Hsuan Chang. Both addresses share the same tea cuisine, the same Taiwanese producers, the same focus on pearls and syrups. What changes is the format: in the 1st arrondissement, Le Te is an intimate tea room centered on teas and sweet treats, with the Palais-Royal gardens right across the street. In the 11th, MAISON LE TE has more space, a real food menu, brunch served daily on rue Saint-Maur, and a livelier dining room. Bubble tea lands in a different context here: people drink it between a gua bao and a plate, not just for itself.
For a broader view of bubble tea in Paris, our bubble tea at the Palais-Royal lays out the house methods and preparation in detail; and for a tea house experience in the 11th, with more focus on infusions and pastries, look at our tea house dedicated to the 11th arrondissement. For those arriving from central Paris, our bubble tea Chatelet page explains access from Chatelet-Les Halles.
Bubble tea was born in Taiwan in the 1980s. Legend credits a tea shop in Taichung, where the idea of dropping tapioca pearls into an iced tea was reportedly improvised. Since then, bubble tea has spread across Asia, then North America, then Europe. In Paris, it settled in quietly in the 2010s before exploding after 2018. The catch: on this fast-moving market, industrial versions often replaced the craft ones. For many consumers in the 11th, bubble tea ended up meaning a sweet, brightly colored drink with no real tea in it. MAISON LE TE puts the tea back at the center: a real infusion, a readable sugar level, and pearls cooked that day. Nothing complicated, but nothing that can be automated either.
Founder Hsuan-Hsuan Chang, from Taipei and an ESCP graduate, wanted to find in Paris what she used to drink on the island: a bubble tea where the tea is recognizable from the first sip, where the pearl has a flavor of its own, where sugar does not cover the rest. In the 11th, this approach draws both seasoned tea lovers and first-timers tasting their first Oolong through a drink with pearls. It becomes an entry point into a wider tradition — the high mountain teas of Taiwan, the gongfu ceremonies, and the tea cuisine that keeps evolving between Taipei and Paris.
MAISON LE TÊ, at 136 rue Saint-Maur, serves an artisan bubble tea made with real Taiwanese teas brewed on-site. Tapioca pearls are cooked several times a day, syrups are house-made, and fruit purees are prepared in-house. Open daily from 11am to 10:30pm, a five-minute walk from Goncourt (line 11) and seven minutes from Parmentier (line 3).
The menu blends three families: Taiwanese classics (black milk tea, Oolong, matcha, taro), pure iced teas with pearls (Ali Shan, Dong Ding, jasmine, osmanthus) and seasonal fruit creations (mango-passion, strawberry-lychee, yuzu-ginger). Available toppings include muscovado tapioca pearls, popping boba, coconut jelly, azuki beans and cheese foam.
Yes, every drink starts from a real infusion — no powder, no industrial syrup. Teas are imported directly from small Taiwanese producers. Pearls are cooked on-site with muscovado sugar, syrups and fruit purees are made in-house, and the milk is fresh (with oat and soy alternatives).
Yes. Bubble teas are available for dine-in, for takeaway at the counter (sealed lid and wheat straw), and for delivery via Uber Eats and Deliveroo. The delivery radius covers the full 11th, parts of the 10th and 3rd, up to Belleville in the north and the Bastille in the south. On longer trips, the pearls are sometimes packed separately to protect the texture.
Most chains in the 11th start from a reconstituted powder base and pre-cooked pearls shipped in bags. At MAISON LE TÊ, the base is a real Taiwanese tea brewed to order, the pearls are cooked fresh daily, and sugar is adjustable from 0 to 100%. The price is slightly higher, but the actual tea volume in the cup and the pearl texture are in a different league.
Address: 136 rue Saint-Maur, 75011 Paris. Goncourt metro (line 11) is a five-minute walk, Parmentier (line 3) is seven minutes, Oberkampf (lines 5 and 9) is eight minutes. Bus lines 46 and 96 serve rue Saint-Maur. Nearest Velib' station at the corner of rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, two minutes away. Open daily from 11am to 10:30pm, walk-in.
Sugar is adjustable from zero to one hundred percent on every drink, including milk-based bubble teas. For lactose, cow's milk can be swapped for oat milk or soy milk depending on daily stock. Plain iced teas served with tapioca pearls contain no milk or lactose by default. The staff at the counter will guide you if you are unsure.
The dining room at 136 rue Saint-Maur seats about thirty people. No reservation needed, but groups of four to eight usually find space easily during daytime. For an after-work or afternoon-tea outing, the 3pm to 7pm window is the most comfortable. Each person builds their own bubble tea with personal settings (tea, sugar, toppings), which makes ordering as a group more fun than a standard round at a regular cafe.
MAISON LE TÊ at 136 rue Saint-Maur is about fifteen minutes on foot from the Belleville crossroads. The fastest route uses metro line 11: Belleville to Goncourt, then a five-minute walk. The teas are the same Taiwanese Oolong, jasmine, and Sun Moon Lake served at the Palais-Royal location, with pearls cooked several times a day.
Yes, and that is the original logic in Taiwan. At MAISON LE TÊ, the menu features gua bao, onigiri, and dishes cooked on-site, and bubble tea rounds off the meal. Black milk tea pairs well with savory plates, iced jasmine refreshes after braised pork gua bao, and the taro latte serves as a liquid dessert. It is the only address in the 11th combining Taiwanese cuisine and craft bubble tea under one roof.
Yes, it is one of the most direct routes. From République metro (lines 3, 5, 8, 9, 11), walk south down rue Saint-Maur for five minutes. The restaurant is at number 136. The route is flat, entirely pedestrian, and passes several café terraces. Cyclists can use the boulevard Voltaire bike lane then rue du Faubourg du Temple, with a Vélib' station two minutes from the address.
The MAISON LE TÊ menu offers warm versions of most bubble teas from October to March. Sun Moon Lake black milk tea with warm pearls is the most popular, followed by Oolong milk tea and hot taro latte. The brew strength is adjusted by temperature: a hot tea is less concentrated than an iced one, so the flavor stays balanced without ice dilution.