Thanks to Dave Cook at Eating In Translation for the tip and photo
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Signage is up for Molly Tea at 2857 Broadway (between West 110th and West 111th streets), marking another major Chinese beverage chain’s arrival in the growing cluster near Columbia University.
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The location will be Molly Tea’s second in Manhattan—the company already operates a location in Chinatown at 63 Mott Street—and its fourth in New York City overall, joining existing stores in Flushing, Queens and Brooklyn.Molly Tea was founded in 2021 in Shenzhen, China by Zhang Bochung. The name “Molly” is a phonetic play on “Mò Lì”, the Chinese word for jasmine flower—fitting, since the chain specializes in floral milk teas, particularly jasmine-based drinks. The brand is known for its signature “Snowy Whipped Cream,” a jasmine-infused whipped cream topping, and its Premium Jasmine Milk Tea, which the company says is crafted using freshly picked double-petal jasmine flowers from Hengzhou infused into high-mountain tea through a seven-step scenting process.
The chain has expanded rapidly, growing from 785 locations globally in October 2024 to more than 2,000 stores worldwide as of late 2025, according to the company’s website. Molly Tea now operates across China, the U.S., UK, Canada, Australia, Thailand, Singapore, and other countries. When its Chicago Chinatown location opened in January 2025, it became the first milk tea brand from mainland China to open a branch in Chicago, Block Club Chicago reported.
The Flushing flagship has been a strong performer: the store reportedly generated over $420,000 in sales in its first month, with one month’s revenue surpassing $570,000, according to the Global Times.
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Molly Tea’s arrival continues a pattern of Chinese beverage companies setting up shop in the West 100s near Columbia. We recently reported that NaiSnow, a Shenzhen-founded tea and bakery chain with nearly 2,000 locations, opened at 971 Amsterdam Avenue, and that Luckin Coffee, China’s largest coffee chain, is preparing to open at 2799 Broadway at West 108th Street.Have a news tip? Send it to us here!
