Walk along Prince Street in Flushing, from around 37th Street down to Roosevelt Avenue. You will notice a very interesting trend: various Chinese drink chains lined up right next to each other. Posters and stands advertise their newest or most popular drinks. Long lines stretch outside these stores, taking up half of the sidewalk.

In only a few months, these stores have grown, spreading across New York, especially in areas like Flushing and Manhattan. This trend isn’t contained to New York, however; it can be seen nationwide, particularly in states with large Asian populations such as California.

Around six years ago, the same Prince Street was much quieter. It was dominated by a few local, older restaurants, ones that I would frequently go to when eating with my parents or grandparents. They offered classic flavors that were mostly popular among the older generation. These stores were then replaced by newer restaurants, including hot pot and barbecue, catering towards a younger audience. After a few tea shops opened, similar tea shops took over the street. It is no surprise that Prince Street is also known as “Diabetes Street.”

But what caused there to be such an increase in these drink chains?

A simple explanation is that these stores brought over new trends, leaving an imprint on our consumer culture. Many drink stores found success by appealing to a younger generation with a consumption culture. Every time I go to Flushing with my friends, I feel the need to stop at a milk tea shop to either get my usual or something new. Seeing how popular these special products were, more stores decided to bring them to the United States.

Tea shops did exist in the United States prior to this sudden boom, but they mainly focused on more widely-recognized options, such as bubble tea. The drinks were recognizable: the same chewy tapioca pearls and flavored bubble tea. In China, new flavors and drinks emerged. These chains brought over popular trends in China, including cheese foam, fruit tea, and brown sugar milk tea. These experimental tea flavors and toppings attracted more customers.

Another reason for the rise of chains was the companies’ incentive to globalize these Chinese brands. In the past, American fast food chains, like Starbucks and McDonalds, have spread internationally to other countries. But in recent years, there has been a decrease in the consumption of these brands. This is due to an influx of local brands competing with these large corporations.

In larger, more populated cities, like Shanghai, there is fierce competition: trends shift, old restaurants are often replaced by newer ones, and consumers strive to try new things instead of sticking to one store. Instead of facing competition in China, the milk tea chains turn towards another market.

But globalizing these chain stores is not without its challenges. In the case of the Chinese hot pot chain, Haidilao, the staff provides services like free manicures and noodle-making performances for their customers in China. Qu Cong, the Chief Financial Officer of Super Hi International Holdings, Haidilao’s overseas business entity, said, “For American customers, there’s a strong sense of boundaries, so simply copying the practices used in China might not work.”

Opening up in larger cities in the U.S. is also a challenge. Typically, stores open on the West or East Coast, where there is a large population of Asians who are either familiar with or willing to try the product.

But how do these rather similar stores thrive? Won’t there be competition in the U.S. market as well?

First of all, they are well-received by a younger audience. Posting and sharing on social media only allowed these stores to expand in popularity.

Another reason is that these stores have a unique aspect that differentiates them from other drink shops. For example, many of these stores sell different types of tea.

Cuppa Tea, located in Tangram Mall, is famous for their Hong Kong style milk tea, which is filtered through a fine mesh several times, giving it its nickname, ‘silk stocking milk tea.’ Additionally, they offer other classic Hong Kong pastries, like pineapple buns stuffed with butter or egg waffles.

Molly Tea, located on Prince Street, mixes milk with natural aromas, including jasmine, osmanthus, oolong, and gardenia. As a result, the milk tea has a more floral fragrance. Auntea Jenny is another store that uses herbal flavors in their drinks. Chagee also uses fresh tea leaves in their milk tea drinks in California. Their name references a famous Chinese opera, showing the connection between new trends and deep-rooted, traditional culture.

HEYTEA is known for creating cheese foam tea: a thick layer of slightly salty cream cheese that floats atop their drinks. It is used as a topping for different drinks, including fruit tea.

Recently, NAIXUE, known for its refreshing fruit teas, opened up in Flushing.

Taning Lemon Tea specializes in lemon tea, but with a twist. Their signature is Oolong Lemon Tea, a popular flavor in China. It has a unique Chinese name, literally translating to “Duck Poop.” Unlike what its name says, it is only from a special type of Oolong tea leaf, giving the lemon drink a slight hint of this unique tea flavor. The lemon tea is also “hand-punched,” meaning that the lemon is placed into a cup and repeatedly punched with a stick to release the citrus flavors.

Some stores offer more than drinks. For example, TEAPULSE sells egg tarts, a very popular pastry. Other stores offer a fluffy and light cheesecake, or more traditional desserts, like shaved ice and grass jelly.

At the end of December 2025, a Mixue Ice Cream & Tea opened up in New York City. This chain is popular in China, known for their cheap soft serve ice cream, milk tea, and fruit tea. They continued to offer low prices, capturing the attention of many customers.

There is also a trend in other drinks, like coffee. Luckin Coffee, a chain with more than 26,000 stores worldwide opened up in New York City on June 30th, 2025. There is fierce competition with large corporations such as Starbucks, and also smaller, local coffee shops.

In the U.S, there has been a gradual decrease in the number of American large drink chains, like Starbucks. These stores have been replaced by Chinese tea chains hoping to globalize. In the case of Luckin Coffee, one store opened in Greenwich Village, the original location of a Starbucks that remained open for nearly 30 years before closing in the summer of 2024.

There is a huge emphasis on consumerism in the U.S. as well, with consumers interested in new trends. As a result, these new stores are extremely popular within the first few days of opening.

But will this trend persist? Will these chains take over the U.S. market?

Probably not.

As mentioned before, new trends are constantly created. What consumers are interested in today will be very different next year. A few of the stores have created their own place in the market, but most stores are heavily reliant on what consumers want. If the stores are unable to keep up with the trends, they most likely will not be able to survive in the market.

There are mixed feelings about the opening of these stores. Some people are excited to try new things, while others are nervous that this will shift consumer culture from more local brands to international brands. But no matter what the feelings may be, it cannot be denied that the globalization of these existing chains brought an insight into Chinese trends and culture.

In only a few months, these stores have grown, spreading across New York, especially in areas like Flushing and Manhattan. This trend isn’t contained to New York, however; it can be seen nationwide, particularly in states with large Asian populations such as California.