Taiwanese celeb Yako Chan wants her new Orchard Central bubble tea shop to be a 'safe space' for the weary

There's still no news about a Vaccinated Travel Lane to Taiwan just yet, but thankfully, we can still have a taste of Taiwan in Singapore with the opening of Dont Yell At Me.

The quirkily-named hand-shaken bubble tea chain, established by Taiwanese artiste Yako Chan (also known as Ya Tou), will officially be opening its first outlet in Singapore on Oct 29. And it's aiming to be more than your run-of-the-mill cafe. 

The Orchard Central cafe is meant to be a "welcoming space" for the weary to reset, Yako tells AsiaOne in an email interview. 

"Dont Yell At Me was inspired by the daily struggles and weary spirits of the modern-day hustlers," she says.

"We simply wanted to create a safe space where people can step in and find peace, without experiencing any judgement, tension or negative feelings. Life's too short to let conflicts and unhappiness rule you!"  

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If you're curious about the chain, which has over 380 stores worldwide, read on to find out what to expect at its spanking new Orchard Central outlet

Clean, spacious and tastefully minimalistic

We personally feel that Dont Yell At Me nailed it when it came to creating a welcoming space because its minimalistic store design was inviting and clutter-free — perfect for people who need a short escape from daily stressors like work. 

Unlike most bubble tea spots in Singapore that have little to no seating space, Dont Yell At Me spans 900 square feet. And the 40-seater cafe has ample space for social distancing. 

At the media preview event, we were also told that some of the tables have power plugs and that customers are encouraged to do their work here if they want to — new 'work from cafe' spot, anyone? 

Sip on hand-shaken drinks and a Singapore-exclusive beverage

Dont Yell At Me is known for its aesthetically-pleasing layered hand-shaken drinks and the ingredients used are all specially air-flown from Taiwan.

They also pride themselves in creating "near guilt-free" drinks by replacing fructose with sucrose and using real fruit juice instead of syrups, a spokesperson told us.

The myriad of menu options certainly left us spoilt for choice. If you, too, don't want to choose, why not go for Yako's personal favourite concoction? Yako tells us that it's the Osmanthus Oolong Tea with cream cheese foam. She also enjoys the drink with sweet potato and taro toppings, she adds.

I opted to get mine with just cream cheese and absolutely loved the combination! Cheese foam drinks tend to be a little too heavy for my liking but this one was surprisingly light with a slightly salty aftertaste, which complemented the strong, distinct tea flavour. 

But if that doesn't sound up your alley, you could always go for other popular menu items such as Winter Melon Chrysanthemum Tea, Tiramisu Cafe Au Lait and Osmanthus The Au Lait. 

There is also a Singapore-exclusive drink called the Cherry Blossom The Au Lait. This was a personal favourite of mine as the cherry blossom layer added an addictive silky texture to the already smooth drink. It was also incredibly refreshing and light on the palate, which is perfect to beat the Singapore heat. 

Unfortunately, the Cherry Blossom Thé Au Lait is a limited edition drink. However, I was told that if it's popular enough,  it might become a permanent menu item. Fingers crossed! 

If you want some light bites to pair with your drinks, there's also a small selection of bakes by The Bake Vault, chocolate chip cookies and butter cakes — peep the limited edition Halloween cookie! 

While there is currently no news about a second outlet despite Yako saying that the brand hopes "to potentially look at new spaces for future expansions", she did hint that they have some exciting plans in the pipeline such as "collaborating with food brands".

Opening hours: 11am to 10pm 

Address: 181 Orchard Road, Orchard Central, #02-24/12A, Singapore 238896