Mixue Bingcheng Dethrones McDonald’s

The Chinese bubble tea and ice cream shop is serving soft serve for a penny and it’s chaotic, affordable, and weirdly addictive

A Chinese bubble tea and ice cream chain just became the world’s largest fast food empire, and it’s now in New York City. Mixue Bingcheng which translates to “Honey Snow Ice City” officially surpassed McDonald’s last year to claim the title of world’s biggest fast food chain by location count. With 45,000 stores across China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, and beyond, Mixue outnumbers McDonald’s 44,000 global locations and Starbucks’ 40,000+ stores. The fact that most Americans have never heard of it until it showed up on Manhattan streets is kind of the point. This chain didn’t conquer the world through U.S. expansion. It conquered the world by being everywhere else first. Now with four U.S. locations three in NYC and one in LA Mixue is testing whether American consumers can handle affordable, chaotic, Asian fast food done at this scale.

The appeal of Mixue is almost entirely about the prices, which are genuinely shocking for New York City

A soft serve ice cream cone is $1.19, but new rewards members get one for a single cent (plus sales tax). That’s not a marketing gimmick that’s an actual cone for a penny. I tried the matcha flavor and was genuinely surprised by how good it was. It tasted like actual matcha refreshing and tea-forward without being earthy or artificial. For a penny, that’s an incredible value proposition that makes every other ice cream spot in the city look overpriced by comparison.

The bubble tea selection is where Mixue gets interesting but also where the aggressive sweetness becomes apparent. Drinks range from $1.99 to $4.99, which is significantly cheaper than established NYC bubble tea chains. I ordered a Pearl Tea at half-sweetness because I don’t like overly sugary drinks, and I still thought it was too sweet. The barista might have made a mistake, or Mixue’s definition of “half-sweetness” is different than other chains. Either way, the drink was aggressively sugary. For someone who loves subtle flavors, this is a problem. For someone who wants maximum flavor impact for minimal cost, this is exactly what you’re paying for.

The lemonade is fine if you like things sweet

 At $1.99, it’s cheaper than anywhere else in the city, but it also tasted like it came from a concentrate somewhere. I’d choose Chick-fil-A Lemonade any day if I had the option, but as a value proposition, you can’t argue with the price. The milk teas are solid at $3.49 for Jasmine and $3.99 for Pearl with boba, though again, the sweetness level is higher than other chains. If you’ve had better bubble tea in New York and honestly, you probably have Mixue isn’t going to blow you away. But it’s also not going to blow your wallet up.

What’s remarkable about Mixue is the chaos of the experience

The Chinatown location I visited was absolutely bustling, with lines out the door and a frenetic energy that felt less like a chill pick-me-up spot and more like a fast-food restaurant on opening night. That might mellow out once the novelty wears off, but it’s worth noting that Mixue doesn’t feel like a destination it feels like a quick transaction where you grab something cheap and move on.

The honest assessment: Mixue Bingcheng isn’t going to provide the best bubble tea or ice cream you’ve ever had. The drinks are too sweet, the ice cream is basic soft serve, and the experience is chaotic. But if you’re looking for bubble tea and ice cream that costs less than a specialty coffee in New York City, Mixue is basically unbeatable. It’s the chain that conquered the world by offering maximum value over maximum quality, and now it’s doing exactly that in America. That’s either the future of fast food or a temporary novelty that won’t survive once the penny soft serve special ends. Either way, right now it’s worth the trip.