Images: Provided.
For months, three Adelaide friends have been spending their weekends inside their own unofficial “Thai tea lab”, testing blend after blend to recreate the authentic Thai teas they remember from home.
Nip, Mo and Jan are the trio behind Keeen Thai Tea, a new Adelaide pop-up born from their shared nostalgia for the cold, intensely aromatic Thai tea served alongside street food across Thailand.
“After living here for a few years, we started to really miss home,” they said.
“And sometimes, home means the comfort food and drinks we grew up with, and the familiar flavours that bring back memories and that feeling of home, even when we’re far away.”
In Thailand, Thai tea is found everywhere, from dedicated drink stalls to tiny street-side restaurants serving noodles and quick stir-fries.
For the trio, some of their strongest memories are of eating spicy street food in Thailand’s hot and humid weather with an ice-cold Thai tea alongside it.
“You’ve got a plate of spicy noodles in front of you, and then that cold, sweet, aromatic Thai tea just makes everything more refreshing,” they said.
“Some shops are run by Thai grandpa and grandma,” they said.
“They often make incredibly aromatic Thai tea, and there’s something really special about that. It feels homemade, authentic and nostalgic.”
It was a feeling they noticed themselves missing almost every time they went out for Thai food in Australia.
Traditional Thai tea, they say, should have a particularly strong aroma and a distinct tea flavour rather than simply tasting sweet and milky.
A strong tea base is balanced with sweetness and milk, creating a rich and creamy drink while still allowing the tea itself to remain the focus.
“That’s what we wanted to bring to Keeen. A Thai tea that makes you think from the very first sip, ‘Oh, this tastes like Thailand’,” they said.
“We spent quite a few months experimenting, tasting different blends and trying to get that balance just right.
“The aroma, the strength of the tea and the sweetness all came together, and suddenly it tasted like the Thai tea we remembered from home.”
Keeen’s signature drink is its Thai Milk Tea, which the team describes as smooth, creamy and aromatic with a strong tea flavour that lingers after each sip.
There is also Thai Tea topped with the trio’s homemade cream cheese, adding an extra silky layer to the drink, while Thai Iced Lemon Tea offers a lighter, non-dairy option.
More ideas are already being developed, including Thai grass jelly and several flavours the team is keeping quiet ahead of summer.
The trio is currently collaborating with Thai-owned Tuk Tuk Tokyo Bistro 449 on Pulteney Street, pairing its tea with the Thai food that originally inspired the idea.
Keeen will then head into the heart of the CBD on Sunday, September 27, appearing at Gathered Market in the Mall at Rundle Mall.
While all three still have established careers away from Keeen, they aren’t ruling out a bigger future for their “little kid”.
“We’d definitely love to see Keeen grow into something bigger — but we want it to grow strong, stable and happily,” they said.
“We’re not in a rush.”
Keeen Thai Tea
What: Keeen Thai Tea at Gathered Market in the Mall
Where: Gawler Place Canopy, Rundle Mall
When: Sunday 27 September, 9am–5pm
Also: Keeen is currently collaborating with Tuk Tuk Tokyo Bistro 449, 449 Pulteney Street, Adelaide. A limited run of their Thai Tea is available each week.
