DRIP and DRIVE 7.21.24
First off, Is bubble tea good for you? Probably not… Is it fire? HELL YEAH! Let me put y’all on real quick with Drip Tea. It was the first boba & retail concept store that opened back in 2020 right before the pandemic hit. That didn’t stop them from being such a huge success! They’ve been hitting it off with their tasty drinks and all the fresh gear & kicks they provide. It’s been a huge win for them so much that they have 3 locations [Capitol Hill, Bellevue, & now Kent] and recently debuted their latest addition: Sado Room [formerly known as Drip Tea Market].
Now boba and cars… A pretty common duo, but not many can say they can host a gathering with some dope friends! Once I found out Drip Tea was opening a Kent location at this specific space, I knew we had to set something up for a grand opening meet. Of course we had to bring in our close car homies such as Super Kawaii, Backyard Boogie, Filthy Seattle, & Skreet Garage. I didn’t realize how soon they were gonna open, even though it’s been about 2 years since they started this process. It was actually kind of a last minute decision for all of us to set this up. We only had a little over a week to lock everything down, but it all worked out so well… And let me tell you, it was a grand opening like no other. The main lot was packed an hour before the event started, and cars just kept flowing through! You just had to be there to witness the joy and excitement we had. Big thank you to Lena, Paul, & Justin for allowing all of us to collaborate for a memorable event. It was a true honor, and best believe we’re gonna run it back again sometime during the end of summer. Unfortunately I didn’t get as much coverage since I was playing lot management in the main area, but also enjoying what was around. Just try to enjoy what I got published lol.
The amazing owners of Drip Tea, Lena Phan, Paul Kwon, & Justin Nguyen, are nothing but multiple creatives and great poeple overall. Whether it comes to food, fashion, art, and automotive, they get down with it!
The day of the meet, I had to show up early to prep the lot and help out wherever needed. As you can tell, their new space is fire and in my opinion their best location to date! Hi Paul ✌🏼
Kyappu Car Club never fails to show up early to secure some good spots.
Pretty rad NC1 NSX came in spooling through the lot.
Daniel Glavan pulled up in his immaculate S15 Spec-R after the Namsayin cruise.
Josh Soriano cruised through in his 5.0 Mustang on Daytons. Such a classic look…
Nick Nguyen’s latest pick-up is this 330i Wagon. He dropped it and slapped on a carbon lip & Volk Racing SE37’s just in time for the meet.
Lex Le’s super clean NA1 NSX on Regamaster EVO Bright II’s.
Dru Vun’s 1JZ powered ‘85 Toyota Pickup looking good as always.
Sam Preng did a lot to his DB1 Integra within the past year. He repainted his bay, slapped in a K-swap, converted it to 5 lug, and a lot more. I didn’t get detailed photos, but I’m hoping he’ll show out at HondafestNW.
It was a packed crowd & lot, and I love to see it especially with Sharky’s Mugen loaded DC2 ITR with the center of attention.
Julian Hamazaki from Pain Free made the trek down from Canada in his S15 Spec-R on chrome AVS Model 5 wheels. Shoutout to the boba loving homegirl, Rachelle De Castro, for introducing!
Jeff Diaz went pretty viral for being the first to install TE37’s on a Cybertruck. Not too bad if you ask me…
Minh Bui’s perfectly executed G80 M3 during golden hour.
Patrick Kim’s wicked S2000 equipped with a complete J’s Racing Type GT widebody kit on Advan GT’s. To help clarify, this is not Cullen Cheung’s old car lol. Patrick went through a few phases and built this himself. Props!
Chinh Do pretty much went through all the OG colors of the Advan RG1 with this & his previous NSX. I’ll always prefer silver, but the white on white is money.
Michael Pham pulling out his ‘95 SE Integra with a staggered OG TE/CE wheel set-up, Spoon brakes, and Exceed Lip. A great OEM+ look so far.
Super clean E36 325i sedan owned & built by Dan Usmanoff. I love the Super Touring theme that he utilized with his whip. Flows well with the fifteen52 Podium wheels he’s rocking. We had just met during the promo shoot for this gathering, and he’s a real cool guy. He has his own brand, ap studio, and is also a photographer as well. The sedan man does it all!
We had a nice variety of cars that showed up, including this crazy lifted Silverado 3500 HD owned by Rube Osunar. He broke a lot of necks pulling in, along with Abraham Santiago who helped built this masterpiece. I forgot to snap a photo of Santi’s Denali, but it’s fuego too!
Ken Sugawara popped out with the fam in the minty EK. He switched up the Mugen SS lip for a First Molding one, and even got a J’s Racing wing. Good stuff par!
Long Phan taking off in his FB6 Si fitted with a V lip and Voltex Type 1S wing. He recently picked up a pair of SE37’s from Chinh, and I’m stoked to see him rip through the track with his new pair of shoes.
The front was stacked with almost every car you would wanna own… Well at least for me lol.
Mr. Skreet Garage himself, Jayson Cruz, went through too many phases within the past few years on his IS300. This is by far my favorite one. The brown paint is very sleek, and I like the semi beefy wheel set-up.
Justin Nguyen has too many cars… It’s to the point where he has homies, like Hector Osorio-Garcia, brings them to events for him lol. I’m sure Justin’s S14 Zenki is fun to drive though. The Origin kit goes well with the DMAX hood, and the hyper blue TE37’s really make your eyes pop in certain lighting.
I met Bin Hasan a few months ago with his EF sedan, but he's more known for his E30. He underwent a slight makeover including new wheels, yellow wrap, and even a hardtop. Thanks for the oysters at Jesse’s party, homie! lol
Very clean JZX100 Chaser suited with a Vertex kit and Kansei wheels. The pearl paint was shining right under the sun. DJ BERRY kept instigating the owner all night to do a burnout, and he finally caved when he was leaving haha.
I didn’t realize how famous Sarah was until I asked for her IG when she was leaving. She’s more popular with her E30’s, but of course I had to appreciate her Chaser that she daily drives.
The night was young, and the Drip Tea sign was lit up so nice during sunset.
Aaron Tran’s S14 Kouki dumped hard on R33 GT-R wheels.
The big bro My Pham came through with his ‘62 Impala. He ditched off the 13” Daytons and slapped back on the OEM hubcaps for a more smoother ride.
Vy, aka Voz.Art, is for sure one hell of an artist. Her work is so damn good, and her Kei truck his sick too! Vy and Andrew were a last minute vendor, and it seemed like they were killing it. I’ll definitely add her to my list of vendors for future events.
Lena Phan holding up the “Post Melona” shake, which is one of my favorite drinks they offer. The honeydew Melona bar blended with vanilla ice cream is FIRE!
It was a tiring, but great day for everyone. We can’t wait to run it back!
Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for the next one! 🤙🏼
