Eagle Era

By Angella Li

On August 24, 2025, Ain’t Common, a well-loved tea shop, closed its doors for the last time due to staffing shortages and lease expiration. It was an integral part of the AHS community and will be missed by many.

Ain’t Common was a common spot for many AHS students to meet up with their friends. Yumeng Fang (10), a frequent customer at Ain’t Common, said, “Me and my friends used to go to Ain’t Common a lot to get food. It was our hangout place because it was there since I was in middle school.”

Jamie Tancinco (11), who ran on the AHS Cross Country team last year, said, “After practice, if we ran a really big mileage or it was really hot, a lot of people would go to Ain’t Common. Sometimes I would go there with one of my friends, and I’d find out that the whole team was there.”

Outside of the Ain’t Common building, which is in the process of being renovated into the new dessert shop BingBing (Photo Credit: Angella Li (10)).

However, not every student who went to Ain’t Common treated the store with respect. Former Ain’t Common employee Joyce Li said, “Some of the kids do dumb stuff, but they’re teenagers; we understand it.”

Ain’t Common had a welcoming quality that captured the attention of many AHS students. “It was very small, it felt really cozy, and I love boba,” said Kira Hao (10). 

Tancinco prioritized the productivity aspect of the shop. “You don’t have to get boba. You could just sit down and do your work, which was really nice,” Tancinco said. “It was really convenient, and I just have a boba addiction. It was easy to fuel, because [Ain’t Common] was so close to school.”

However, Ain’t Common may not be gone for good. Li said, “The reason for closing is partly because we don’t have enough staff right now, but we also want to remodel it.”

The closing of Ain’t Common has caused many students to seek other places to meet up for boba and food after school. “I started going to A Sack of Potatoes more often, because it’s also pretty close,” said Fang.

A dessert shop called BingBing is opening in the same building. Concerning whether or not the new shop will welcome AHS students, Li said, “As long as you guys are interested, obviously [AHS students are] welcome.”

Ain’t Common was not only special for AHS students, but also for the people who worked there. “It’s really nice to be able to work with people my age, and I see how much joy Ain’t Common has brought for you guys. I’m really sad that it is closing,” said Li.

Finding herself excited for the future, Tancinco, focusing on the boba detail of the new dessert shop, said, “I guess I’ll be missing Ain’t Common, but another boba shop is opening up anyway.”

While the location near AHS has closed its doors, the owners of Ain’t Common opened a new restaurant called Steaking. “We do have popcorn chicken in here, but we don’t have boba,” said Li, now a Steaking employee. 

Nevertheless, Ain’t Common cannot be truly replaced in the hearts of those who loved it. Fang said, “I’m not missing it right now, but on a random Friday, I’m probably going to be like, ‘Let’s go to Ain’t Common,’ and see it closed, and I’ll be really sad.”