Japanese matcha for Texas.

Who we supply in Texas

Between Houston, Dallas–Fort Worth, Austin, and San Antonio, Texas carries as much cafe and boba volume as any state outside California. Houston's Asiatown and the Dallas suburbs of Plano, Richardson, and Carrollton have dense boba corridors; Austin has a specialty coffee scene that treats matcha as a second program; and all four metros have Japanese restaurants with real matcha service.

• Boba and dessert chains in Houston's Asiatown and the northern Dallas suburbs, where volume decides the account.
• Austin specialty cafes running matcha with the same care as single-origin espresso.
• Japanese and Asian restaurants across all four metros, many already supplied by a Japanese distributor.
• Regional roasters with wholesale arms who can carry matcha into their existing cafe network.

Shipping to Texas

Texas has two workable routes. Trans-Pacific containers commonly clear at a West Coast port and move by rail into the Dallas and Houston intermodal terminals, or sail all-water through the Panama Canal to the Port of Houston, which is the largest Gulf container gateway. For air freight, both DFW and Houston Intercontinental handle international cargo.

• Ocean via the West Coast: faster sailing, then rail to Dallas or Houston.
• Ocean via Houston: longer at sea but no domestic rail leg for Gulf Coast buyers.
• Air: DFW or IAH, both with the customs capacity to handle food imports routinely.

Licensing in Texas

Alongside the federal requirements, the Texas Department of State Health Services licenses food manufacturers, wholesalers, and warehouse operators through its foods licensing program, while retail food establishments are permitted by DSHS or by a local health authority depending on the jurisdiction. Confirm your category before your first shipment.

• Storing wholesale matcha or repacking it into your own bags generally requires a DSHS food license, not only a retail permit.
• Large cities including Houston, Dallas, and Austin run their own retail food permitting, so check locally as well as at state level.

Iced drinks through a long summer

Texas menus lean on iced drinks for most of the year, and that is where matcha quality shows first: a weak lot turns olive under ice and milk. Test two grades in the drinks you actually sell. Each sample sachet is sealed and labeled in Japan with origin, harvest, cultivar, lot number, and milling date, so the tasting is a real comparison against whatever you pour now.

Texas is also well served by the major Japanese food distributors, and if you already buy from one, you can get matcha tomorrow without talking to us. Where direct sourcing wins is specificity: a particular lot for your particular drink, the region and cultivar on the sheet, and the same lot for as long as the harvest lasts. If matcha is a commodity line on your menu, stay with the distributor. If it is something you actually talk about, the direct route is worth it. Our supplier switching guide covers the comparison honestly.

Your first order, step by step

Start with up to two grades of your choice. Free sample kits are available for US businesses. Test them in your own recipes before choosing your first wholesale order.

• Tell us what you serve. Share your menu, milk, cup size, and expected volume.
• Taste with your team. Compare the samples in the drinks your customers order.
• Get a delivery quote. Confirm grade, quantity, and shipping to Houston. Wholesale orders ship from Japan.