I've often heard tea enthusiast say that masala chai is not actually serious tea. And don't worry, I'm not offended. In fact I absolutely agree.
A chai, or masala chai in café menus in fact usually refers to a chai latte. Or tea with milk. Reverse that and you can even say it's milk tea - with spices. As if that makes it any more serious tea. On the other hand, in a masala chai, the tea is often masked by the milk or honey, and even the spices. And chances are, the hints of bitterness and spiciness are most likely from the ginger and cardamom anyway.
However, as most of enthusiasts will agree, masala chai is a great gateway for people to eventually enjoy drinking tea. While that may be true in some countries, majority of Filipinos will still need a gateway to this so-called gateway tea that is chai.
What does that mean? I hate to simplify, but it might be that one, Filipinos don't like spices in their drink. Or 2, we mostly just want to stick with what we already know. Or 3, our idea of delicious, whether we admit it or not, is mostly sugary. But what I do I know, really?