Bubble tea / boba tea

by **Maneki Neko** » Feb 12th, '13, 07:53

Anyone here likes boba/bubble tea?

I think it's a funny drink and a nice refresher on the go on a hot summer day

My favourite here at Gong Cha's in Melbourne is 'longan red date tea' with basil seed or aiyu jelly as topping. Next fave is taro milk tea.

My first experience with bubble tea was not so great however, ordering a hot 'pearl milk tea' and drinking it without a straw, so I ended up with all those tasteless sticky black balls left in the cup. Yuck

I realise I like almost everything on the whole tea spectrum, from high end organic gyokuro all the way to this popular modern invention

Have yet to try pu erh though...

by **futurebird** » Feb 13th, '13, 03:12

My husband is nuts for this stuff. I can have it once a year when I get that thick jam bread with condensed milk that they have at the Chinatown teahouses... but it's just so sweet... like icecream.

But I swear my husband drinks it for lunch almost everyday. This is the man who "can't have caffeine" -- I can tell when he's been at it he comes home hyper.

by **Chip** » Feb 13th, '13, 09:39

... never had it. Around here, there are no bubble tea bars.

by **RachelC** » Feb 13th, '13, 21:12

I do enjoy a good bubble tea. However, only the ones that have real tea in them as there are many that don't. I prefer the milk tea and combination there of such as milk tea and coconut, milk tea and taro. It is a nice break from the ordinary but purely novelty and never a substitution for the real deal.

by **Jspigs** » Feb 14th, '13, 07:48

I too enjoy bubble tea.

by **TeasandPeas** » Feb 23rd, '13, 18:58

I tried an apple bubble tea from a place in Chinatown (Toronto) last summer. I liked it but it had nothing to do with tea. It was a fruit flavored sugary syrup. I will have to try the ones you are talking about!

by **GARCH** » Feb 24th, '13, 08:53

Ahhh, Gong Cha aka Tribute Tea in Chinese! Their outlets are everywhere in Singapore. But to me it's just something similar to a soft drink

I do enjoy their Fresh milk + Grass jelly though. Love the texture of the jelly

by **Arshness** » Mar 15th, '13, 16:24

I make Bubble tea at home on the cheap all the time. I make strong apple tea and add it to a bit of milk or cream and sweeten to taste then shake it until it's frothy and pour it over ice. I don't bother with the tapioca pearls because they're a lot of extra work and I don't really need them to make the tea awesome to me... I know to most people that'd make it not count as Bubble tea because of the misnomer that the "bubble" part refers to the pearls. But it doesn't. The frothiness is where it gets its name.

Anyway, you can buy tapioca pearls online and Google how to prepare them easily. I just like my apple bubble tea anyway.

by **Jspigs** » Mar 15th, '13, 16:26

I should clarify that I in no way consider bubble tea connoisseur quality. It is more like a smoothie is to a fruit juice in my opinion.

by **beforewisdom** » Mar 16th, '13, 17:26

I love the stuff. I have a nice Chinese tea house/store combo about a 20 min drive away from me that has a huge selection of bubble teas served in a bar/cafe setting.

My favorites are the green apple and matcha flavors

by **Risdt** » Mar 30th, '13, 17:06

I tried it for the first time in Taiwan, really had to laugh: who invents such a weird drink? Such things can only happen in Asia

In Belgium, as far as I know, there is only 1 bubble tea bar in and I'm visited a few times and never saw somebody else waiting in line. I always go for the regular milk tea with taopioca balls, no extra toppings whatsoever. Did find out that the quality of the taopioca balls varies a lot between shops, I prefer the really chewy ones.

by **bagua7** » Dec 8th, '13, 19:05

Chip wrote:... never had it. Around here, there are no bubble tea bars.

As it should be.

by **mcrdotcom** » Dec 11th, '13, 20:13

We have a small bubble tea chain in Dublin, Ireland called bubblicity!

I went through a phase of loving it, it can be refreshing and the milk options can be a good lunch time filler!

Unfortunately I had a bad experience with one of my orders and I haven't gone back since, might give it ago soon!

by **ClarG** » Dec 17th, '13, 15:36

I've had it, it's OK but at first the tapioca pears were gross but then I eventually enjoyed them.

by **lesongtoanz** » Aug 30th, '25, 01:02

The best place I have been to is Y Not Today - Bubble tea and Boardgame cafe.
It is located near downtown Calgary.
I definitely recommend this place to all people because of the vibe, service, and delicious taste.

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