Where did boba tea come from?

Created in Taiwan in the late ‘80s, boba culture stems from Taiwan’s rich history of tea cultivation and appreciation. Teas from the island (especially oolong and black cultivars) are prized as some of the best in the world, and in Taiwan and many parts of East Asia, social gatherings at home and in traditional tea houses have made tea drinking an integral part of life. Traditionally, tea drinking could stretch into hours-long affairs where the conversation and community was valued as much as the drink itself.

Around the globe and right here in Minneapolis, boba tea has become a modern tea culture of its own. Especially popular among the university crowd, you can still find tea lovers treating a trip for boba as a chance to connect over a cup.

How to order Boba Tea

Another key to boba tea’s popularity lies in the choose-your-own-adventure vibe the drink offers. With all the variations available on tea shop menus, from different tea bases and flavor syrups to milks and add-in ingredients, there are literally endless ways to customize your cup. For the uninitiated, here’s a primer on the choices you may have to wade through before you order.

Every cup of boba begins with a scoop of some chewy delight:

• Tapioca pearls: Unmistakably chewy with a hard to describe texture all their own — in Chinese the springy consistency is known as QQ — tapioca balls are a true delight. Boba tea will typically be served with a straw wide enough to let you sip the pearls along with the tea and chew the pearls to your heart’s content.
• Popping pearls/popping boba: Similar in shape to tapioca pearls, “popping” boba are spherical flavored juice contained within a delightfully squishy shell that pops in your mouth when you bite down on them. If you’ve ever watched a chef experiment with molecular gastronomy on the Food Network, the idea is the same here. It’s science! Delicious science.
• Flavored jellies: Many tea shops give you the option of swapping boba pearls for softer flavored jellies. Made with coconut meat (which gives a texture slightly thicker than the gelatin used in jell-o desserts) these jellies come in a wide range of flavors, like coffee, green apple, mango, lychee, or rainbow. You’ll even see some jellies in shapes like hearts, stars, or dolphins!
• Red bean: Made from sweetened adzuki beans, this sweet, earthy topping is typically added in addition to tapioca pearls or blended into the milk base for a textural treat.
• Egg pudding/custard: Sweet and lusciously creamy, several shops offer egg custard as a textural add-in instead of (or in addition to) boba pearls. You may also see other pudding flavors, like mango.

Then comes the tea! Many boba shops offer different tea bases (think black, green, Thai, jasmine, oolong, and chai) as well as a whole host of flavors. Some popular flavors include coconut, avocado, taro, jackfruit, mango, kiwi, honeydew, strawberry, guava, passion fruit.

You’re not done with choices quite yet, because you’ll also need to choose between milk and fruit tea, level of sweetness, and at many tea shops, temperature! Classic boba tea is cold (served with lots of ice), but you can also find hot and blended varieties. (And though it’s often referred to as milk tea, many tea shops actually use non-dairy cream options, like soy or oat milk.)

Ready to order? Here are a few locally owned tea houses in Minneapolis for your boba tea cravings.

Mu Mu Tea

Two blocks from the UMN campus, this minimalist Dinkytown tea shop specializes in traditional bubble milk tea, tea macchiatos, and made-to-order Taiwaneese wheel cakes, delicious round cakes loaded with a variety of fillings from matcha red bean to peanut mochi.

Waffle Bar

This Uptown dessert and tea shop has been shaking up fruit teas, milk teas, smoothies, and specialty drinks like the Coco Loco with basil seeds, crystal pearls, aloe vera, and lychee since 2018. To go with your sip, dig into Hong Kong-style bubble waffles topped with sweet or savory toppings (think ice cream and chocolate chip cookies or fried chicken with spicy harissa BBQ).

Sencha Tea Bar

With three locations in the Twin Cities (including a shop inside the Mall of America), this tea shop specializes in loose leaf teas from around the world along with a loooong list of “Flavor it Your Way” options — brewed, iced, or blended tea shakes with a variety of flavors and additions. Tapioca pearls are made fresh every day, and seasonal specials can help avoid that too-many-choices panic.

Ichigo Tokyo Crepe

While Ichigo’s boba tea menu isn’t as wildly expansive as others on this list, it’s the only place you can pair a refreshing milk tea with handheld, Tokyo-style crepes and Japanese souffle pancakes. (Fun fact: this colorful spot began as a weekly two-person pop-up inside a coffee shop in North Minneapolis.)

Niko Niko Boba

Niko Niko offers Taiwanese-style bubble tea and other delights and has several locations in the Twin Cities, including in Dinkytown and local malls (including the Mall of America). You’ll find boba teas like Salted Caramel Hojicha and Nutella plus fruit teas, tea lattes, and Fruit QQs with a chewy topping combo of boba pearls and coconut jelly.

Beyond the local tea shops, you’ll also find a few tried-and-true international chains noted for popularizing boba in the states.

Kung Fu Tea

This global boba chain knows its audience: Kung Fu Tea has not one but two locations near the UMN campus (and another coming soon to Nicollet Ave a.k.a. Minneapolis’s Eat Street). The massive menu includes brewed teas, milk and fruit teas, lemonade-tea blends, yakult yogurt drinks, and milk caps featuring a thick layer of salty milk.

Bober Tea & Mochi Dough

Also by the UMN campus is this gem: Bober Tea & Mochi Dough. You can get any flavor imaginable of boba tea here, but including a Japanese donut in your order is a must. They're made with rice flour and are delightfully chewy, crisp, and Instagrammable.

Mango Mango Dessert

Founded in NYC’s Chinatown in 2013, this chain offers cheese foam-topped teas, smoothies topped with red beans, hot tea by the pot, plus Hong Kong-style hot and cold dessert soups, ice creams, crepes, and waffles.

Tiger Sugar

Originating in Taiwan, Tiger Sugar is an international cult brand that has finally made its way to Minneapolis. The signature drink here is their brown sugar tea. What makes Tiger Sugar so special is their handcrafted syrups and tapioca pearls which are made through a careful and intricate 8 hour process. Make sure to capture a photo of your drink before you take a sip. Tiger Sugar is famous for delivering their drinks with a "tiger stripe" design running down the sides of each cup.

Other chains of note: Feng Cha, Chicago-based Uni Uni located inside Legendary Spice Chinese Restaurant, and Bambu Dessert & Drinks offering Chè—Vietnamese dessert drinks made with coconut cut by hand daily.

Want a full meal with your milk tea? These restaurants have you covered.

Quang Restaurant

At Quang, Vietnamese fare from phở and bun vermicelli noodle salads to lunchtime banh mi sandwiches is served up alongside milk pearl iced teas with boba pearls and fruit jellies or Vietnamese coffee with sweetened condensed milk.

Eat Street Crossing

Eat Street Crossing is home to six unique food vendors. Sushi Dori serves "Sushi Sandos" (AKA sushi sandwiches), Bebe Zito serves both burgers and ice cream, Ouro Pizzaria provides Brazilian-style pizza, and Niko Niko Boba is on site with their signature bubble tea.

PA Tea & Poke

Pair a brown sugar milk tea, an oolong tea latte, matcha cheese tea, and more with a poke bowl at this Riverfront District restaurant in Northeast Minneapolis. Here, you can find high-quality tuna, and many reviewers have said it's the best poke place in Minneapolis. The Hawaiian Bowl and Seared Salmon Bowl are crowd favorites.

My Huong Kitchen

In addition to a full menu of Vietnamese plates (fan favorites include the super-fresh spring rolls, lemongrass chicken banh mi, and vegan noodle soup), this popular family-owned spot combines boba pearls with real fruit smoothies.