Bubble tea is the name for pearl milk tea and other similar tea and juice beverages that originated in tea shops in Taichung city, Taiwan during the 1980s. Drink recipes may vary, but most bubble teas contain a tea base mixed with fruit (or fruit syrup) and/or milk. Ice-blended versions of the drinks, similar to slushies, are also available, usually in fruit flavors.
One of the famous categories of bubble teas is "pearl milk tea", which contains small chewy balls made of tapioca starch, called "Pearls" in Chinese.
The first wave of the the Pearl Milk Tea boom in Singapore was properly around Year 2001, Stands, stalls and shops selling this drink were sprouting everywhere from shopping malls right down to the corners of suburban residential districts. They even gave out "loyalty cards" where you are supposed to collect 10 stamps (1 stamp for every cup purchased, this number varied, but the usual was 10) in total to get a free cup of drink in return. And, the whole cycle repeats if you continue to patronise them.
Then, the craze died down, some shops even wind up their business.
2-3 years back, the second wave came to Singapore again, with "branded" Pearl Milk Tea shops like "
Koi" and "
Gong Cha" offering not only a huge variety of milk tea, tea flavours, coffee, fruit juice, etc., you can even choose the sugar level you want in your tea for the health conscious (0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%) - 50% is just nice for me.
Cheers to a better future!!
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