Bubble tea, also known as boba tea, is a popular Taiwanese drink that combines tea with chewy tapioca pearls (or “boba”) and often features sweetened milk or fruit flavors. It’s known for its unique texture and fun, customizable nature. Here’s a more detailed breakdown of bubble tea:

Origin

Bubble tea was created in Taiwan in the early 1980s. There are various claims about who exactly invented it, but the most popular story involves a Taiwanese tea shop owner named Lin Hsiu Hui, who added chewy tapioca pearls to her iced tea in 1983. It quickly gained popularity in Taiwan and then spread to other parts of Asia, and eventually to the West.