There is a new taste in town. It can be fruity or milky. You drink it and you chew it. Dominique Fuchs goes behind the scenes of bubble tea – a tea-based drink served with chewy tapioca pearls that originated in Taiwan.
“Bubble tea is tea based and tapioca pearls are very chewy balls. Some people like it and some people don’t. If people don’t like the tapioca pearls, I suggest they try the bursting bubbles that have juice inside. Kids love it, because it is fun,” says Tahullah Chen, business partner of Booba Beautea. PHOTO: Dominique Fuchs
Bubble tea has become a world trend, says Yixin Zhou, the owner of Royal Tea, a bubble tea shop chain with three stores in Cape Town.
“I came to South Africa six years ago. As a Chinese person who grew up with bubble tea shops in every street, it was hard to see that there were no authentic bubble tea shops in Cape Town,” Zhou says.
Within a year, Zhou opened the first Royal Tea shop.
Three years ago, Zhou’s business consultant suggested opening up a wholesale side of the business supplying bubble tea ingredients to local bubble tea shops. “I rejected the proposal because there were almost no local bubble tea shops.”
But then things changed.
“After Covid, suddenly I got people inquiring about bubble tea ingredients.” Zhou started with one client and now has 25 clients across the country.
Next year, Royal Tea is planning on setting up a warehouse In Johannesburg, as 80% of their clients are from Johannesburg. “Once we are settled, we will establish a training school to train local entrepreneurs how to set up their own bubble tea business,” says Zhou. She is expecting bubble tea to continue to grow in popularity.
Bubble tea becoming a “world trend”
Bubble tea has become increasingly popular in Cape Town and the rest of South Africa. This is according to Ute Hermanus, radio presenter at KFM and a passionate foodie.
Ute Hermanus, radio presenter at KFM and a passionate foodie, says that her mission for the year was to try all of Susu’s bubble tea flavours – there are about 50. Susu by Momo is a bubble tea shop located in De Waterkant, Cape Town. Her favourite flavours are the chocolate caramel, dirty matcha and the passion fruit. PHOTO: Dominique Fuchs
The story behind the success of bubble tea can be attributed to the Covid-19 pandemic, reckons Hermanus.
“During lockdown a lot of K-dramas and Chinese dramas became more popular.”
She explains that people became fascinated with how these cultures work. “I think through watching these dramas and becoming immersed in them, people picked up on these cuisines.”
Bubble tea was “a thing” prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, but it became more popular in South Africa during the pandemic, Hermanus says.
“If you go to the Neighbourgoods Market in Woodstock, the longest lines tend to be the ones that sell Asian food, like Korean fried chicken and bubble tea,” she says.
Susu by Momo is one of Ute Hermanus’ favourite bubble tea shops and is located in De Waterkant, Cape Town. Hermanus is a presenter at KFM and passionate foodie. “If I want something that is sweet, and I want to nibble on something, but I don’t necessarily want to eat something. When I want an experience, a sweet yummy experience, then I’ll go and get bubble tea,” Hermanus says. PHOTO: Dominique Fuchs
More than just bubbles and tea
Most people think bubble tea is called bubble tea because of the tapioca pearls at the bottom, Hermanus says. “But is it called bubble tea, because when you shake it, there are bubbles on the top.”
Kevin Wu, owner of TeAwesome Tea, located in Canal Walk Shopping Centre, explains that bubble tea consists of either iced tea or milk tea. The various teas like black, green, rooibos and oolong tea are the tea base, and are then blended with juice or milk. Customers can choose to add tapioca pearls, bursting bubbles, jellies and custards, he says.
“What makes bubble tea unique is the experience. Human’s mind doesn’t naturally like the ordinary, it needs to be stimulated,” Zhou says.
Zhou explains that Royal Tea is trying to make drinks that have different layers and ingredients in them. “So when you take a sip, you first get the pearls at the bottom, then a delicious sip of tea. Your mind is constantly being entertained and stimulated.”
A lot of hard work goes into making bubble tea, according to Tahullah Chen, business partner of Booba Beautea in Stellenbosch. This is the only bubble tea business in Stellenbosch and opened in 2021.
“To run a bubble tea business… the cost is quite high,” says Chen.
The tapioca pearls, tea, cream cheese and toppings need to be made fresh every day, explains Juka Gerstner, business partner of Booba Beautea.
Tahullah Chen, business partner of Booba Beautea, grew up with bubble tea in China, but moved to South Africa a few years ago. “I am a foreigner and everything in this country is new to me. There are lots of challenges. Every time after I studied in South Africa, I just thought about how nice it would be to have bubble tea.” PHOTO: Dominique Fuchs
Every ingredient needs careful attention and has to be prepared right, says Chen.
“The tapioca pearls are quite a difficult ingredient and every two hours we need to cook fresh pearls.” The pearls are also made by hand and the process is quite laborious, according to Chen.
Fresh tea is made every few hours and it needs to be made in a very specific way, says Chen. “The water and amount of tea needs to be measured precisely, otherwise the tea will taste bitter.”
Booba Beautea in Stellenbosch uses a mixture of imported and local ingredients, says Tahullah Chen, one of the business partners. The berries, other fruit and fresh milk they use in their bubble tea are fresh and sourced from local Stellenbosch farms. They import the tea and tapioca flour from Taiwan and the matcha from Japan. They don’t skimp on their ingredients and they look for the original ingredients, explains Chen. PHOTO: Dominique Fuchs
Increasing populari-tea
Chen and Gerstner didn’t know if people in Stellenbosch would like bubble tea, so they started to sell it at the Oude Libertas Slow Market in late 2021.
They soon realised that local people took a liking to bubble tea. Booba Beautea was subsequently opened.
“If you want to try very traditional and nice bubble tea, always try the basic one like the classic or signature brown sugar. Then you will know the level of the bubble tea shop,” says Tahullah Chen, business partner of Booba Beautea. PHOTO: Dominique Fuchs
During Gerstner’s studies in Malaysia, he noticed that students prefer to have a chat in a bubble tea café rather than having a chat in a bar. Therefore, he and Chen decided to try the concept in Stellenbosch.
“I don’t want to directly copy and paste the business to South Africa. It is very important to localise the business,” Chen says.
She explains the importance of educating the customers and explaining to them what bubble tea is. “When I design the menu, I also list all the ingredients, so that the customers know what they are drinking,” Chen says.
When Booba Beautea’s doors first opened, Chen and Gerstner worked till 12 o’clock in the evening to taste test the bubble teas. It took a lot of work and adjusting to localise the bubble tea, according to Chen.
Booba Beautea is the first bubble tea shop in Stellenbosch. Ute Hermanus describes bubble tea as “a refreshing drink with an experience. I think bubble tea is one of the coolest things ever and I’m obsessed with it. I think it is delicious.” PHOTO: Dominique Fuchs
“Locals like more sugar. So, customers have the option to choose between sugar free, half sugar or full sugar,” says Chen. In China there is not an option and the sugar levels are low, she adds.
According to Zhou, bubble tea in China nowadays is very different from the rest of the world. “When I was little, bubble tea was a cheap drink with just flavoured powder and syrups.”
Zhou explains that over time people are more cautious about the health issues that traditional bubble tea could bring, therefore a new style of bubble tea started to emerge. She mentions that bubble tea is usually high in sugar and contains artificial ingredients.
One of the leading bubble tea shops in China is called HEYTEA, says Zhou. The owner started the business with an idea to replace the powder and syrups with real milk and real fruits, according to Zhou. This revolutionary method of making bubble tea has attracted big investors such as Tencent.
While studying towards a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Management at the Stellenbosch Business School, Tahullah Chen opened Booba Beautea in Stellenbosch with her business partner, Juka Gerstner. Chen said she opened the store because she constantly craves bubble tea. “Every day I want to drink the signature brown sugar bubble tea,” she says. PHOTO: Dominique Fuchs
Something different is brewing
“Bubble tea is very fun to try. It’s refreshing. It’s filling. It’s better than a smoothie and there are so many flavours too,” says Hermanus. It allows you to experience different cultures and it is an educational experience, she adds.
Bubble tea is unique right now, says Hermanus. “It’s not like going for coffee with friends or drinks at a bar,” she says.
Hermanus thinks the novelty factor is driving its continued popularity. “It is something different – it’s not like a standard smoothie.”