April 30 is the day that boba lovers everywhere rejoice to celebrate National Bubble Tea Day. For the newbies out there, bubble tea is a (delicious) Taiwanese tea-based drink with tapioca balls or flavored jellies.
I (and my fellow bobaholics) understand that not all bubble tea is created equal. Tea comes in dozens of different flavors and can be paired with chewy boba, bursting bubbles, white pearls, aloe, or fruit jellies.
In celebration of what should be considered a federal holiday, here are my favorite places to enjoy bubble tea in the Boston area.
Dado Tea – Cambridge, MA
Ah, Dado. A long-time favorite, Dado never disappoints. While most boba is relatively flavorless, the tapioca at Dado has a hint of sweetness and is the perfect consistency– delightfully firm & chewy! Sometimes still warm, the boba is large and very well cooked. Paired with a delicious bowl of udon soup, Dado is always a good idea.
What to order: Peach Blossom with milk or unsweetened Earl Grey Jasmine tea
Gong Cha – Boston, MA
Bubble tea that delivers- literally. Order on Grub Hub and then sit back and relax while they make their magic. Their menu has a great variety of flavors and combinations to choose from and also allows you to pick the percentage of sugar you prefer. Although their boba is smaller, it’s definitely QQ (chewy in Taiwanese) rather than soggy and the tea itself is refreshing!
What to order: Lemon Ai-Yu with White Pearls, QQ Passion Fruit Green Tea, 70% sugar
Gen Sou En – Brookline, MA
Peaceful and delicious. Gen Sou En is the kind of spot where you can spend the day working and then before you know it, you’ve consumed about three rounds of tea.. but we’re not complaining. The boba is bouncy and the tea is strong and aromatic, making the perfect drink!
What to order: Matcha milk tea with boba
Boston Tea Stop – Cambridge, MA
Located in Harvard Square, Boston Tea Stop is usually a bit crowded but it’s a fun atmosphere and has great menu options! The slushes (blended ice) and snow (creamy blended ice) drinks are a great summer treat and you can also combine flavors. Despite the boba being smaller, the texture is perfect– especially in the frozen drinks when the boba freezes, adding a crispy bite to it.
What to order: Blueberry slush with boba, Mango & passionfruit snow with boba
T Baar – Brookline, MA
Can’t decide between boba or jellies? Mango or Passionfruit? T Baar’s got you and your indecisiveness covered. You can order a double bubble tea in a split cup and choose two teas and two bobas! The boba is on the softer side while the tea is sweet & satisfying.
What to order: Mango green tea with mixed jellies
Tea Do Contemporary Tea House – Boston, MA
Avocado toast is out, avocado smoothie with boba is in. Located in Chinatown, Tea Do is a busy spot with a wide variety of tea flavors and boba toppings. We decided on the avocado smoothie and it was amazing! Although the boba is pretty soft and relatively flavorless, the smoothie was not too sweet and definitely refreshing.
What to order: Avocado smoothie with boba or strawberry with popping bubbles
Kung Fu Tea – Boston, MA
Last but not least– the inventors of National Bubble Tea Day (if they didn’t do it, we certainly would’ve). With a ton of menu options, Kung Fu lets you customize your drink with not only sugar level, but ice level too. Despite having quite a few negative reviews on Yelp, we were pleasantly surprised with how much we enjoyed our drinks. The tea was flavorful and the boba serving was generous. Our drink even came with real chunks of pineapple in it!
What to order: Sunshine Pineapple with boba and 70% sugar.