An absolute favourite on both hot afternoons and cold mornings, bubble tea is a vibrant and customisable drink, served in eye-catching cups with oversized straws, making it a fun and recognisable treat.
Its growing presence has made it a favourite for many, but what exactly makes it so popular in our local area, Wimbledon?
Bubble tea is a Taiwanese drink, typically a sweet, fruity or milky tea, with a range of toppings, the most popular one being chewy tapioca balls or ‘pearls’.
Though being very popular in the 1980s and 90s in Asia, bubble tea become a global phenomenon in recent years, especially through the influence of social media, making bubble tea popular for a younger demographic.
In Wimbledon, bubble tea shops, such as MooBoo and Multea Choice, have grown largely in popularity in the past few years.
There are many reasons for this, one of them being the large range of customisable options that are offered, making it something everybody can like, especially younger generations.
The selection of different flavours, toppings and colours are endless!
In fact, when interviewing a worker, Jack, at local bubble tea shop MooBoo, in Wimbledon Quarter, they said that their main customers were younger people, generally 8 and above and in Wimbledon, a lot of teenagers come on the weekends for this sweet treat and they enjoy the customisation of the drink.
Buying bubble tea is a flexible task and the drink does not force a certain level of sweetness or coldness, in fact, this is up to the customers, adding to the feature of customisability.
This can be really essential for some people as they are able to create the drink they want and actually get value for money, which locals might not find in other coffee shops.
Bubble tea has also gained its popularity through social media and when asked about this, Jack said that, “I think people are following a trend, as this wasn’t popular a few years ago but because of social media and other trends, bubble tea is an up and coming thing that many people in this area have taken a liking to”.
The interview ended with the employee saying, “It just hits the sweet spot!”.
Its eye catching packaging and unique flavours do make it particularly interesting when compared to the usual coffees and frappes.
Bubble tea’s unique taste and fun drinking experience offer a break from normal consistencies, whether it be a rich milk tea or a refreshing fruit iced tea.
This can be a definite pull factor, especially for residents in Wimbledon, which is surrounded by an infinite number of coffee shops.
So, there are many reasons why this delicious drink is so popular in Wimbledon, its one of a kind customisability, its wide social media exposure and the tastiness and uniqueness of the drink itself make it particularly appealing in our area, since it is so different from the normal!
