As the popularity of frozen yogurt declines, bubble tea is filling its place.
Bubble tea is a drink consisting of a tea flavor of your choice with “boba balls”: black squishy spheres with a texture similar to a gummy candy that are made from cassava starch, sweet potato and brown sugar. Bubble tea establishments are all around town, and choosing one can be a challenge.
Kung Fu Tea: Located on Rockville Pike, Kung Fu Tea has an extensive menu with more than just the classic bubble tea to choose from. The menu offer various flavors of drinks including milk tea (non-dairy milk mixed in with the tea), punch tea (fruit flavor mixed in with the tea), slushies, tea with a layer of warm milk on top, and milk strike (a mixture of brown sugar and whole milk.)
Kung Fu Tea makes their bubble tea every two hours and brews their tea every three hours, resulting in their drinks being made-to-order freshly on the spot. They also offer free drink exchanges to meet their customers’ thirst standards. Rating: 9/10
Ten Ren: Ten Ren is located in Wintergreen Plaza, but locations can be found all across the country. The menu consists of various types of bubble tea and customers can choose from black tea or green tea, and bubble iced tea or bubble milk mix, which is also offered hot. Not being just a bubble tea place, they also have a food menu of different Taiwanese dishes. Rating: 8/10
Boba Station: Boba Station is located in Montgomery Mall right by Claire’s, Under Armor and Lucky Strike. They offer milk tea, iced tea, and smoothies, as well as boba toppings including jelly squares and fruit pops. “When I go to the mall, I go to Boba Station. Their tea has a unique taste,” senior Jenna Traub said.
I think that their tea is just okay. It is not as flavorful as the drinks at the other places. Rating: 6/10
Out of all three places, I recommend Kung Fu Tea. They have the most extensive menu and the freshest tea. If you have never tried bubble tea before, go out and try it while it’s trending.
Jordyn Taylor
Senior Features Editor
