Taiwan, the birthplace of the delicious bubble milk tea is seeing an evolution of its beloved beverage. A distinctive new style of bubble tea has been popping up all over Taiwan.
The half-sized cups are an eye-catching mix of golden brown, milky white and black bubble tea pearls. They first started showing up around October 2018 and have continued to rise in popularity.
So, is this new bubble tea craze here to stay, or is it a flash-in-the-pan?
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New cup, new flavour, new style!
The new “black sugar pearl milk tea” drink (黑糖厚奶) is defined by its thick milk, cooked brown sugar and half-sized cup. The cups have a new shape that is accentuated with brown sugar tendrils giving it a fashionable look.
The flavour is slightly sweeter than traditional milk tea which has lite milk and is usually sweetened with white sugar.
How do I get this delectable new treat?
It’s becoming increasingly easier to find brown sugar pearl teas as more stores add it to the menu. Specialty stores and chains alike are adding their own variations with the hopes of capitalising on the new trend.
If you’re looking for the original and don’t want to skimp out on quality, then you want to find one these three brands.
#JLD Dragon (吉龍堂)
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Price: 50 yuan
Tonghua Street Shop – Da’an
Address: No. 8, Tonghua Street, Daan District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-2701-3532
Opening hours: 11:00-22:00
#Xing Fu Tang (幸福堂)
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Price: NT$50
Taipei flagship store
Address: No. 126, Danan Road, Shilin District, Taipei City
Phone: 0955-906-120
Opening hours: 17:00-24:00
#Tiger Sugar (老虎堂)
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Price: NT$50
Taichung No. 1 Middle School
Address: 7th Floor, Yizhong Street, North District, Taichung City
Phone: 0422-290-190
Opening hours: Mon to Thur 11:00-22:00 / Fri-Sun 11:00-22:30
If there’s one thing about Taiwan, it loves new food trends!
Some food trends stick around like the I-Mei Milk Tea (義美厚奶茶) at Costco, or the wu-ma (屋馬) restaurant trend. Others are distant memories, such as the Portuguese style egg-tart (pastel de nata), that left as fast as it came. So definitely try the pretty looking bubble tea while it’s here and judge it for yourself.
If you really want to up your Taiwanese game and binge eat like a local, then couple your new bubble tea with some local style fried fillet chicken.
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