cuisine

Globs of Fun

The bold new world of bubble tea.
Story and photos by Dale Irvin
The Bubble Cafe, discovered inside a New Orleans Chevron station, offers an interesting solution to anyone who can't decide whether they're hungry or thirsty: Bubble tea, a creamy, flavored drink with tapioca balls at the bottom.
So if the person who assists us in the selection and preparation of our beverage at a coffee shop is a “barista,” is there a name for the person who serves that same function when the beverage one is choosing is bubble tea?
In this case there is—Nu—the vibrant young woman who guided me through the dozens of choices that exist in the new world of this increasingly popular Taiwanese beverage.
The drink initially found its way to the U.S. west coast and is now popping up in small shops all over, including one discovered recently inside a New Orleans gas station. There are scores of exotic-sounding options, each featuring the signature component responsible for this drink’s name—a mound of black pearl tapioca balls that lurks at the bottom of your drink cup. Tea choices at this shop included green, black and Thai. But there are even more fruit flavors, from green apple to mango, to consider. Then there are those that defy categorization, like Nu’s recommendation for me—taro.
Something tells me that lavender is not the taro root’s natural color. Nonetheless, once I’d removed the protective seal with the warning to new imbibers (“Tapioca ball must chew before swallow”) the brightly colored smoothie-like drink was tasty and interesting in texture, contrasting the creamy liquid with the chewy globes on the bottom, which one vacuums up with the extra-fat straw provided.
The tapioca balls are an acquired taste for some, but according to Nu they were of particular interest to at least one visiting film crew. They wanted to buy some as a substitute in a scene they were shooting with an actress who apparently didn’t like caviar, preferring the shiny black tapioca globes instead. 



DETAILS. • details. • DETAILS.

Bubble Café
3901 Airline Dr
Metairie, LA 70001
(504) 835-4460