In the past few years, boba has taken the world by storm, with a global market size of $2.1 billion in 2019, according to Grand View Research. Boba — or bubble tea — refers to a broad category of drinks including everything from fruit teas to milk teas. The drinks most commonly contain tapioca pearls, chewy balls made from tapioca starch. 

Boba first originated from Taiwan, where Brazil exported the tapioca to the country; since then, the drink has expanded to Asian countries and the rest of the world. Boba has also made its way to Miami, with dozens of shops located around the city. With that in mind, find below six of Miami’s best and unique boba shops.

Moge Tee

Located near Sunset Place, Moge Tee opened its first Miami location last fall. The store offers customers a taste of traditional Chinese teas ranging from classic drinks like milk tea to intricate drinks like tofu pudding. Additionally, Moge Tee serves various toppings on its drinks, such as cheese foam, a thick, cold foam made from cream cheese and cream, and creme brulee, a thick sauce mixed inside the drink. The store is open from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. 

Miu’s Tea

Miu’s Tea has two locations in Miami: one by Sunset Place and one on Miami Beach. Using local ingredients, the store creates dozens of drinks, including Thai tea, strawberry green tea and rose puer crema. Miu’s also offers a plethora of toppings for their drinks, such as lychee jelly, rainbow jelly, coffee jelly, and, of course, tapioca. For some drinks, customers can even mix in ice cream. 

Poke and Tea

A classic poke bowl restaurant, Poke and Tea offers innovative and delicious boba to compliment their food. Located in Cutler Bay, Poke and Tea serves poke bowls — a deconstructed version of sushi — along with a variety of bubble tea drinks. Flavors include peach milk tea, classic milk tea and lychee fruit tea, as well as a variety of smoothies. Poke and Tea is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

Imperial Tea

Offering a taste of authentic Taiwanese street food, Imperial Tea serves boba drinks and snacks. Imperial Tea sells a variety of drink options from flavored milk teas and slushies to more unique options like snow milk and tea lattes. The food selection at Imperial distinguishes it from the other shops on the list. They offer local Taiwanese dishes like the hurricane potato chip, crispy fish balls and braised pork with egg. Imperial Tea is open from 11:30 a.m to 9:30 p.m. at their Dadeland location and 11:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. at their Coral Gables location.

Teajito

Using fresh ingredients, Teajito makes an array of boba drinks. Teajito promises their drinks are made with only the best ingredients and no artificial products. Their menu includes lychee mango mojito, jasmine tea macchiato, strawberry pomegranate green tea and many other flavors. Add-on toppings such as aloe vera, chia seeds, coffee jelly and more are also available. Located in the Crossings, Teajito is open from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. from Monday to Saturday and 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.

Hi Pot

In addition to their famous hot pots, Hi Pot offers many unique boba drinks and desserts. Hi Pot is most notable for their traditional Taiwanese hot pots, an East Asian dish consisting of meats and vegetables boiled in a flavored broth. However, they also have a variety of milk teas, fruit teas and desserts as well. Some flavors include honeydew milk tea, kumquat lemon tea, milk herbal jelly and mango sago. Located near Florida International University, they are open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.