Over the past several years, boba tea and many other similar drinks have grown popular. For those who may be unfamiliar with boba, boba is a tea-based beverage with tapioca pearls, also known as bubble tea. It seems like most students have tried the specialty at some point or another and social media is filled with posts featuring the trendy beverage. Following positive responses by students on campus when dining services has made boba available, a new boba shop has been opened on campus. The new Boba place, called BOBA, has set up shop in the empty cafe space in the Andreasen Center for Wellness Lobby and is now open for business.
The Andrews University agenda, as well as the AU SILA Instagram page announced the grand opening would take place at 12 pm on Monday, January 22. However, the Boba shop was not yet officially selling drinks to customers. Instead, those in attendance were provided with free samples, passed out by Bon Appétit employees. Some decor had been set up to give the space a welcoming feel, and the event was attended by both Dean Darius and Andy the Cardinal.
Samples included passion fruit tea, with tapioca, and taro. When describing her opinion on the samples provided, Bianca Loss (junior, elementary education) said of the passion fruit tea “This tea tasted good but a little sweet. The passion fruit flavor was present but not overpowering. The boba pearls were a little small but that made it easier to drink. I may buy this one in the future.” Her take on the taro flavor, it was “really good. The tea was sweet but not overwhelming. Good amount of taro flavor. I would buy this one.” Additionally, Reagan Westerman (sophomore, psychology) shared her thoughts on the event declaring “Why say this is the grand opening when nothing has been opened yet.” This reflects a common opinion that the event’s advertisements experienced some misbranding and should have been referred to as something other than a grand opening. Overall, there was a moderate turnout and some attendees were disappointed that BOBA was not selling drinks yet. However, their hopes were achieved when BOBA officially began production and sales at 4:00 pm the same afternoon.
According to AU SILA’s Instagram post, BOBA will be open from 4 to 9 pm every Monday through Thursday. The menu boasts a variety of fruit and milk tea flavors with rainbow jelly and flavored popping boba add-on options. Since the snack shop is run by Bon Appétit, students can use their cafeteria account to pay for the beverages. Additionally, According to an AU agenda post by Linda Brinegar, Andrews University Bon Appétit general manager, the goal of the new dining option is “to provide a space for people to make genuine connections while enjoying their favorite drink.” She also goes on to write, “Chef Berta and our team look forward to quenching your BOBA cravings with our tea-licious offerings.” It is true students have been demanding more dining locations on campus, and though BOBA is not offering another option for full meals, it does provide a space on campus for students to satisfy their sweet cravings. You can form your own opinion by experiencing BOBA for yourself. What are you waiting for, go give BOBA a try.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.