Bubble tea (also known as pearl milk tea, bubble milk tea, tapioca milk
tea, boba tea, or boba; Chinese: 珍珠奶茶; pinyin: zhēnzhū nǎichá,
波霸奶茶; bōbà nǎichá) is a tea-based drink that originated in Taiwan in
the early 1980s.
Bubble tea most commonly consists of tea accompanied by chewy tapioca
balls ("boba" or "pearls"), but it can be made with other toppings as
well, such as grass jelly, aloe vera, or red bean. It has many varieties
and flavors, but the two most popular varieties are pearl black milk tea
and pearl green milk tea ("pearl" signifies the tapioca balls at the
bottom).