Bubble Tea launches in Jozi
So, I went to try it out, at the happy.me bubble tea bar in Greenside, the first of its kind in SA (there are plans to roll out more stores in the rest of SA next year). The set up of the store is really cool, there’s a huge tree in the middle, a grass wall and a few tables and benches. I think it’s more of a takeaway place. I love love love the branding, and it’s been carried through very well throughout the store. The tag line is “chilling, thinking, dreaming”, which is kind of what everyone wants to do- right?
So what is bubble tea, actually, you ask? Imagine a thinned out smoothie, with exotic toppings like black pearls and popping pearls, which pop in your mouth. I tasted mostly milky teas (I enquired about the KJ content of these because they are milky AND sweet), but there are also black teas and green teas on the menu. The coffee-holics needn’t feel left out, because happy.me stocks a really fancy espresso machine (the only one in the country) which is the official espresso machine used at the World Barista Championships.
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Chocolate oreo and cream |
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Strawberry |
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Pink lemon and lime |
Now, I enjoyed the tea, and I’d probably pick up one if I was in the area… but it didn’t blow me away. It was nice. I think the idea is cool, and we definitely need more beverage bars in SA, but I think in Jozi people have short attention spans: things become trendy for a short while (think Cinnabon, and then Wakaberry/ Filo yoghurt), and then people move onto the next trend… which currently happens to be bubble tea. Who knows, maybe this one will last 🙂
happy.me is situated at 127 Greenway Road, Village Green Shopping Centre, Greenside (next to Woolies)
xx H
November 3, 2013 @ 3:13 pm
Hi,
I am the owner of happy.me and we appreciate all feedback. I just want to explain that we are not a bubble tea bar, but a funky non-alcoholic beverage bar, with a range of drinks from smoothies, to espressos to yoghurt drinks. We deliberately want to be seen as more than just bubble tea (only 30% of our menu) because we agree with you on the possibility of bubble tea just being a trend. We plan to be around for a long time, proudly SA. To do this we need to be ahead of the game and always deliver innovative drinks. Hopefully we will achieve this. Thanks again for your feedback.
Jan
November 3, 2013 @ 3:42 pm
Hi Jan
Thanks for the comment! Next time I’m in the area, I’ll definitely pop by and try some of the other drinks. Just to let you know, the press release I received stated that happy.me is a bubble tea beverage bar- you may want to get that changed. All the best! H
February 13, 2014 @ 6:13 pm
I tried bubble tea today after reading this blog and seeing many instagram pics. I had the passion and lychee bubble tea…I enjoyed it!
will definitely be going back to try the others 🙂
September 17, 2014 @ 7:40 pm
Can anyone verify if the bubble teas are suitable for vegetarians? Someone told my niece that the ‘bubbles’ contain gelatin.
September 19, 2014 @ 12:08 pm
The ones at Happy Me are definitely veggie friendly- they make it clear that the jelly doesn’t have gelatin