Where to drink bubble tea (boba) in Joburg

10 Feb 2025

Fans of unusual flavours should try a matcha Oreo cheese cup. Photo: @bubbleboba.sa.

See the magic of tapioca pearls come to life at Xing Fu Tang. Photo: @xingfutangsa.

Take your pick of milky or fruity at Ben's Bubble Tea. Photo: @bensbubbletea_sa.

Bubble tea, or boba, has bounced its way across the world to South Africa, and Joburg is no exception. Whether you're after a creamy, chewy milk tea or a fruity, popping boba fix, we've rounded up the best spots in town to find this more-ish drink in all its variations.

Served in a big plastic cup with a chunky straw, filled with colourful tea and little pearls bobbing at the bottom, bubble tea (or boba as it's otherwise called) is hard to miss. Boba climbed its way into America in the 1980s, catching a lift with Taiwanese tea chains that introduced those lekker little chewy pearls bobbing about in syrupy milk tea. By the 2000s, it had cemented itself as an Asian-American cult favourite – cheap, cheerful, and properly addictive. Fast forward to today, and boba has taken over the globe, with tea shops popping up everywhere from Dubai to a neighbourhood near you.

Technically, boba refers to those brown, bouncy little tapioca pearls made from a mix of water, potato starch, brown sugar, and tapioca starch happily floating in your drink, while 'bubble tea' is the actual beverage. But let's be real – most people just call the whole thing boba because it's short, sweet, and sounds adorable. And if you hear bubble tea, don't be fooled – the 'bubbles' aren't from fizz; they're either chewy tapioca balls, chunky fruit-flavoured jellies, or surprise-filled bursting balls that pop like tiny water balloons in your mouth. There are two main categories – milk-based and water-based bubble teas.

Milk-based bubble tea is all about that creamy, chewy combo – pre-cooked tapioca pearls, brewed tea, and a splash of milk jazzed up with flavoured milk powder and sweetened with simple syrup or a good old drizzle of condensed milk. Think dessert in a cup. Water-based bubble tea, on the other hand, is the fresher, fruitier cousin. Instead of tapioca, you get popping bobas (or jellies), brewed tea, and a sugar syrup of your choice – or just go full cheat mode with a pre-mixed iced tea concentrate.

Want that sip-and-chew experience? We've rounded-up some of the best bubble tea spots in Johannesburg, from three great spots in Rosebank to old faves in Cyrildene's Chinatown, and further afield.

Rosebank

ROYAL TEA

Bringing contemporary Chinese tea culture to South Africa, the Cape Town-based tea bar Royal Tea comes to Joburg on the ground floor of concept store We Are EGG at The Zone @ Rosebank, serving a broad range of signature drinks including the classic fresh milk tea or fruit tea. Perhaps the most interesting thing on offer is the oolong-based cheese tea – it's like an iced latte, but basically a cup of chilled tea (either black or green) topped with a thick foam of cream cheese.

The flavour combos sound great, too – you can get a matcha with Oreo crumbs topped with cream cheese, or a Choco Cheese, which is just matcha with chocolate and cream cheese (still unusual, but sounds tasty). For all your other drinks, you can add a dash of extra tapioca pearls, cherry blossom jellies, jasmine green tea jellies, and plenty of others.

XING FU TANG

Grab a luxurious Dalgona coffee topped with fresh, handmade tapioca brown sugar pearls at Xin Fu Tang. Photo: @xingfutangsa.

Just opposite Ocean Basket next to Maverick and Jane, halal-friendly Xing Fu Tang at The Zone @ Rosebank is known for its exceptional hand-crafted brown sugar boba from Taiwan. If you ever wondered about what goes into the process of making these balls of sweetness, there’s an open kitchen view where you can get a behind-the-scenes peek.

The signature Brown Sugar Boba Milk, with freshly caramelised boba, organic milk, creamy milk foam, and a torch-topped brown sugar finish might just become your new favourite. Other flavours include Damascus Rose Tea with Lime, Matcha Boba Milk, and Strawberry Pearl Milk. We've also spotted a boba ice cream cone on their menu, for those wanting their usual sweet treat with a little extra chew.

Chinatown Cyrildene

SIMPLICITY COFFEE AND TEA
Bubble tea in Cyrildene's Chinatown is a taste sensation that you won't want to miss. Kick things off at Simplicity Coffee and Tea at 18C Derrick Ave, a cosy spot where the charm is in the small space but the specialised bubble tea selection is wide, affordable, and delicious, with the added bonus of getting to meet Betty Wu, the store's super friendly owner.

SUSU BUBBLE TEA

Do it milky or juicy – either way, squishy-flavoured balls are on the menu at Susu Bubble Tea. Photo: @susububbleteaza

Around the block from Simplicity, you'll find Susu Bubble Tea (previously known as MOMO). Expect tasty flavours like Japanese green tea slush with red bean and honey lemon dragon (as in dragonfruit) or a refreshing mango banana with tapioca pearls.

And if Chinatown feels a bit out of the way, don't stress – Susu has three other locations in Joburg. Swing by Early Dawn Shopping Centre in Rivonia, grab a fix at 30 6th Street in Parkhurst, or, if you're all about that sip-and-shop life, hit up their spot inside Checkers at Sandton City Mall.

Norwood

Ben's Bubble Tea knows the importance of a brown sugar crusting on a milk tea. Photo: @bensbubbletea_sa.

What started as a humble pop-up in Melrose Arch back in 2021, Ben's Bubble Tea has quickly transformed into one of South Africa's fastest-growing bubble tea chains. With 20 locations nationwide, it's the one at 38 Grant Ave in Norwood that's really caught our eye. The menu, which is halal-friendly, features fresh fruit teas, iced teas, and lemonade in zesty combos like passion fruit and litchi, or peach and green apple, each dashed with a generous heap of bursting boba.

For milk tea lovers, there's a variety of flavours to choose from, but the irresistible White Lotus – a vanilla milk tea paired with brown sugar boba, cream mousse, and crumbled Lotus Biscoff spread sounds amazing. The best part? You get to customise the sweetness level of your milk tea.

Emmarentia

Layers of goodness: The coconut supreme at Bubble & Co. Photo: @bubble_co_sa.

As fun as picking from a pre-made flavour menu can be, there's something extra exciting about a DIY beverage. Bubble & Co in Emmarentia, which is halal-friendly, allows you to create your own drink from the tea base right to the bubbles. The famous special teas are equally exciting – try the strawberry crème brûlée, coconut supreme, or avocado tapioca. And if you did not know, soda boba is also a thing!

Rivonia

Another halal-friendly spot, Bubble Boba in Rivonia is serving up Bubbleccinos, more fresh fruit tea drinks, milk teas, ice teas, cheese teas, and a little something special for the watermelon-obsessed and coffee fanatics – it's a two-page menu, so we suggest you show up thirsty. Interesting combos to try include the Blue Fairy coffee late, special mango with coconut milk with crystal boba, the Lonely Grapefruit fruit drink with coconut boba, and the watermelon milk freezo.

But what really sets this place apart is the boba milk pot available for sharing for up to four people – for this, you can choose between five tea base flavours and three flavours of bursting boba. To complete the pot, watermelon pieces and taro balls are added.

DIY bubble tea at home

These days, everyone and their mum is trying to DIY everything – so why not bubble tea as well? If you're keen to whip up your own boba masterpiece, Bubble Tea Empire in Centurion has everything you need, from popping boba, flavoured syrups, milk powders, syrups, ice tea concentrates, and pre-made bubble tea to tapioca, jellies, and even the cups and chunky straws. They also have recipes and beginner guides on their website, check it out here.