Suddenly I want more
California Highlight #4
Bubble tea ... so many flavors, so little time. We went to Tapioca Express (five minutes away and where all the trendy Asian kids hang out) three times over six days, and we barely scratched the surface. My personal favorite was the the mango flavored black tea, but I also had the strawberry black tea. Everyone else was partial to the snow bubbles (which are more like slushees): Foodgoat had the mango (by far the best ... must be something about mango and tapioca pearls that just go well together), vanilla (just like a milkshake), and green apple, and my family had the pineapple, passion fruit and avodado (a little too avocado-y). I did try the mocha snow bubble, which was good too.

And they were all very refreshing and tasty and came in nicely sealed (and thus shake-able) cups with fat straws and soft but chewy tapioca pearls. That still leaves 139 other flavors left to try.

Fortunately, yesterday's Plain Dealer had an article on all the new places you can get bubble tea in Cleveland now (besides the auto body store). They're all coffeeshops, so I doubt they'll match the Tapioca Express in quality or sheer variety, but some first-hand visits are definitely in order.