Bubble Tea's Starbucks Moment: San Francisco's Bubble Tea Time Replaces Coffee Break

Central News Agency correspondent Zhang Xinyu in San Francisco

2026/5/11 09:53

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"There's a Starbucks on every corner" used to describe American urban coffee culture. Today, in the San Francisco Bay Area, this phrase can almost be applied unchanged to bubble tea shops.

In San Francisco's Sunset District, with its large Asian population, bubble tea shops are not just "a beverage store" on the street, but have grown into a "bubble tea street," with more than 5 shops within a few blocks. Crossing the Bay Bridge to Berkeley, the Telegraph Avenue area near the campus has nearly 20 shops selling bubble tea.

This boom has even led some Americans who used to only drink coffee to consider "opening a bubble tea shop" as a startup option.

At a night market event, Richard, nearly 60, observed a bubble tea stall, pondering whether to start a small business in the second half of his life. He chatted with reporters, saying: "I see it (bubble tea shops) like Starbucks in the 1990s; starting from supermarkets and gas station stalls, and then becoming ubiquitous."

Interestingly, Richard has only had bubble tea once. He said that many Americans' more concrete impressions of bubble tea come from comedian Jo Koy's performances, and they may not know that Taiwan is its origin.

However, when Asian Americans in the Bay Area mention bubble tea, nine out of ten know it's a Taiwanese drink, stemming from a shared urban memory.

"About 20 years ago, my mom used to take me to Quickly." The reporter met Elijah, a second-generation Filipino American, and Jonathan, a second-generation Vietnamese American, at a new-style tea shop. They recalled how rare it was to drink a bubble tea when they were kids, often having to specifically go to Chinese commercial districts to buy one.

Elijah, who works in the tech industry, said: "Before, in the office, everyone would say 'let's have a coffee break'; now, we're starting to have 'boba breaks.' To some extent, tea drinks have replaced coffee; they also have caffeine."

Initially, brands like Quickly and Fantasia brought "Taiwanese bubble tea" to the Bay Area consumer market. After 2010, a new wave of brands such as Boba Guys and Gong Cha emerged and expanded, and hand-shaken beverages gradually became part of mainstream urban culture, continuing the lineage of Taiwanese bubble tea.

Recently, the tea beverage scene on the Bay Area streets has changed again. Walking out the door, new signs are popping up one after another; this time, Chinese brands promoting the so-called 'Guochao' (national trend) style, which bridges tradition and modernity, are entering the battle en masse.

In an already mature market, Chinese brands are not creating demand from scratch but entering existing consumption scenarios, competing for the attention of young consumers with visual packaging, distinctive drinks, and rapid store expansion. This model is not unfamiliar.

"Bubble tea is so popular now; I like to try different shops, as long as it tastes good," said software engineer Caio, expressing the mindset of many young Bay Area consumers facing a street full of tea shops.

"The market is more saturated, and we face greater competition," said Andrew, co-founder of Boba Guys, whom the reporter met on International Bubble Tea Day. His mother is from Taiwan, and he co-founded the brand with Bin, whose parents are also from Taiwan.

Among the founders of numerous tea beverage brands, Andrew's image is particularly distinct. He often appears in public, discussing the brand, culture, and Asian identity. This gives him an added quality of Bay Area startup thinking: a face and a story.

"We're not the new kids on the block anymore; we also have to innovate ourselves," Andrew said. After several market cycles, he better understands that brands come and go; truly good brands must constantly evolve.

As for who can truly stay in this increasingly crowded bubble tea battlefield, Richard, who considered opening a bubble tea shop and contacted them, said that from the perspective of American consumers, he wants to know who the founders are and where his money goes. But observing some Chinese brands, he felt they were somewhat of a black box.

Richard said: "Besides good quality, I think the brand's personality will be one of the keys to winning."

"If there's a good startup story behind it, I'd be more inclined to support it," said tech industry professional Elijah, pointing out the Bay Area's perspective on brands: beyond the product, the founder's story and vision also become part of trust.

"Whoever can give the brand a soul is likely to dominate the market," said Andrew, who has been in business for 15 years. He believes that without a soul, no brand can create a connection; and without a connection, there will be no loyal fans.