Dude, I have been sucking on black balls since I was 2” is how I responded to my Caucasian friend when they asked if I heard about this “new” drink called boba.
Of all the years I have known boba milk tea, 2016 would be a memorable one. It is for the very reason that that year, social media had boosted this tea-scented, tan-tinted, milk drink with tapioca bubbles swirling at the bottom. Combined with a generation of teens that have discovered the power of social media, you have the equivalent of a Starbucks personality trait for Asian Americans.