Q: There is a shop at Marietta Square called Tiny Bubbles Tea Bar. Is this a tea room for little girls? Can you tell me about it please?
A: Tiny Bubbles Tea Bar in Marietta is one of several shops in the Atlanta area that serve the cold popular drink, bubble tea, made from a tea base, mixed with choices of creamy or clear (fruit) tea, flavorings, pearls or jellies.
While this is not your grandmother’s tea room, bubble tea originated in Taiwan in the 1980’s and is certainly a place that little girls would enjoy.
Tiny Bubbles Tea Bar co-owner Brielle Gaines said that she began learning about tea working in her mother’s café where they hosted tea parties. The world of tea opened up as she began “experimenting with crafting her own blends of high quality loose leaf tea.”
“It’s essentially a drink and treat in one. It’s called ‘bubble’ tea because of the little bubbles (pearls) at the bottom of the drink,” Gaines said. “You drink bubble tea with a big fat straw and sip the pearls up while enjoying your beverage.”
Mother-daughter duo and co-owners Felecia Prezzano and Gaines opened Tiny Bubbles Tea Bar in 2015, expanding from their gift shop that sold blended teas.
“Creating Tiny Bubbles Tea Bar from the ground up, everything has been a surprise,” Gaines said. “It all started in my kitchen six years ago when I made my first batch of tapioca pearls and the peaches and cream bubble tea.
“We jokingly named ourselves ‘Tiny’ Bubbles because of how small our tea bar was (less then 400 square feet),” she said.
Step 1, you choose a creamy or clear tea. Then you pick your flavor: creamy offers nine and with clear tea you have 10 options.
Next you select your pearls: traditional (boba), popping or jellies.
Made from tapioca, the boba pearls are black, smaller than a marble and chewy with a slight sweet taste.
Popping pearls are filled with fruit juice that burst open when chewed. They come in 12 flavors.
If you choose jellies as your bottom layer, there are four flavors to select from. These are like Gummy Bears candy but softer.
It wasn’t long before a line formed from a steady stream of couples and families out enjoying the day after winter storm Isaiah blew through. The staff was informative and friendly.
“My vision was small,” she said.
Never expecting to expand like they have, Gaines said, “We’re constantly blown away by Tiny Bubbles fans, they’re very loyal and always helping us spread the word about our delicious drinks and treats.”
Tiny Bubbles Tea Bar now has three locations.
www.tinybubblesteabar.com.
New to town or simply have a question about this place we call home? Email your request to atlactualfact@gmail.com.
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