For many who have tried bubble tea (also called boba or pearl milk tea), the first taste is unforgettable. The sealed lid, fat straw, and black pearls settled on the bottom create a distinctive image, instantly recognizable on any menu or t-shirt. This novel product from Taiwan has expanded throughout the globe, enjoying particular acceptance in the United States.
Through an analysis of the drink’s component parts in relation to Taiwanese history, this paper argues bubble tea’s potential to serve as a meaningful national symbol along the example of Korean kimchi. However, due to belated government action, health concerns, and circumstances of exportation, bubble tea has instead come to represent a different type of identity beyond outmoded twentieth century notions of nationalism. This emergent identity is shared by second-generation Asian diasporas in need of modern, cosmopolitan symbols and products to counteract long-held orientalist presumptions. In the diverse United States, this need is particularly strong, and explains bubble tea’s unexpected popularity.