Columbus, OH

Saturday after the Midwest Haunters’ Convention, my lovely sisters and I headed down High street to the Pochi Bubble Tea Station.

Photo Joe Koshollek - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Online

Now, they had tea, but what we had were more like smoothies.

Bubble tea is a drink; at the bottom of the drink you get your choice of “bubbles.” The bubbles though are little extras in the bottom of the cup, not air pockets that rise through the drink. They might also be called pearls; it depends on where you get your tea.

I had coco gel, which is coconut, not cocoa. My sisters had the boba, which is a small brown ball made from cassava. To me, the coco gel was kind of a nuisance, but not bad. It tasted like unsweetened coconut Jell-o that had been left to set for too long. It was in little squares that were sucked up through the extra-wide straw. I thought the coco gel bubbles kind of made it a pain to drink what was otherwise a really good pineapple smoothie.

I tried my sister’s boba. She had gotten the strawberry-kiwi smoothie with boba. Now, I didn’t like that at all. The balls are about the size of a penny gumball. They are warm in the bottom of the cold drink. To me they had the flavor and texture of a warm, flavorless gummy bear. Not my favorite I must say. But, I think it’s probably an acquired taste.

My “little” sister liked it about as much as I did, but our “baby” sister was sucking happily away and seemed to be enjoying every little boba ball as they came up her straw. She on the other hand is a recently graduated college student who enjoys all things Asian.

Besides the boba and gel, you could also get tapioca in your tea-hmmmm.

I must say I was in the minority. Several people came through. The place was doing a pretty brisk business regardless of what I thought. They offer food there as well, but to be honest, I really didn’t study the menu.

So, if you are in the High St. area and you’re feeling a little adventurous, head to Pochi and try some bubble tea. I can’t promise you’ll love it, but I can promise you won’t forget it.

Smoothies start at $3.00

Pochi Tea Station
2060 N. High St.
Columbus, Oh 43201