Boba lovers, rejoice!
Any self-respecting San Franciscan knows that at least 40% of the Bay Area runs on boba. This drink originated in Taiwan and has since experienced a massive boom in Northern California and beyond during the last decade or so. Boba, also known as bubble tea, tapioca tea, or pearl tea, is a delicious sweet milk tea that usually includes little tapioca pearls you can enjoy through a special, large straw.
You can now order your favorite drink from a spectacular, glittering food truck called Virtual Teakup, located in SPARK Social SF. The Mission Bay food truck park is already a local favorite, but this new sparkly addition has really caught our eye!
Popular flavors include Crème brûlée (jasmine milk tea with homemade crème brûlée and torched sugar), My Thai (Thai tea with condensed milk and crema), and Cloud 9 (cotton candy, watermelon syrup and butterfly pea flower). But we think all of these look delicious!
Now, you may have heard about the Great 2021 Boba Shortage occurring right now as a result of shipping delays in the US. Lucky for us, Virtual Teakup has come up with a solution! They are currently developing a new boba concept with the use of fresh apples, which they exclusively revealed to us this week. In the next few weeks, you can enjoy this delicious handmade apple boba with the new Caramel Apple Boba drink, featuring jasmine milk tea, fresh apple boba, caramel and crema. The apple boba still has that familiar, soft and chewy consistency, but you’ll enjoy a fresh crunchy apple in the center.
[Images courtesy of Virtual Teakup]
Local sisters Karen, Chi, Tien and Victoria told us that they started Virtual Teakup as an add-on concept to their family friend’s restaurant in order to help them out during the pandemic. Eventually they acquired a trailer in the SPARK Social food truck park, and their business blossomed.
“We wanted to make the brand fun, trendy, and cool for everyone to enjoy so we came up with a new unique menu and covered our trailer with hypnotic color changing sequins,” Victoria told us.
“We take pride in frequently cooking our bobas daily in small batches and serving them warm with the right amount of firmness and sweetness. Our teas are brewed fresh and our toppings are made from scratch in house.”
At Virtual Teakup, they really take the homemade concept seriously. They cook fresh taro roots for the Oh Taro drink, which tastes amazing with brown sugar. They also make their own crème brûlée.
“What makes us different is that we use fresh ingredients and most of our drinks are exclusively created by us. We try not to be the typical Asian boba shop by offering a limited, yet specialized menu,” said Victoria.
Karen, Chi, Tien and Victoria hope to expand their virtual concept model so as to help restaurants offset pandemic-related expenses.
Be sure to pick up a delicious drink at Virtual Teakup, located in the SPARK Social SF food truck park! While you’re at it, take a peek at the other incredible vendors, some of which are permanent and some of which rotate in and out.
It’s important to keep supporting our favorite boba spots during this month’s boba shortage. If you’re not sure what new toppings to try, check our list of toppings recommended by San Franciscans, for San Franciscans!
SPARK is located at Parklab Gardens, at 601 Mission Bay Boulevard North in San Francisco. Stop by or make a reservation from Monday through Saturday, 11am – 9pm, or on Sundays 11am – 5pm.
[Featured Image:@virtualteakup via Instagram]