The ‘Bobafication’ of American Chain Drinks Is Here

If I had to guess, I’d say it started with the brown sugar syrup. All of sudden, it could be seen stylishly dripping down milk everywhere—on social media, in freezer aisles, and most often, in plastic cups held primarily by youths. The absolute must-try invention of Taiwanese boba shops was the brown sugar drink, and like any successful recipe, it got copied. It showed up at other bubble tea shops, at restaurants, and then finally, almost unbelievably, it showed up at Starbucks. It was then that I knew. More cafes across America are finally learning the art of bobafication.

The bobafication of American drink culture is, in my opinion, by far the best thing to happen to our nonalcoholic drink scene in decades. The boba shop is a place of constant innovation and endless customization, like if Willy Wonka expanded to the beverage market. Most shops have a level of choice that makes early Starbucks orders look like child’s play: base drink, fruit purees, foams, ice levels, sugar levels, and most importantly, textures. It’s not just brown sugar syrup that Starbucks has adopted, either. The salted cream cold foam is a doppelganger for the sleeper hit of boba shops, cheese tea. Gen Z TikTok trends are essentially forcing the chain to go to great lengths for customization. It points to a development beyond the Frappuccino: Bobafication abandons the idea that a frothy sweet drink should double as a boost for “caffeine” or “productivity.”

Just as Starbucks convinced America to adopt faux-sophisticated Italian coffee culture, bobafication can open more eyes to the pure joy and whimsy of drinking dessert at 3 p.m. in the afternoon.

Bobafication is silly. Bobafication is saying yes, I will add slippery jelly and chewy balls to my milk tea, and yes why not, I’ll put hunks of pudding in my passionfruit juice, and oh my god, of course I want salty foam to lick the tip of my nose as I sip, as if I’m out on a date with myself. Bobafication is raising an eyebrow at a friend’s 75 percent sugar, 50 percent ice, lychee jelly order; demanding a sip; and then feeling secure enough in your taste to admit okay, sir, go off. Bobafication is thinking of that drink next time you create your own order, sharing the hacks with your other friends. Bobafication is choosing delight over cynicism. It’s about connecting to your inner child. It’s about play.

I bring this up now because bobafication shows no signs of stopping. Trader Joe’s debuted a brown sugar creamer. Del Taco, Dunkin’, and Sonic have all introduced versions of another popular boba topping, the popping boba filled with flavored syrup. This summer, the coffee chain Peet’s started offering jelly, yet another thing that originated in boba shops. Not to lunchbox moment this joint, but I’m pretty sure many of the people I grew up with in Tennessee would have thought chewy things in drinks was weird. We are bobafying, folks.