OK, so bubble tea, or boba, served in light bulbs isn't exactly new to the region. Tampa's H20°C and the late Got Tea? Tea House — which was unfortunately impacted by a fire that broke out at its strip-mall headquarters last month — are known for offering the quirky drinking vessels in-house.
Fans of the drink trend, however, will be happy to know that the latest destination with light bulb bevvies has opened in Carrollwood. Polar Bear Ice Cream Roll, like H20°C, is a stir-fried ice cream parlor, specializing in the popular Thai-style ice cream rolls topped with all sorts of goodies. But that doesn't mean the rest of the offerings should be overlooked.
Launched at 15006 N. Dale Mabry Highway in late December, Polar Bear carries light bulb drinks and smoothies, including bubble tea, in 15 flavors. Options include papaya, strawberry, coffee mocha, peach, piña colada and matcha — even taro on a recent visit.
The shop — sidebar — also whips up another fun menu item in the form of sweet and savory crêpe cones. They're a thing, yes.
Back to the boba: Once a guest's order is prepared, the bubble tea is transferred into a bulbous cup via a funnel, then presented with a colorful straw that's fat enough to slurp up the tapioca balls hanging out at the bottom.
Just look at those boba-filled bulbs (pictured above). Admit it, you need one in your life.
And, before you even start with me, these drinking vessels are not on the same level of obnoxious as the assortment of comical and irksome photos that show up when you sift through a certain hashtag — cough, #WeWantPlates, cough — on Twitter. Nice try, but not even close.
This article appears in Jan 25 – Feb 1, 2018.