The Daily Egyptian is published by the students of SIU at Carbondale. Except during vacations and exam weeks, The Daily Egyptian is published Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters and TWThF during the summer semester."

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Precious Pearls

First-time customer Wesley Hicks, a senior in electrical engineering at SIUC, cautiously eyed the tapioca balls on display and decided against adding them to his strawberry and mango slush drink. Hicks was told by a co-worker to check out the QQ Bubble teashop and was glad he did.

"It's excellent, I like it a lot," Hicks said. "I'm sure I'll come back."

Taiwan native Hsien-Tang Kuo opened QQ Bubble Tea in early May. The letters "QQ" mean "chewy" in Chinese. Kuo saw the potential for the drink in Carbondale because of the University and its diverse student body. Business has done well since the store's opening but has dropped off slightly in the summer due to smaller amounts of people in the area. Kuo believes business will pick up in the fall with the return of students.

Bubble Tea has gained popularity in the large West and East Coast and has found its way to Carbondale. These drinks are an interesting and healthier alternative to soda because they contain less sugar than most soft drinks.

There are seven employees, mostly SIUC students, working at QQ. The store sells a variety of 90 drinks that range in price from $2.75 to $2.85.

The tea drink is a mix of tea, milk, sugar and giant black tapioca balls. The tea and flavoring needs to be shaken well for a good taste; this causes air bubbles to form, giving the drink the name Bubble Tea. The tea is sweet and there are a huge variety of flavors to try.

There are two types of beverages for the customers to choose from. The slush drink is a frozen fruit flavored drink. Kuo said one of the most popular drinks is #201, a strawberry and mango slush. Customers can opt to add the tapioca balls or leave them out.

The tea is served in a plastic cup with a cartoon adorned and vacuum tight with a plastic top. Colorful giant straws, which are used to suck up the pearls, are forcefully poked through the lid. All customers can pick up a QQ punch card and receive their 10th drink free.

Bubble tea, also known as boba tea, pearl shake, and tapioca pearl drink, originated in Taiwan in the 1980s at a small tea stand.

The tea stands were set up in front of children's schools and would compete for business. One concession owner decided on adding different fruit flavorings to the tea. This variation proved popular with the children.

In 1983, Liu Han-Chieh introduced Taiwan to tapioca pearls. She put the pearls into the tea drink, giving the children a chance to play with their food. The pearls are about the size of small marbles and have the consistency of chewy gelatin.

Murphysboro resident Jordan Heartmann is a regular bubble tea drinker.

"I just spent three weeks in Taiwan and I had three cups a day, and it's really awesome, and all my friends were really jealous of me, and I was like, 'We have a place like this in Carbondale,' and they were so amazed," Heartmann said. "I'm really glad it's here because I was addicted to this stuff in Taiwan."

Factoid: The QQ Bubble Tea store is located at 701 S. Illinois Ave. Store hours are 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday through Sunday. They can be reached at 618-351-7000