Tea Break Brings Bubble Tea to West Hartford Center

Since bubble tea was invented in the 1980s in Taiwan, bubble teashops have multiplied across Asia and in the world’s cities – Shanghai, Sydney, London, New York – and now West Hartford.

Tea Break, a tea and bubble teashop at 994 Farmington Ave., quietly opened its doors Friday, bringing about 60 flavors and varieties of the Taiwanese specialty.

“This concept is healthy and fresh. We use fresh recipes, premium tea - you can select green, black, oolong and add flavors, milk and customize with toppings like herbal jelly, lychee and red bean,” said owner Thomas Pang.

Bubble tea is a cool sweet tea, mixed with fruit or milk and ice. It gets its name from marble-sized pearls of tapioca that are slurped through a wide straw. The pearls or bubbles, are a chewy surprise in the popular drink.

Tea Break also serves ice cream floats, slush and yakult drinks, which are like yogurt – good for circulation and for the stomach, Pang said.

Katie Frank, who lives in West Hartford, is one of the store’s employees. She’s lately been doing a lot of explaining about bubble tea.

“It’s my favorite kind of drink. If you get it with milk and cream it’s thicker than regular brewed tea and there are all these delicious ingredients to amplify the flavor,” she said.

Pang said the shop plans to offer tea gift packages and tea pots and sets but he has not finished setting up. A complete renovation of the space, with contemporary stone finishes and sparse red furniture took Pang two and a half months, with permitting completed just a day before the store’s opening. Free wifi is waiting on Comcast.

Pang decided to open the business in West Hartford Center after closing his Asian fusion restaurant in Waterford a few years ago. He had been to West Hartford many times to eat and liked the area.

A grand opening is planned for Sunday, when Tea Break will offer samples and select items will be buy one get one free.

The store is open Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. It closes at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday.