Cafeography
Bubbelthee · Groningen

Bubble tea cafés in Groningen

Milk tea and tapioca pearls on the Vismarkt, Folkingestraat and Oosterstraat.

Photo: Telly Mina, Pexels License

Bubble tea, bubbelthee in Dutch, is sweetened tea, often with milk, poured over chewy tapioca pearls that were originally made from cassava starch.2 It comes from Taiwan, where two teahouses claim it. Hanlin Tea Room in Tainan says its founder added tapioca balls to milk tea in 1986, and Chun Shui Tang in Taichung credits an employee, Lin Hsiu-hui, with creating it in 1987.1

Neither side could patent the drink, so pearl milk tea had spread to teahouse menus by the mid-1990s.1 A Taiwanese court ruling in 2019 found it non-patentable and credited neither party.2 In Mandarin the drink is 珍珠奶茶 (zhēnzhū nǎichá, pearl milk tea).2

Local tip: If you find bubble tea too sweet, name a sugar level when you order, such as 25% or 50%; shops that offer the choice usually work in those steps.2

Where these cafés are: Vismarkt & Folkingestraat (3), Grote Markt & Oosterstraat (2).

At a glance

5Cafés listed
4With opening hours
11:00Earliest opening
20:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Bee Tea, from 11:00 (Mon–Sat 11:00–18:30 · Sun 11:00–18:00).
  • Closes latest: Multea Choice, until 20:00 (Daily 11:00–20:00).
  • Most common features: indoor seating (20%), partial wheelchair access (20%).

Nothing matches those filters here. See all cafés in Groningen.

How bubble tea reached northern Europe

Germany, across the border from Groningen province, got its first bubble tea in 2009, and shops multiplied in city centers until 2012, when McDonald's sold it in its German and Austrian outlets.3 That year, claims by RWTH Aachen researchers of carcinogens in the pearls drew wide coverage. Tests of 84 samples by North Rhine-Westphalia's consumer protection ministry found no toxins, but outlets declined from 2013 and only began to rise again in 2019.3

A 2021 piece for Horecava, the Dutch hospitality trade fair, put the drink's core market at ages 18 to 24 and named Amsterdam as the Dutch city with the most shops, linking that to tourism and its Asian community.4 Groningen has the age profile: about 60,000 of its roughly 205,000 residents are students.5

Where the shops are

The shops cluster in the old center, and Vismarkt & Folkingestraat has the most, ahead of Grote Markt & Oosterstraat. On the Folkingestraat, Lian Tea is at number 43 and T Voor Thee at 24. Lian Tea's owner, Lily, opened it after moving to Groningen because she missed bubble tea as it was made in China, with less sugar and more natural ingredients.6 It opens Tuesday to Sunday, 12:00–19:00, and runs workshops and events.6

Bee Tea is on the Vismarkt at number 44, open Monday to Saturday 11:00–18:30 and Sunday 11:00–18:00. Moong, at Herestraat 80, opens daily 12:00–19:00. Multea Choice, a Taiwanese-style shop at Oosterstraat 9, is known for its taro milk tea, also serves coffee and croffles, and opens daily 11:00–20:00.7

What a cup costs and how to order

On its Thuisbezorgd delivery menu in October 2026, T Voor Thee priced its milk teas from €6.70 for oolong or classic black milk tea, through €7.20 for brown sugar, taro, Oreo or Thai milk tea, to €7.70 for ube taro.8

There is no standard recipe, so shops commonly let you choose your ice level and your sugar level, usually in 25% steps from 0% to 100%.2 Popping boba, spheres filled with fruit juice or syrup, are a common topping, in flavors such as mango, strawberry and kiwi.2 At Multea Choice you can swap in soy, almond or oat milk, and the vegan options are clearly marked on the menu.7

Sources

  1. Who invented bubble tea?, Taipei Times, accessed October 2026
  2. Bubble tea, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. Bubble Tea, Wikipedia (German), accessed October 2026
  4. Bubble tea: is it a food trend or is it here to stay?, Horecava, accessed October 2026
  5. The city of Groningen, Groningen.nl, accessed October 2026
  6. Lian Tea, Discover Groningen, accessed October 2026
  7. Multea Choice, Spinach, accessed October 2026
  8. TvoorThee menu, Thuisbezorgd.nl, accessed October 2026
Keep exploring

Other ways to browse Groningen

Terrassen

Terraces

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Vegan & vegetarisch

Vegan & vegetarian

5 cafés

By area: Vismarkt & Folkingestraat Grote Markt & Oosterstraat

FAQ

Bubble tea in Groningen: questions

Where does bubble tea come from, and where can you drink it in Groningen?

Bubble tea comes from Taiwan, where Hanlin Tea Room in Tainan dates it to 1986 and Chun Shui Tang in Taichung to 1987. In Groningen the shops are in the old center: Lian Tea and T Voor Thee on the Folkingestraat, Bee Tea on the Vismarkt, Moong on the Herestraat and Multea Choice on the Oosterstraat.

How much does bubble tea cost in Groningen?

On its delivery menu in October 2026, T Voor Thee on the Folkingestraat priced milk teas from €6.70 for oolong or classic black milk tea to €7.20 for brown sugar, taro, Oreo or Thai milk tea, and €7.70 for ube taro. Many shops also let you choose your sugar and ice levels.

Which bubble tea shops in Groningen are open on Mondays?

Bee Tea on the Vismarkt opens Monday to Saturday, 11:00–18:30. Moong at Herestraat 80 opens daily, 12:00–19:00, and Multea Choice at Oosterstraat 9 opens daily, 11:00–20:00. Lian Tea on the Folkingestraat is closed on Mondays and opens Tuesday to Sunday, 12:00–19:00.

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