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Abby Boeh walked into an Echo Park cafe and ordered her usual: an iced coffee and tea blend with cream and boba.
She had politely declined a manager’s suggestion to try seasonal specials like chai tea with fresh taro.
For Boeh, the boba black tapioca balls sucked through a giant straw are a must, delightfully chewy and so filling that they often serve as her lunch.
Yet she may soon have to do without them. A boba shortage is about to hit the nation, throwing aficionados like Boeh into a panic.
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“I don’t even want to think about it,” said Boeh, 32, who visits the cafe, Hey Hey, on breaks from her job as an optician.