❓Can vegetarians drink stuff from bubble tea shops?

Most freshly made bubble tea (tea, milk, sugar) is fine for lacto-ovo vegetarians, but if you're vegan, there are a few things to watch for: a lot of shops use non-dairy creamer, which doesn't contain milk but can contain sodium caseinate (a milk protein derivative) — it really depends on whether the shop is willing to tell you the ingredients. You can also just ask to swap in oat milk, soy milk, or coconut milk as the base — a lot of chains now support plant milk swaps, sometimes for a small extra charge. The tapioca pearls themselves are usually just made from cassava starch, which is fine, but a few classic recipes add honey for flavor. Cream/cheese foam toppings use dairy cream, so vegans should skip those. The safest approach is to just ask when ordering: "Can I get plant milk instead, and does this have honey or dairy cream in it?" More and more baristas these days are familiar with vegan requests.