Family-owned Elk Grove boba shop to close this fall, making room for this chain eatery

The Big Boba Theory, a family-owned boba shop in Elk Grove, will close this fall and a bubble tea franchise will take its spot.

The specialty drink destination intertwined with games, comics and movies on 6616 Laguna Blvd, Suite 120, announced it won’t renew its lease after September. Owner Joseph Chin of The Big Boba Theory said the decision came after a six to eight-month contract negotiation with the owners of the building.

Taiwanese boba chain Presotea will take over the space. Chin said the business will move in six to eight weeks after his shop clears out, bringing its bubble waffle series to the Sacramento area.

“We would’ve loved doing it longer,” he said during a phone interview with The Bee as he preps for a day of bubble-tea making. “It’s becoming slightly harder and harder to do that because of the cost of everything.”

“Outside of us charging $9 or $10 for a drink, there was no real feasible way to do that moving forward.”

The Big Boba Theory’s closing date has not been set, but Chin said it will likely be the last week of September or the first week of October. Until then, the shop’s current store hours are 11 a.m. to 8 a.m. Monday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday, according to its website.

The Big Boba Theroy’s extensive menu includes a variety of tea, flavored crushed ice and snacks from potstickers to chicken wings and fries. Strawars, one of the shop’s most popular drinks, is made with all strawberry flavored ingredients including crushed milk, pudding, “popping” boba and ice cream.

“We opened our own little boba shop and turned it into reality,” Chin said. “It’s with the awesome people of our little city, our super amazing staff, family and friends that we were able to do so.”

In a farewell post to patrons, which Chin said was hard to publish, Big Boba Theory credited its five-year success to the support of the community. While the shop soon won’t operate out of a physical storefront, customers may find the business selling boba and more at future festivals.

This story was originally published August 29, 2022 at 1:58 PM.