This is the Business English Podcast, Episode 266, Boba, Bubble, Chai, or Matcha?
How to Talk Tea with Colleagues in English.
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Hey, Lindsay, how are you? fantastic Aubrey how's it going today excellent I'm so excited to talk about fun teas today do you like bubble tea or bubble tea bubble tea no I love matcha I mean I love a good cup of matcha hot matcha the powder oh nice I've actually never tried matcha I need to try it I love bubble tea if I have if there's an option I always go with bubble tea.
I love those little, those Q balls, right?
We talked about Q, those little chewy tapioca balls.
We're in part one. Part one of this series, right, Aubrey?
We already opened up this topic over on All Ears English.
Exactly. It was episode 2210. What is QQ?
How to connect over Asian food in English.
So if you missed that, be sure you're following the All There's English podcast.
Go check it out. Follow both podcasts because we often will have series where part of it's on one podcast.
And then we're thinking about how does this relate to business English?
And we'll have another part of the series here.
So be sure to follow both. For sure. And we know that consuming a hot beverage like tea or coffee or matcha or chai or bubble tea is a key way, a key thing we do with business colleagues or clients, right?
It's just sitting down around a hot beverage.
Exactly. It's interesting to think about there's, you know, we also invite to lunch sometimes, right?
And then it's usually a little bit either more casual or quicker, the meetings when you offer, when you invite someone to coffee or tea. yes and of course bubble tea is not hot but it works too it's less of a commitment so it's a smart business move right if you're if you just want to take 30 minutes not an hour and a half to be with this person right just a little bite of a relationship uh it's a way to ease into it in dating too it's often the first I was thinking that.
I'm going to like the dating world where if you're just doing like one drink or coffee or tea instead of dinner, right?
When you're initially meeting someone, you know it's not going to be as long.
That's ideal for a first meeting. Yeah, usually a first date is either a drink or coffee, you know, something low, low commitment where you could essentially you could leave in 45 minutes if you had to.
Right. Exactly. Yeah. So we're going to talk about these individual teas that are becoming really popular in the States. you know a lot of them coming from Asian culture and then we want to share some phrases that will help you know how to do that how to invite a colleague for coffee or tea so that you can confidently create these very casual meetings to build your network yeah I think there's something nice about in the business world getting out of the office, right?
I'm imagining you're working in New York, right?
Aubrey, you and I both lived in New York.
Just getting out onto the street, taking a little walk with them, going into a coffee shop, a tea shop could change the environment and it could open up a new relationship, a new way of connecting with that person that we couldn't find in the office with the boss around and the clients on the phone, that sort of thing.
I absolutely agree. I remember loving when a coworker would invite me to coffee or tea and it is such a great chance to connect in a more informal environment.
Kind of a human way, right? Yeah. And it's a great thing for clients as well.
If you have a new client or someone you're wanting to build more of a rapport with, this is much, it's casual, it's friendly.
It's not a huge time commitment on their part.
So it would be great for you to throw out this invite.
Yes. And we did do let me see I talked with was it Charlie recently, I talked with him from the British English podcast about tea in British culture.
So check out that episode on all ears English guys.
But today, let's go deeper into this operate.
Where do we start? Yeah, so this is interesting.
We're going to, we could dive in first talking about boba tea.
Okay, this is interesting. It was first really popularized in the 90s in California.
Now there are boba places all over the country.
I love boba tea. I love those little chewy tapioca balls.
I know you would opt for matcha instead.
But it's interesting when you talk with someone about boba tea because not only are you guys going to want to make these invites and maybe you'll chat a little bit about business.
That's also a great conversation topic to ask them what their order is, like what they got, why they love that.
So this is a great topic for connection just to talk about the tea.
Yeah, because it's not like you're going to enter the tea shop and then immediately go to business.
No, it's going to mix in personal, maybe a little politics, who knows, right?
A story from the weekend and then a little business.
That's how a true business relationship develops, right?
Exactly, yes. And interestingly, I just saw an article that Starbucks is just this summer, summer 2024, they're going to start offering bubble tea.
They are sort of rebranding it. They're calling it something else.
They're calling it pearls. And it's popping boba.
I don't know if you've had. There's the cute, chewy tapioca balls in boba.
And then there's also these little small ones that sort of burst when you bite them.
And there's liquid that pops out, popping boba.
That's what Starbucks is starting to put in their drinks.
Is this... Globally, this is, I'm sure it already exists at Starbucks.
I'm not sure. It just said like Starbucks.
So maybe globally or maybe they're targeting markets where bubble tea is really popular.
Arizona for sure. I'm constantly seeing people with their cup of boba tea.
They're probably targeting. I think they do that.
I know definitely going to Starbucks once or twice that I went just to check it out in Tokyo.
First of all, I know the sizes were very different.
A tall was a short. A tall was a short. A 12-ounce was an 8-ounce. portion sizes being smaller and more reasonable.
I'm sure this is regional based on what's hot, markets that would be interested in it for sure.
Yeah, it's interesting. Just to have a little bit of information about what it is.
At least in the States, usually a bubble tea place is a little more boutique.
You're going to go and all that you can get there is teas, bubble teas.
They might also have matcha chai tea. But often no coffee, at least in Arizona.
If you go to a bubble tea place, there won't be coffee drinks.
Have you noticed? Is it the same where you live, Lindsay?
Yeah, I don't go into the tea shops that much, but that's probably true.
In the same way that if you went into a designer coffee shop, which I was just in Panama last week, and we went into one to try the, it's called Geisha coffee.
It's a special kind of coffee. There was no bubble tea.
There was no tea. So yeah, it depends which type of place you're going, what's going to be available there for sure.
Yeah. Okay. So Aubrey, what do we need to know next?
Chai. Yeah, let's talk about chai tea. Have you tried chai tea, Lindsay?
Yeah, yeah, for sure. So chai lattes are very popular right now, right?
Is that what you're asking about the latte or more the tea with the tea bags, just the chai?
I've never tried it. I was looking at Starbucks at all of the different things and I'm thinking of my friends and the things that they order.
So yeah, I think because chai is It's the spice, right?
The sweet, spicy, aromatic beverage originating in India. and then I guess it's short for masala chai, which means spiced tea in Hindi.
I don't usually like in drinks, I don't like spiced cider, those strong spices in drinks, so I have sort of hesitated.
Really? I haven't tried it yet, but I should try it just to see if I like it.
You haven't tried the tea, just the tea bag, just water, maybe with some milk or the latte?
No, I haven't tried chai ever. Interesting.
Try it, Aubrey. I encourage you. I know.
Every time if there's an option, I'm like, I'll just get a bubble tea because I know I love that.
Okay. Wow. Okay. Well, it's good. I think my partner gets the chai lattes all the time, so I'm always buying them.
Nice. It depends on where. I think this is the kind of drink that's going to be very different depending on what coffee shop you go to.
And it is available in all coffee shops.
This is the exception. You don't find bubble tea, but you do find them in all the of the fancier, up-leveled coffee shops, but some of the coffee shops use the powdery mix, and I think Starbucks does that.
You can taste it. You can tell. It just doesn't feel real.
Interesting. Some are more nutmeggy. Some bring out different spices.
It really depends on the shop. i think because of that this is going to make this even more of an interesting topic for conversation if you find someone who loves chai they will have found their favorite places and they will have places they're going to tell you do not order a chai latte there because it can really swing how good it is and it will be a matter of opinion too so if one particular shop brings out the taste of cloves more and one ginger one nutmeg it's just I would still try because everyone has a different palette, right?
But that's because people will have strong opinions, right?
It makes it an interesting thing to ask about.
100% an interesting conversation, right?
And also a great transition. So let's say you invited your colleague out for tea.
You've ordered a bubble tea. They've ordered a matcha or a chai.
Again, like I said, it's not going to be all business and it's not going to be business right away either.
You need to transition into maybe the topic you maybe wanted to touch on. and so commenting on what they're drinking in that moment to transition into another topic is good absolutely just like oh what are you ordering that looks amazing what did you get always it almost is strange to not ask someone what they're getting when you go out for coffee or tea i agree I agree.
And then your opinions and that sort of thing.
Okay. So matcha would be the next one, Aubrey.
Tell us about it. Exactly. So tell us about matcha, Lindsay.
It sounds like you're a fan. You probably know a lot more about it.
Yeah. I like to buy the powder. I've just read that it's very healthy.
And I know in Japan a few times, especially the last time when Jessica and I went to do the live event, We took our own days separately.
We had a day off. We were just like, we're just going to go explore independently, explore Japan.
I had been to Tokyo, lived in Tokyo, so I'm going to do something new.
I was wandering around a traditional neighborhood and there was a tea ceremony.
I stumbled in and she's like, come in, come in.
Sit down and watching her perform the tea ceremony.
There's just a lot of culture around matcha from what I understand. very cool oh that's so interesting i hadn't tried it so i was looking up what it's made from right it's um so it's powdered green tea made from finely ground japanese tea leaves like you said it's very good for you it's high in antioxidants and amino acids and then it said it has a earthy umami flavor fascinating to me it's one of the five basic tastes right along with sweet sour bitter salty And it's interesting that some, you know, something like that, you can't just say like, oh, kind of, you know, a mixture of these.
No, it's its own flavor. It's very, it's definitely, I love the umami taste too.
I love the earthiness of matcha or just green tea in general.
Other versions of green tea, very earthy, very natural tasting.
I love that taste. Known to be very satisfying, right?
When something is very earthy and rich like that.
Do you like matcha? So you said you also don't like matcha either.
I haven't tried it either. I need to try matcha.
What are you doing? I told you because I'm so obsessed with bubble tea.
If I'm not drinking coffee, I don't want a bubble tea.
I see. We all have our own taste, you know.
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All right. We are back at it here. So let's get into conversation starters.
Yes. So you want to have some phrases if you're ready to ask someone to meet for tea or coffee.
So the first one you can just say, want to grab a coffee or tea sometime this week?
So casual, so friendly. And I like this one because it's taking the pressure off.
You're not saying right now, sometime this week, and you're really leaving it kind of up to them to come back and say, oh yeah, oh sure.
And then maybe they'll come back and say, hey, how about that coffee this afternoon?
I have a gap in my schedule. Yes, I agree.
Right. People are busy. It's difficult to be like, let's go do this right now.
Everyone's got their to do list. They've got lots of things on their mind.
That's tricky. I've seen that situation where someone's like, oh, let me think if I can make that work.
This is so much better to let someone think about their schedule, figure out when is a good time for them.
And it's a way to throw it out there. Maybe they haven't hadn't thought about having tea or coffee with you.
And now it opens up the idea in a low pressure way.
And then what could be the second one, Aubrey?
The second one is to say, I'd love to catch up.
Are you free this week to grab coffee or tea?
So same open invite as far as the time. And I love starting with that.
Like, I'd love to catch up. Yeah. And this one I feel like could work great for friends or colleagues.
Today on Business English, we're talking about work colleagues or clients, but both of these actually work great for friends too and our community.
Absolutely. And then there's some fun follow-ups after you get a yes, right, if you're able to nail down a time.
I think it's really fun to ask someone if you could say, do you have a preference on where we meet?
And if they have found a place where they really like the chai latte there, then they can let you know.
They can recommend it. I like that. Yeah.
Do you have a preference? Kind of yielding to them, letting them choose.
Always a good way to go. Right. Because if you say, let's go to this place and maybe the chai latte is not great there, but they don't want to offend you by saying, no, let's go somewhere else.
So it's just a good option to throw it out to them.
I love that. Or if maybe you just want to put your ideas forward a little bit more, different personality type, you might say, I've recently become obsessed with boba tea.
Have you tried it? Also a great option.
It depends on your personality a little bit and the relationship.
I would probably opt for the second one because I know I love bubble tea and I know that the average place doesn't have it.
So if whoever I'm inviting is open to maybe try something new, I might throw this out and then we'll go to a bubble tea place and see if they like it.
Fun. You can show a part of yourself that maybe they haven't seen in the office of who you are outside of the office, right?
Your likes and dislikes and things like that. obsessions.
Exactly. Or you could say, you know, I discovered a place that has amazing chai and matcha.
If you want to check it out, this is a little more risky because like you said, Lindsay, it's a matter of taste.
It's a matter of opinion. So if you're recommending that and then they don't like it, you don't like either.
Right, right, right, right. You would just have to try, I guess.
Um, so yeah, so three different ways, maybe linked to different personality types or, or the vibe you're feeling, um, maybe linked to hierarchy, you know, You know, in different cultures, hierarchy matters in different ways.
And it might be carried. Obviously, it still is carried outside of the office when we go for a coffee break.
So keeping that in mind. That's a good point.
You might want to defer to someone based on the hierarchy in their relationship.
Potentially. Yeah. So let's go into a role play, Aubrey, and I'm going to invite you as my client for coffee or tea.
All right. Perfect. Let's do it. All right.
Hey, I'd love to catch up. Are you free this week to grab coffee or tea?
Yes, that would be great. Do you have a preference on where we meet?
I discovered a place that has amazing chai and matcha if you want to check that out.
Let's do it. Awesome. So we use some of these phrases, right?
And it doesn't always have to be your follow-up.
Someone else might say somewhere where they've discovered something they love.
And to me, it's really clear the reason why I said, do you have a preference on where we meet?
It's because you're my client, right? Good point, right?
That's sort of the hierarchy of that relationship there where maybe you're trying to just keep that relationship strong or build the relationship for future goals.
And so, yeah, you would likely defer to their preferences there.
Yeah, it's a sense of deference, a sense of respect.
It makes total sense in that context. Right.
And maybe it wouldn't be used if we were colleagues at the same level in a company.
It might be different. Anything else we want to highlight here?
So do you have a preference on where we meet is what I said. and then and then i said yeah i discovered a place that has so this is where this would be open for the client to share a fun place they've discovered and this is i feel like this is such a great way to connect to allow someone else to make that recommendation right especially when it comes to coffee and tea most of us at least in the states have discovered a place we love and it's fun to share that with someone else Yeah, so good.
Give them a chance to show their personality.
Right. And then again, if it's a client, this will strengthen the business relationship you have with them.
And maybe you also just want to get to know them as a person.
Absolutely. Right. It should be both, right?
When we're trying to build that network, it will feel inauthentic if we don't really want to get to know them as a person, if it's clear to them that our only goal is something business-related.
If it's both, it's so much better. People will smell that on you.
They'll feel it immediately. We're wired with this sense of, what is this person's intention really?
We're good at that, right? Exactly. So you want the intention to be authentic, right?
If you want to really get to know people, like we say here at Allers English, right?
Those connections are so vital. And yeah, we want the vocabulary we use as, you know, these phrases, as well as everything about our mindset and our goal in the conversation to reflect that. think that's a takeaway for today aubry right be genuine be authentic you have an option to invite people out out of the office where you can get to know them in a different way um and i think your assignment today aubry is try matcha and chai and report back to us yes and everyone out there listening you need to try all of these if you haven't because you might discover something that you absolutely love Yeah, good stuff.
All right. Great topic today. And thanks for being on the show today, Aubrey.
I'll talk to you soon. Thanks, Lindsay. See you next time.
Take care. Bye. Thank you. tap the link in the show notes.
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