Episode 12: The snacks

Today, I want to talk about snacks. Now those of you that have known Got Tea since their first day will remember that when they launched, they had a Korean fried chicken special, along with the original four drinks, as part of their menu.

When they decided to launch, the team thought that they should serve a small snack with bubble tea. And who doesn’t like some fried chicken? So SuAh sent the team in Delhi some Korean fried chicken recipe, but it didn’t work out great. So the Delhi team experimented and found a recipe and made some fabulous chicken. And on opening day, they decided to give all their customers a free serving of chicken. 

I remember my first visit to Got Tea was with another friend, and we drank way too many bubble teas and ate way too much fried chicken – it was all so delicious! And then about a month later I went back, hoping to get some more chicken and bubble tea, and Armaan broke the news that they had discontinued the chicken – I was shattered. 

Well, disappointed. While the team had started off thinking they would sell the chicken along with the bubble tea, there were a few reasons why the team discontinued the chicken. Making the chicken in their small space was quite difficult, and it was not easy to manage cooking the chicken as well as focusing on the bubble teas. And the Got Tea team wanted to establish themselves, first and foremost, as a bubble tea brand. So, they decided to let go of the snacks, and focus on bubble tea. 

But then, customers kept coming in, asking for some snacks. They just wanted something small to eat along with their bubble tea. So the team thought about it, but they decided they did not want to make their own snacks, at least initially. 

They had been in touch with a home baker that they met through Instagram, and decided to go with them for scones. They liked the idea of scones because scones are a light snack, and they also go well with tea! So, when they opened their new store, they started selling the home-baked scones, topped with a caramel sauce made by team Got Tea. 

Got Tea Croffle

The scones were a hit, so the team decided to expand their snack options. YuSung wanted to take this opportunity to share with the Got Tea community some of South Korea’s favourite snacks. Prior to the pandemic, when YuSung and SuAh were in Delhi, they had visited a Korean bakery in Delhi called The For’est, which they enjoyed. So when they decided to bring some more snacks into the menu, YuSung contacted the owner, asking him if he would be willing to supply some products. The owner felt a certain kinship with YuSung, and agreed!

Roll cakes (or as I knew them before, Swiss rolls) are a super popular snack in Korea, and YuSung really liked the ones that The For’est made, so the Got Tea team decided to go ahead and introduce these colourful cakes into their menu. 

Roll cakes from The For'est

Now the team wants to introduce more snacks and flavours from Korea to the Got Tea community. So the next snack that they are working on is a croffle – a croissant-waffle. I’ve never heard of this snack, but apparently it is very popular in South Korea. And this snack the team will be making in-house. Unlike the chicken, this snack is easier to make and is on the same production line as the bubble tea, so the team decided it was best to make it in-house. The croffle is now on their menu - order today to try this exciting new snack!

This journal is an ongoing series tracing the story of Got Tea, the latest bubble tea store launched in India, located in South Delhi. Want to know what happens next? Stay tuned – new episodes come out every week!