I’ve seen self-serve hot pot take off across Richmond, but I never really thought about applying the same idea to bubble tea.
But why not?
Instead of choosing one predetermined drink and then paying extra for every topping, what if you could just walk down a line, pick your own toppings, make your own drink, and pay one flat price?
That’s basically the idea behind Dollar Boba, a brand-new self-serve bubble tea shop in Richmond’s Broadmoor Village.
And honestly, I’m surprised nobody thought of this sooner.
I’ve been to plenty of bubble tea shops around Metro Vancouver, but this is the first time I’ve seen one where you basically get to build the entire drink yourself.
Even better, a regular cup is just $3.99, while a large is $4.99.
For Richmond bubble tea prices in 2026, that’s pretty refreshing.
So here’s exactly how this self-serve bubble tea concept works.
What Is Self-Serve Bubble Tea?
If you’ve ever been to a self-serve hot pot restaurant, the basic idea will feel very familiar.
Instead of ordering a completed bowl from a menu, you walk through a station and build your own meal.
Dollar Boba does essentially the same thing, except your bowl is now a cup of bubble tea.
You choose your size, pick as many toppings as you want, choose your drink, put everything together, grab a lid and straw, and you’re done.
The biggest difference?
You aren’t limited to a few toppings.
And you don’t have to pay extra for every single one.
How Dollar Boba Works
The whole process is actually pretty straightforward.
When you walk into Dollar Boba, you’ll first head to the counter to pay and pick up your cup.
There are currently two sizes:
- Regular — $3.99
- Large — $4.99
And this is probably the first thing that caught my attention.
Bubble Tea for $3.99?
I’ll be honest: I barely buy bubble tea anymore.
It’s not that I don’t like it. I absolutely do.
It’s just that I feel like bubble tea prices have gotten kind of ridiculous. It’s not unusual to see drinks around the $7-$8 range these days, and then you start adding toppings and suddenly a simple drink costs even more.
At Dollar Boba, the toppings are already included in the price.
So personally, $3.99 for a regular bubble tea with unlimited toppings is much closer to what I think bubble tea should cost.
Once you’ve paid, the employee gives you a pair of gloves for sanitary reasons and you’re free to start building your drink.
And this is where things get fun.
Pick Your Own Bubble Tea Toppings
Dollar Boba currently has around 10 toppings available:
- Tapioca pearls
- Water chestnut popping boba
- Lychee popping boba
- Crystal boba
- Strawberry popping boba
- Mango popping boba
- Coconut jelly
- Pudding jelly
- Tea jelly
- Grass jelly
Normally, this is the part where you’d have to decide what you want and then pay an extra $0.50, $1, or whatever the shop happens to charge for each topping.
Not here.
You can take as many as you want.
And I mean as many as you want.
If you really wanted to fill your entire cup with toppings and leave almost no room for the actual drink, I’m pretty sure nobody is stopping you.
Personally, I think this is where the self-serve concept gets really interesting. You’re not just choosing from a list of toppings on a menu. You’re physically looking at everything and deciding how much of each thing you actually want.
You Can Taste the Toppings First
Here’s another feature I wasn’t expecting.
Dollar Boba has sample cups available so you can actually taste the toppings before committing to them.
This is especially useful if you’ve never tried something like grass jelly or tea jelly before.
And because you’re allowed to choose as many toppings as you want, you could theoretically sample everything before building your final combination.
It’s a small detail, but it makes the whole thing feel much more like an experience rather than simply ordering a drink.
Then You Choose Your Drink
Once you’ve loaded up your toppings, you continue down the line to choose the actual beverage.
There are quite a few options, and the selection is divided into several categories.
Slushes
There were around six slush options available when I visited:
- Taro
- Strawberry
- Pink Peach
- Lychee
- Passion Fruit
- Mango
Milk Tea & Milk-Based Drinks
There were also several milk tea options, including:
- Signature Roasted Milk Tea
- Green Milk Tea
- Taro Milk Tea
- Fresh Milk
I went with the Signature Roasted Milk Tea, which was exactly the kind of drink I wanted after loading my cup up with toppings.
Green Tea
There were also several green tea combinations, including:
- Mango
- Passion Fruit
- Sugarless Green Tea
- Pink Peach Green Tea
- Rose Green Tea
So although the topping selection is probably the main attraction, you’re not stuck with just one or two drink bases.
There’s actually a pretty decent amount of choice.
Grab Your Lid and Straw
Once you’ve selected your drink, you simply continue to the end of the station and grab your lid and straw.
And that’s it.
You’ve officially made your own bubble tea.
The whole process feels a lot like going through a self-serve hot pot line, except instead of grabbing meat, vegetables, noodles and sauces, you’re picking out popping boba, jellies and milk tea.
And I genuinely love the concept.
What I Got at Dollar Boba
For my first visit, I went with the Signature Roasted Milk Tea and loaded it up with some of the toppings that caught my eye.
The best part wasn’t necessarily the specific combination I made.
It was the fact that I could experiment.
Normally when I order bubble tea, I already know roughly what I’m going to get. Maybe I’ll add tapioca pearls or one other topping, but I’m not going to order five different toppings just to see how they work together.
Here, there’s basically no reason not to experiment.
You can grab a little bit of everything, try combinations you wouldn’t normally order, and figure out what you actually like.
That’s what makes the concept so appealing to me.
Is Dollar Boba Actually Good Value?
I think so.
And this is probably the biggest reason I’d come back.
A $3.99 regular or $4.99 large drink with the toppings included is a pretty compelling proposition, especially compared with the prices I’ve been seeing at traditional bubble tea shops around Richmond.
There’s also a clever business reason why this concept can work.
Instead of having staff prepare every single drink and portion out every topping, customers do most of that work themselves.
That keeps the operation relatively simple while allowing Dollar Boba to pass some of those savings along to customers.
And honestly, I’d rather have a shop like this where I get to customize my own drink for $3.99 than pay significantly more for someone else to make essentially the same thing behind the counter.
It’s Not Just Bubble Tea
Bubble tea is obviously the main attraction, but Dollar Boba also has a few other things available.
They sell grilled sausages for $2.49, which could be a nice little snack if you’re looking for something savoury.
And apparently ice cream is coming soon, so there may eventually be even more reason to stop by beyond the bubble tea.
But let’s be honest.
Most people walking through the door are probably here for the boba.
Dollar Boba Richmond: Location & Hours
Address:
10111 Number 3 Rd #130
Richmond, BC V7A
Hours:
Daily, 12 PM – 10 PM
It’s located inside Broadmoor Village, making it a convenient stop if you’re already in the area.
Interested in another unique drink concept nearby? Check out this barista in a parking lot.
