Boba-lacking west side of Wichita will get its own shop this summer

Fans of boba tea on the west side of Wichita know it’s not easy to find the bubbly treat without driving to the other side of town.

Ever since the Boba Zone at 21st and Tyler closed in 2017, west-siders have seen their options dwindle. Although they can find some boba drinks on menus at smaller west-side coffee shops, they have to drive to places like Boba Zone east, ICTea or Kung Fu Tea on the east side of town to find a larger boba selection.

But that’s about to change with the planned expansion of an east-side business that has lots of boba on the menu.

This summer, entrepreneur Jimmy Ngyuen says, he’ll open a Sweetpop’s in a space at 2130 N. Tyler that previously was occupied by a flower shop. His first Sweetpop’s has been operating at 550 N. Rock Road since August of 2019, offering not only a large menu of boba tea but also coffee, smoothies and shaved ice cream.

Nguyen, who already has a sign posted on the new west-side space, said he hopes to have it open in the next month or two. After that, he plans to expand into more markets, including places like Dallas and Houston, and he wants to franchise the concept.

His decision to open a store on the west side was spurred by customer demand, he said.

“We have a lot of customers that come from the west side, and they’ve highly recommended that we go there,” he said.

The east-side Sweetpop’s has been a success, he said, and his customers particularly love his black sugar milk tea, which he says he sells “all day long.” He plans to offer the same menu on the west side that he does on the east, he said.

At the moment, he’s doing some painting in the space, which has about 1,700 square feet and is in the same strip center that has a Great Wall Chinese restaurant. He’ll dedicate 800 square feet of that to customer seating. He’s also busy training staff.

“I’m taking my time this time,” he said. “I want to take my time and make sure I do everything correctly.”

This story was originally published May 18, 2021 at 12:18 PM.

Denise Neil

The Wichita Eagle

316-268-6327

Denise Neil has covered restaurants and entertainment since 1997. Her Dining with Denise Facebook page is the go-to place for diners to get information about local restaurants. She’s a regular judge at local food competitions and speaks to groups all over Wichita about dining.