'Gourmet' Bubble Tea At PlayMade

What sets PlayMade, a popular Taiwanese bubble tea chain with 17 outlets in Taiwan, apart from the sea of bubble tea shops in Singapore? (The brand opened its first Singapore store at Tampines 1).

Two words: flavoured pearls. They're made in-house daily from natural ingredients without the use of additives or colouring. And there are four flavours: a nutty Black Sesame, smoky Burnt Caramel, floral Pink Cactus and a neutral White (original).

Black Sesame pearls in the making.

The pearls are made from scratch in-store, and involves some nifty hand-kneading. You can watch this process, if you're lucky to be there while the staff is whipping up some.

Pink Cactus Smoothie

As with other bubble tea stalls, the sweetness level of the drinks here can be customised. The flavours include the signature Pink Cactus Smoothie With Pink Cactus Pearls ($7.10 for large), which looks kinda like bandung, the Burnt Caramel Milk Tea With Black Sesame Pearls ($4.40 for medium), and also Green Tea Latte (from $3.60) paired with Black Sesame Pearls (from 80 cents, as an add-on).

We know what you're thinking: what on earth is Pink Cactus? They're pearls made from the pink pulp of the Penghu cactus from Taiwan, which is apparently slightly floral, with a tangy aftertaste.

Slurp away.

PlayMade is located at #01-59, Tampines 1, 10 Tampines Central 1, S529536. Tel: 9878-7961. Open daily 10am-10pm. Last orders at closing. www.facebook.com/playmadeonezo