You may have noticed the vacant Village Tea Company storefront at Preston and Forest, which just opened last fall. They shut it down in June, sold everything at auction but will reopen as a boba tea shop in the same location. Construction is set to begin this weekend.

Village Tea CEO Martin Ekechukwu said that while the previous store offered a nice, hang-out atmosphere, the hot tea concept never caught on since we have so many hot months. Makes perfect sense, of course. And hot tea is not something I usually leave the house for. So, he changed the concept to boba or bubble tea – cold tea drinks with tapioca balls. I have to say, I’m excited about this new store, I Heart Boba.

It will have lots of flavor combinations to choose from, and the tapioca balls will be made fresh in-house every day. There will be free WiFi and a computer station plus a comfy lounge area. Basically, a place where you can stay a while. You’ll still be able to buy Village Tea products in the store (it’s also available at Whole Foods).

Except for Fat Straws near the Galleria, you don’t have many options for bubble tea in the neighborhood, something that has sort of been an under-the-radar trend in the Metroplex. Ekechukwu expects I Heart Boba to open the first week of September.