Walking into a boba shop on Bearss Avenue, guests are promptly greeted by bright green walls and an introduction to Tampa’s music scene.

Daily events and a community of artistic staff and guests give University Boba Tea House a relaxed, informal feel.

The boba shop was previously located in University Square near the Chili’s on Fowler Avenue. It was relocated in November due to the planned demolition of the plaza, and held a grand opening for its new location on March 15, said Dominic Fonseca, the general manager of the store.

Fonseca is a USF alumnus who studied finance and graduated in December 2024. He is part of a band, called Jupiter Bloom, and said the “music scene” at the shop is important to him.  

“The local music scene is really fun, and really personal,” Fonseca said. “I came one day for an open mic night a couple years ago, and I’ve been here ever since.”

Fonseca started a staff position at University Boba Tea House in January 2023, and has seen the growth of the local music scene at the shop.

Interested in the music scene at the shop, Analiese Pagan, the store’s event coordinator, started to “put her foot through the door,” eventually leading her into the role of event coordinator and into managing the band Mossheads. 

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“You see a lot of people who are interested in the artistic side of things, like one big little community, and that drew me in even more,” said Pagan.

Pagan is a Tampa native and was a regular customer at the shop while she attended Sunlake High School located in Land O’Lakes.

Open late and targeted to a student crowd, the shop hosts different events every day to gather this “big little community” in the store, Pagan said.

“We’re trying to get [the events] up and running again,” said Pagan. “But everything starts at eight o’clock.”

Pagan and Fonseca said that karaoke nights, open mic nights and band nights, running respectively from Thursday through Saturday, gain the most traction at the shop.

“We have a lot of regulars coming in for open mic nights and a lot of really good talent that comes in, and even on Saturdays the local music scene is really fun and really personal,” Fonseca said.

Forms are posted at the beginning of every week for guest speakers to register for open mic night, and “fill up quickly,” said Pagan.

Fonseca said the store keeps the “thrifty” feel of the old shop contained to a back room, and has boba cutouts with different flavor blends pasted on the wall to replicate the foam boards from the previous spot.

“We wanted to keep the same feel here, but make it a little more professional,” he said.

The rest of the space has been more modernized. Though the back room is dim and provides seating with leopard-print and leather chairs or stools, the front of the shop has been converted into more of a diner with brighter lights, booth seats and a plethora of USF decor.

“We have, in a sense, a USF study room up front, a kitchen area with extra seating here and a party room in the back,” Fonseca said. 

The space difference allows the shop to do “everything we have, just bigger and better,” said Fonseca.

The grand opening of the new spot “showcased” events like karaoke, open mic and live music from 3:30 p.m. to 11 p.m., said Pagan.

Pagan said that starting at 8 p.m. on opening night, Music Makers of USF presented different Tampa-based bands, including a variety of USF musicians.

Music Makers is a club that “fosters” a community of musicians and works to “supply resources” for artists to succeed, according to their BullsConnect page.

“They work with a lot of students who are interested in music, and they collaborate to help out the local Tampa [music] scene,” said Pagan.

The pick up in interest from local bands, artists and crowds has given more activity to University Boba Tea House as it works to open its new location, said Pagan, helping to “recreate” the old atmosphere that the previous location held.