Boba shop training checklist

A complete training path for new boba shop employees — from first shift to running the line during a rush.

• Shop and station orientation — Tour of stations, cold and dry storage, hand-wash sinks, and where everything lives. The new hire leaves Day 1 knowing the layout, their trainer's name, and what the first two weeks will cover.
• Food safety and hygiene basics — Glove use, hand washing, hair restraint, and basic food handler requirements. Done means demonstrated at the station, not acknowledged on paper.
• POS, customizations, and cup labels — Clocking in, ringing a basic order, and the customization grid — what 30%, 50%, and 70% ice and sugar actually mean in the cup. Includes reading a cup label correctly every time.
• Tea brewing to spec — Brewing each tea base to spec: ratios, steep times, and holding times — including when a batch gets dumped and rebrewed. Tea quality is the product; this gets signed off, not assumed.
• Tapioca pearl cooking and holding — Cook time, rest time, sugar bath, and the holding window. The trainee demonstrates a full pearl batch from dry to serving — and states the hold rule without being asked.
• Toppings prep, labeling, and rotation — Prepping jellies, pudding, and popping boba; labeling and dating everything; first-in-first-out rotation. Covers what gets tossed at close and why.
• Syrups, powders, and batch recipes — Batch recipes for syrups and powder mixes — measured, labeled, and dated. Eyeballed batches are how the same drink tastes different by shift.
• The five best-sellers — The five most-ordered drinks, built step by step in order, until they're muscle memory. New hires who can handle the most common orders survive their first rush.
• Shaking, sealing, and blending — Shake count and motion, when a drink is shaken versus stirred, sealing machine operation, and troubleshooting a bad seal. Includes blender operation and cleaning between uses.
• Allergen questions and remakes — How to answer an allergen question, when to get the manager, and how to remake a drink without drama. These come up on Day 1, so they're trained before Day 1 ends — not after the first incident.
• Shadow shift with the assigned trainer — A full shift alongside the assigned trainer with a written list of skills to introduce: who calls, who builds, who seals during a rush. The trainer works the floor; the new hire practices with backup.
• Closing breakdown and cleaning — Tea brewer and pearl cooker breakdown, sealing machine and blender cleaning, topping storage, and the closing walkthrough — completed independently to standard.
• Reverse shadow — running the line — The roles flip: the new hire runs the line through a real rush while the trainer watches and scores. Quality at pace is the test — not quality during a quiet hour.
• Trainer sign-off and solo clearance — The trainer confirms every item was demonstrated, dated, and recorded. No sign-off, no solo shift.