Founded in 2005 on North Main Street as Greenville’s first bubble tea cafe, O-Cha tea bar announced April 3 that it will close permanently.
Launched by Mallie Majarais, O-Cha became a fixture along the iconic Falls Park Riverwalk when the tea bar moved there in 2008. Prior to O-Cha’s opening, bubble tea was largely unknown in Greenville.
“When we opened in 2005, most people didn’t know what bubble tea was,” Majarais said in a statement announcing the closure. “I spent my days explaining it to just about everyone who walked in, handing out samples, and watching people take their very first sip.”
Majarais said introducing a wider audience to loose-leaf teas from around the world and helping to usher in the proliferation of bubble tea shops around Greenville has been the honor of a lifetime.
While O-Cha will close its doors for the final time April 4, Majarais said something new is in the works.
“This space has been home for so long, and I’m not done creating here,” she said. “I can’t share details yet, but a new concept is coming—and I think Greenville will love it.”
