During my recent café-hopping trip across Australia, I noticed something interesting. A few of the coffee shops I visited had started featuring an ingredient I had never encountered before on their specialty or limited-edition menus: ube.
Ube is a purple yam native to the Philippines. Its scientific name is purple yam, and in the Philippines, it’s simply called ube. Some translations label it as “purple sweet potato,” but that’s not quite accurate—it’s completely different from Chinese purple sweet potatoes or taro. Ube is known for its striking violet color and its naturally sweet, nutty, vanilla-like flavor.
In the world of specialty coffee, creative signature drinks have long been a major draw for younger consumers. People today aren’t just looking for a beverage—they’re seeking a full sensory experience. That means captivating flavors, indulgent textures, and visually stunning presentation. There’s also a growing desire for novelty and trend-forward creativity. Against this backdrop, colorful, sweet, and aesthetically playful drinks have flourished. Many feature cold brew or cold infusion formats, often incorporating ingredients like matcha or chocolate as key highlights.
Speaking of which, we have to talk about matcha.
Matcha’s dominance on café menus is no accident. Its vibrant green color instantly communicates health, mindfulness, and lifestyle appeal. It photographs beautifully and stands out on social media feeds. In today’s consumer landscape, aesthetics and trends have become primary drivers of purchasing decisions. The demand for bold flavor combinations and innovative fusions has surged—and matcha became the perfect vehicle for that experimentation.
Ube shares many of these same consumer-friendly attributes. It has the potential to follow a similar path and become the next star ingredient drawing customers into cafés. Although ube has been a staple in Filipino cuisine for generations, this purple root vegetable has recently exploded across global social media platforms and café menus. When you search “ube” online, you’re flooded with vibrant purple drinks and desserts. It’s honestly hard not to fall in love with that color.
According to several consumer data analyses and projections, from 2024 to 2027, ube is expected to outperform 88% of other food and beverage trends. In the United States alone, its presence on menus is projected to grow by 48%. In 2024, Monin even named ube its Flavor of the Year. According to Monin’s consumer report, 67% of consumers say they would likely purchase an ube-flavored drink or dessert. No wonder so many cafés are using it in their specialty creations.
From my personal experience in Australia, the moment that shade of purple was placed on the table, I couldn’t take my eyes off it. Ube doesn’t require artificial coloring or heavy flavoring—it naturally carries a beautiful hue. That alone makes people eager to photograph and share it. It combines practicality with aesthetics. Whether served hot or iced, ube drinks offer both appealing visuals and a pleasing taste. In some cases, they’re even more popular than matcha. Ube also pairs effortlessly with a wide range of ingredients.
Beyond its visual charm, ube offers nutritional appeal. It’s a natural source of potassium, vitamin C, antioxidants, and prebiotics. The anthocyanins responsible for its vivid purple color may also help reduce blood pressure, blood sugar levels, and inflammation.
Visually striking and fresh to younger audiences, ube brings a sense of novelty to the café market. For café owners, it’s a smart way to diversify menu offerings without straying too far from familiar flavor profiles. Interestingly, ube’s sweet, nutty notes complement coffee quite well. From what I’ve observed, many international cafés introduce ube as a seasonal or limited-time specialty, often presented in uniquely designed drinks. This strategy helps attract foot traffic, increase average spending, and boost social engagement.
As for its rise to popularity, ube first gained traction around 2016 on Instagram. One of the earliest viral moments came from Manila Social Club in New York, which launched an ube donut that quickly captured attention. By 2020, ube began appearing in American cafés. Over the past year, it has started gaining noticeable momentum in Australia and parts of Europe as well.
It makes you wonder—are we about to see ube become the next matcha?