Whenever the word “coffee” is mentioned, many people will start to discuss coffee brewing methods and coffee flavors. For some coffee brewing methods that are not commonly used in modern times, they will adhere to the concept of “over-extracting at a glance”. , “What’s there to discuss”… In this era of specialty coffee, who is willing to try a cup of the most traditional coffee?

A simple stainless steel coffee pot, a cheap-looking drip filter spoon, and an old man over sixty years old guard this 117-year-old traditional Thai cafe. Here, there are no specialty coffee beans, no hand drip coffee, no electric coffee grinder, no espresso machine, and no gorgeous decoration. All the items in the store tell everything about the century here.

The name of this century-old Siam cafe in Pathum Thani Province in northwestern Thailand is Zhang Rongli. The Cantonese Teochew dialect of “Rongli” has the meaning of “a house full of good stories”, and the founder of the shop is a Teochew who came to Siam to do business for a hundred years.

According to the current owner, Ananchai, his grandpa (grandfather) came to the northwest of Thailand around 1900. Grandpa started selling coffee beans hk in the canal market at first. After earning money, he bought a property on the river bank and started running the cafe in 1905. By the time Ananchai was the third generation take over.

Since there are many generations of memories of local residents here, many locals go to the floating market and will definitely go to the store for a drink. Ananchai said that the coffee beans used in the store are all Robusta varieties from southern Thailand. Every morning, he gets up early to prepare the charcoal fire, and then roast the coffee beans. The whole roasting process usually takes 30-50 minutes, and during this period, the heat should be controlled every step of the way to ensure that the coffee beans will not have a burnt taste during dark roasting.

After the coffee beans are roasted, they will be ground to a suitable thickness, and then put into iron cans for storage, and then the door can be opened to welcome guests. There are not many varieties of coffee in the store, and they are all marked in Chaozhou dialect. For example, suang kao refers to a mix of hot and cold coffee; gao baht is a coffee with red syrup added; O liang is black coffee with ice…

For the price, it is very cheap! All coffee is only 10 baht and takeaway is 15 baht. Whether it is before or after the epidemic, this coffee shop still insists on such prices. Ananchai said that he did not plan to increase the price, because this kind of income is enough for him to live, and the nearby neighbors are also used to this price. For him, running a coffee shop is more about adhering to the inheritance of the older generation and selling the most traditional local Thai coffee for everyone.

For the inheritance of this century-old cafe, Anancha said that he has no plans. If the next generation is willing to inherit the family business, whether direct or indirect, he is happy to pass it on. But if the next generation feels this is a burden, he will not force it, but he will insist on running the cafe until he can’t do it himself.

Everything in the coffee shop has its own story, and the pictures on the walls tell the story of generations. The century-old tables and chairs, the century-old coffee stove, the century-old roasting technique, and the century-old coffee-making technology all well reflect the most traditional Chinese “inheriting the father’s business”. Every cup of seemingly ordinary coffee, They all say the word “inheritance”.

The owner is calm, it is not easy to run a century-old cafe. Before the popularity of the Internet, cafes were all doing business with neighbors, and the enthusiasm of the neighbors also allowed the cafe to survive the financial turmoil and other large and small natural disasters. Until 2005, the owner helped a bunch of hungry young people…

In order to thank the owner for their kindness, these young people promoted this century-old coffee shop through social networks, and soon more young people came to “check in”. In a short period of time, the original low-key operation of the cafe has spread throughout Thailand from the northwest of Thailand. At the same time, many foreign tourists have come to visit specially for a cup of the most traditional Thai local coffee, and also to feel inheritance of this culture.

In addition to Thailand, there are many shops in Hong Kong, China that still retain traditional coffee brewing methods and coffee roasting techniques. Charcoal-roasted coffee, adding liquor when roasting coffee, iron-cooked coffee, etc. Every shop that insists on selling traditional coffee has its own unique understanding and technology on roasting coffee beans hk. There is no complicated brewing method, one filter, one pot, just like this sells its own unique coffee for generations. It looks like a cup of black coffee, even if you add sugar and milk, you can drink a different feeling.

Maybe a traditional cup of coffee will be “too bitter” or “over-extracted” for everyone, but not many people have really tasted it, or are willing to taste it.

Don’t be constrained by some superficial things to explore coffee. The real interest is often in these traditional coffees that do not conform to the “Golden Cup Extraction Theory” of modern specialty coffee and the “on the roasting curve” that should be.