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Herbal Tea Shops (or herbal tea stores, Chinese: 涼茶舖) refers to the shops located particularly in the Southern part of China that specialises in selling Chinese herbal tea. These shops preserve both the formulas of the herbal tea and also the traditional Chinese intelligences.

In Hong Kong

History

Before 1940s

In the 1930s, herbal tea shops were not popular. There were only individual hawkers that sold herbal tea on the street with a trolley.

1940s to Early 1960s

In the 1940s, the popularity of herbal tea grew when people realizes the medicinal effect of the herbal tea boiled following a formula is higher than those made at home. From then on, shops selling only herbal tea opened and gained popularity in Hong Kong. The size of herbal tea shops was initially small. They located mainly in residential area so their source of customer was the people who lived nearby. Therefore, the shop owners or staff usually knew their customers and had an intimate relationship with them.

Until the late 1960s, herbal tea shops acted as a semi public space where the public could sought for entertainment. As there were jukeboxes in the shops, it is therefore common for the public to spend time with their friends in the shops to enjoy the music or the atmosphere. Apart from this development, some of the shops opened near the cinema so they could attract cinemagoers by selling snacks such as fish balls.

Late 1960s to 1970s

In the late 1960s, philosophical ideas like modernism and scientism were promoted in Hong Kong and prompted the construction of a new metropolitan Hong Kong identity. The herbal tea shops were then deemed as the symbol of traditional Chineseness, and abandoned for the sake of establishing a city of modernity and internationality.

During the 1970s, the herbal tea shops gradually lost their role of social integration. As a result of the alleviated housing problems, the public’s need for semi-public spaces like the herbal tea shops was reduced. Consequently, the number of herbal tea shops began to decrease significantly from the late 1960s to the 1970s.

Late 1980s to 1990s

A wave of nostalgic movement swept Hong Kong from the 1980s to 1990s due to the public’s anticipation of the handover. During this period of time, herbal tea shops were reconstructed. They acted as a means through which the public could seek connection with their Chinese roots and identity.

2000s and onwards

• Intangible Cultural Heritage

In 2006, the herbal tea shops regained their popularity after the inclusion of herbal tea formulas and shop brands in the intangible cultural heritage list. According to UNESCO, intangible cultural heritage is a counterpart of the World Heritage that focuses on the intangible aspect of culture. Herbal tea meets the four requirements of ‘Traditional, Contemporary, Representative, Community-based’. However; only the formulas of more than eighty years of history and have been passed on continuously with strict protective measures included in the list. They were then allowed to be called “herbal tea”. 19 herbal tea shop brands were included in the list and some of them are located in Hong Kong.

• Modernisation

Due to the change in public’s taste and habit, herbal tea shops have to include other snacks and drinks to diversify their products. The modernized shops tend to sell products like desserts, snacks, fruit juice and so on. Many of their products incorporate Chinese medicinal ingredients with western desserts or snacks, in hopes to modify their business model and cope with the public’s increasing health consciousness and ever-changing eating habits.

Special Feature

Containers to store Herbal Tea

• Calabash

Calabash is also called Golden Gourds (Chinese: 金葫蘆). Traditionally, calabash is regarded as a symbol of herbal tea shops because calabash-shaped bottles are used to hold the herbal tea. This symbol originated from a traditional Chinese story, in which the liquid in a calabash-shaped bottle successfully healed the illness of people. In the 1940s, each herbal tea shop had two to three “Golden Gourds” with taps to store the herbal tea.

• Thermo Flasks and Metal Tank*

Later in the 1950s, the shops used traditional thermo flasks and metal tank to store and maintain the temperature of the herbal tea. To serve the customers, the staff would pour the herbal tea into porcelain bowls or cups.

Containers to make Herbal Tea

• Traditional Herbal Pot

Before the 1970s, many shops would use a traditional clay pot to make herbal tea.

• Big Copper Tank

From the 1970s onwards, the shops began to adopt the use of bigger copper tanks to perform the task, which can increase the volume of herbal tea produced.

Setting

At the entrance of the herbal tea shop, there will be a table with various kinds and bowls of herbal teas placed on it. The bowls are covered by a glass-cover that prevents the herbal tea from cooling and prevent the impurities in the air from reaching the herbal tea. The setting enables customers to stand outside of the shop to drink the herbal tea and save space in the shop.

Notable Goods sold in the shops

Notable Herbal Tea sold

• Twenty-four flavors tea (Chinese: 廿四味)
• Flu Tea (Chinese: 感冒茶)
• Five Flowers Tea (Chinese: 五花茶)
• Chrysanthemum Tea (Chinese: 銀菊露/菊花茶)
• Canton Love-pes Vine Tea / Canton Abrus Herb Drink (Chinese: 雞骨草)
• Self-heal Spike Tea (Chinese: 夏枯草)
• Dampness Expelling Tea (Chinese: 去濕荼）
• Hemp Seed Tea (Chinese: 火麻仁)

Other Drinks and Snacks sold

• Tea Egg (Chinese: 茶葉蛋)
• Plum Soup (Chinese: 酸梅湯)
• Sugar Cane and Lalang Grass Rhizoma Tea (Chinese: 竹蔗茅根水)
• Tortoise Jelly (Chinese: 龜苓膏)