TCM Meets Coffee And Ice cream In Guangzhou

黃子昂

Inside a coffee shop in downtown Guangzhou，Guangdong province，there is not only a buying frenzy of coffee and desserts but also the practice of traditional Chinese medicine.

The shop，owned by Tsai Hsiching of Taiwan and his wife，has become a hot leisure and TCM treatment spot since it opened in October 2019.

“We not only make specially baked coffee but offer TCM treatments to our customers，”Tsai said. “Coffee shops are considered favorable places for business meetings，as well as platforms linking young people to TCM.”

Tsai and his wife became certified TCM doctors after completing their studies at Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine about a decade ago.

“Young people like to try TCM treatment when they discover that such services are available in the coffee shop. Many have become regular TCM customers here，”he said.

Tsai's shop，Changtan Coffee，is located in the city's booming Tianhe district，where there are more than 1，000 coffee shops of different sizes and styles. Half of those are in the central business area—about 50 shops per square kilometer.

“There are many young people working around the shop. As a result，it is an ideal place to promote TCM by integrating medical treatment with coffee，”Tsai said.

廣州市中心的一家咖啡店內，不僅有大受歡迎的咖啡和甜點，還提供中醫診治服務。

這家咖啡館自2019年10月開業以來，已成為休閑和中醫診療的人氣商店。店主是來自臺灣的蔡曦慶夫婦。

蔡曦慶說：“我們不僅制作特別烘焙的咖啡，還為客人提供中醫診療。咖啡館通常是商務會談的好去處，也是連接年輕人與中醫的平臺。”

蔡曦慶和妻子大約十年前畢業于廣州中醫藥大學，成為了中醫執業醫師。

他說：“當年輕人發現咖啡店有中醫服務時，他們愿意試試中醫治療。許多人已經成為這里的常客。”

蔡曦慶的長灘咖啡店位于繁華的天河區，這里有1000多家不同規模和風格的咖啡店。其中一半位于中央商務區，每平方公里約有50家店鋪。

蔡曦慶說：“咖啡店附近有很多年輕人。因此，這里是將診療與咖啡結合起來推廣中醫的理想場所。”

In China，a growing number of TCM pharmacies have introduced coffees that combine TCM ingredients and coffee.

However，Tsai said they would not consider such innovative styles anytime soon.

“We will focus on making specially roasted coffee and promoting TCM treatment services，”he said.

In the shop，all coffee is prepared by hand，with beans roasted to light or medium levels.

“We don't bake the beans too deep because we want to avoid excess caramelization，”Tsai said.

Young people often suffer from sub-optimum health or diseases because of high pressure and irregular work schedules，so it is essential that they take care of their health in their daily lives and reduce their risks，he said.

In addition to specially roasted coffee，the shop also designs ice cream that is infused with TCM ingredients. It has found favor among young customers who appreciate healthy food.

Some years ago，Tsai's wife，Su Yun-ya，helped a special dessert shop in Taiwan formulate medicated ice cream. “So I began to make it by myself in my shop，”she said.

After matching TCM properties and making adjustments，three types of ice cream are on the menu，flavored by angelica sinensis，turmeric and longan.

“Ice cream integrated with medicinal ingredients of a warm nature tastes a little magical. It's very delicious，”Su said.

Packaged ice cream has become a hot seller in the shop.

“Ice cream with TCM properties can not only reduce the damage of ice products to health as much as possible but also satisfy the desires of young people，”she said.

According to Su，some customers who visited the shop during business trips to Guangzhou have developed an interest in TCM treatment.“They come here to drink coffee，but later become regular TCM customers，”she said.

The shop offers customers mainly with traditional TCM therapies，such as acupuncture and moxibustion.

在中國，越來越多的中藥店推出了將中藥成分與咖啡相結合的咖啡。

然而，蔡曦慶表示，他們短期內不會考慮這種創新風格。

他說：“我們將專注于制作特殊烘焙的咖啡和推廣中醫診療服務。”

在店里，所有的咖啡都是手工制作的，咖啡豆都是淺烘或中烘。

蔡曦慶說“我們不會對咖啡豆進行深烘處理，因為要避免過度焦糖化。”

他說，由于高壓和不規律的工作安排，年輕人通常處于亞健康狀態或疾病纏身，因此在日常生活中關注自己的健康并減少疾病風險至關重要。

除了特別烘焙的咖啡外，這家店還設計了摻有中藥成分的冰淇淋。……