Coffee - A Bittersweet Story

Coffee - A Bittersweet Story

PART 1: HISTORY

Not know since when, the smell of coffee has followed us through our childhood days.

And like everything else in our country, coffee hides beneath its seductive brownish liquid a bittersweet story.

Coffee was first brought in VN along with the French troops on their invasion in 1858.

Initially, coffee was drunk only by aristocratic class, the French officials or intellectuals urban. The first coffee shop was set up in Saigon in 1864 and 20 years later, the 19th century marked the appearance of this refreshment in Hanoi. Not until that time has a tiny cup of coffee reached a higher level far from the pure intention to stay fresh and energetic on a brand new day.

We just humbly want to open a chapter of coffee era, the time when we would like to call the “old quarter coffee” in Hanoi.

PART 2: HOW TO MAKE COFFEE

Hanoians are long known for their elegant style culinary and distinctive etiquette and drinking coffee is no exception.

Although all around the world there are plenty of coffee making guides, still only a method is forever be preferred in Hanoi ” The French filter drip or phin-coffeemaking.”

To make a delicious café fin requires meticulous preparation and also a drip of love.

First thing is go to Hang thiec to buy a stainless steel phin, which is believed to keep the heat , aroma and taste of coffee.

Next, we need to suppress the coffee powder to a suitable level so that when the hot water is poured down, the coffee will not run straight off but little by little.

Then it comes to the hot water pot. The Old and experienced will remind us that there must be 2 steps: one is the first hot water layer to warm the powder, make time for the coffee to soak in the heat , and the second pouring  to make the coffee dribble.

And the last thing to do is sit and enjoy with all of your senses the truly meaning of a cup of coffee : the taste of strong black coffee( best with no sugar, no extra flavor), the smell of hot freshly ground coffee , the gripping sight of watching the brown-black coffee hourglass , the feel of the smolderingly heat emitted from inside every coffee bean, the emotion of seeing the quick pace of life from the outside while thinking about the true meaning of life, sparing the time for the quietness in the innermost of oneself.

PART 3: OLD STORES (PAST)

Thinking of Hanoi glorious coffee era, we cannot forget some outstanding names that stay with the time: Tri- Nhan -Giang- Lam.

Tri is famous for the concentration of coffee taste, some foreign people used to the sweet and creamy of coffee now find it hard to take in the robust strength concealed in coffee.

Nhan coffee store set up in one of the most crowded coffee street in Hanoi: hang hanh

With its own way of making coffee blended with a little of modern and ancient in every sip of coffee.

In contrast to Tri, Giang’s coffee is known for his focus on smell and his innovation on inventing a whole new way of coffee style: the “egg-coffee”- putting our coffee cuisine on the world map.

And last not least, Mr. Lam, in the memory of a connoisseur of coffee, likes his coffee simply yet special made. However, lam is better known for his decoration of the store, the deeper you go, the more artworks you will see, from real pictures of Bui Xuan Phai, To Ngoc Van to other famous artists, etc.

PART 4: STORES (PRESENT)

Coming back to the present, the 21st century, with its new trends and changes, it’s hard to find the pure, old coffee stores with the little, tottering stools and the faded walls.

Somehow, weaving one’s way through the alleys in the old quarter of Hanoi, the heart starts to feel the warmth again, seeing the remnants of a far-away coffee time.

Giang’s coffee now has been branched into many shops, all owned by his children.

One of them is Mrs. Bich’s – the only daughter that uses her own name for the shop.

Located in the second floor of a small house on Dinh Tien Hoang Street, Bich’s coffee shop has nothing to do with all the noisy, modernized and confused sights out there a few steps away.

Every customer coming to her shop can have a weird feeling of déjà vu, sth so familiar though so past-like. Maybe because of the friendliness of the shop owner, it is the place for the elderly to meditate, for the young to have a new experience and for the artists to find inspiration.

[Interview with Mrs. Bich – Bich’s coffee shop owner]