True to its roots for 20 years: A Hong Kong cafe in Beijing
- By Guan Weiwei
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E-mail China.org.cn, June 30, 2017
Hu Zhaotong came from Hong Kong to Beijing in 1997, where he went and opened up a Hong Kong-style café, or Cha Chaan Teng, the following year. The restaurant boasts authentic Hong Kong flavors accompanied by nostalgic designs.
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Hu Zhaotong, owner of the Longji Cha Chaan Teng in Beijing, a café he has managed for almost 20 years. [Photo: China.org.cn/Guan Weiwei] |
The Longji Cha Chaan Teng, located in Beijing's Central Business District (CBD), usually gets quite busy during lunch hours, with patrons craving its signature offerings including rice with stewed drumstick, double-boiled soup and Yuan Yang, a blend of coffee and milk tea.
The authentic atmosphere comes from two things: food and design. "We use only ingredients and decorations from Hong Kong so we could keep the same traditional Cha Chaan Teng flavor and feel," Hu said, noting that the interior design, a throwback to the Cha Chaan Tengs of the 1970s, is his brainchild.
Its open kitchen makes Longji different from traditional Beijing restaurants. Because, as is true of the Cha Chaan Tengs in Hong Kong, open kitchens help save a lot of space and time during busy hours.
"At the beginning, it was hard and we were losing money," Hu said. "Longji was the second Cha Chaan Teng in Beijing but shortly became the only one left because the Hong Kong flavor didn't seem to be a hit with the locals," He added.
Thanks to the strengthened economic and cultural ties after Hong Kong's return to China in 1997, along with the introduction of the Individual Visit Scheme in July, 2003, Hong Kong saw a surge in mainland tourists coming from the mainland at the time.
Cha Chaan Teng, in turn, became more popular amongst mainland Chinese. And as the years passed by, Longji's reputation grew and return customers became more common.
Authenticity and reliability are the secrets to Hu's success. "The most important thing in running a restaurant is consistency," Hu said.
The consistency is reciprocated by the customers. "Some of my customers first visited my restaurant when they were single. They then brought their husbands or wives here. After several years, they bring their kids here too," Hu said.
"Everything tastes the same as I left Beijing a dozen of years ago," said Peter Leung, one of Longji's longtime customers who now lives in the United States. He made of point of paying Longji a visit while back in China.
Nowadays, it's not difficult to find a Cha Chaan Teng in Beijing. Knowing that he is the one responsible for this gives Hu a great sense of accomplishment. Without plans for opening branches in sight, he only wishes to make Longji a success story with more chapters yet to be written, all imbued with its authentic Hong Kong taste.
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