[Sunday Slow Moments]Iori Tea House in Tainan, a Modern Take on a Showa-Era Café

“We’ve always had just two ideas: one is to preserve the old house, and the other is to make people fall in love with this city.” With family roots in Tainan spanning over five generations, Xie Wenkan, born in the 1960s, spent his childhood watching plays and playing in the temple square of Xilai’an, developing a deeper emotional connection to this land than most. Three or four decades ago, the area around Xilai’an was the heart of Tainan City. Just on Ximen Road, there were 70 gold shops, and the combined number of cinemas on Ximen Road, Zhongzheng Road, and You’ai Street reached as many as 12. “There were crowds of people beyond your imagination back then.”

 

Having experienced those golden years, Xie Wenkan hopes to revitalize the entire street community through the rebirth of these old houses. Across from Iori is the 70-year-old Tai Cheng Fruit Store, and further down is Rainbow Came; the intersection of Zhengxing Street and Guohua Street is home to Zhengxing Coffee; near Ximen Road are Jiajia West Market and Xie Mansion in West Market. These newly revived lives within old houses have led more and more people to recognize the value of heritage architecture.

Presented in the style of a Showa-era café, Iori features extensively detailed woodwork in its walls and tea cabinets, with no detail overlooked. Xie Wenkan points to the walls inside and explains that every piece of wood here is chamfered, giving the edges an angle to create neat grooves. The second-floor façade includes three large arched windows. For the curved sections, craftsmen carefully cut the wood thin enough to bend and turn without breaking, gradually piecing together the arches. The 26 wooden chairs inside are made from Vietnamese teak, each intricately carved with patterns. Even the ceiling mural in the first-floor restroom was hand-painted by a friend, rather than taking the easy route with wallpaper.

 

True to the perseverance of a Tainan native, Xie Wenkan strives to present the authentic look of a Showa-era café. The food is no exception. Served alongside the fruit pancakes is a small creamer filled with milk, which Xie Wenkan collected from antique shops and old restaurants all over Taiwan—only 12 were found in total. The white porcelain teapot used for serving hot tea had 10 previous versions broken by staff or customers, and an identical replacement could no longer be found. “During the 228 holiday not long ago, with too many customers, we even had to make them wait for a teapot.”

The shop offers only about ten types of tea. Xie Wenkan says this reflects the Tainan mindset: “In Tainan, if you sell bowls, don’t also try to sell fish ball soup.” Rather than offering hundreds of tea varieties, it’s better to recommend the best ten. The store’s Assam ice cream is also exceptional. Over 50 types of tea leaves were tested before selecting Indian Assam tea leaves, which are broad-leafed and thick, exuding a rich aroma and flavor that isn’t overpowered by milk. It leaves a lingering sweetness and, being completely vegetarian and egg-free, won’t leave you thirsty.

[Info]

Address: Opposite No. 74, Zhengxing Street, Tainan City (across from Tai Cheng Fruit Store)

Phone: 06- 221-6371

Facebook: IORI TEA HOUSE