【Sunday Slow Time】Qi’s Herb House: The Joy of Homegrown Tea

Push open the wooden door adorned with cute bells, and the scent of rose essential oil burning in the corner immediately wafts into your nose, making you want to take a deep breath and stay a while longer. The space is small enough to take in at a glance. Bookshelves on the left display the owner’s collection of books, magazines, and hand-drawn artworks, while a few dark wooden tables and chairs wait delicately to be used within the neat layout. The owner wears an apron adorned with fresh colors and floral patterns, and the visual afterimage of floral photos on the walls makes it feel like you’re gazing at a lush countryside field—even without leaving the city.

 

Twelve years of working as a flight attendant led Ms. Lai to herbs by chance. She discovered they helped soothe and balance her tired body and mind, and she unexpectedly fell in love with their charm. She then brought back various plant seeds from abroad and planted them in the fields left by her grandfather. She insists on growing them naturally, without pesticides or chemical fertilizers. The whole family pitches in to remove pests and weeds, pouring love and care into every plant.

After quitting her airline job, Ms. Lai devoted herself entirely to her herbal world. With the mindset of making tea for herself (which she actually drinks every day), she carefully selects pest-free leaves, washes them, and dries them at low temperatures using machines designed for herbs to preserve their original color and nutrients. She then personally snips each leaf or sprig by hand to prepare the tea, hoping that both her customers and herself can gain more health and happiness with every sip of the refreshing herbal tea.

 

Listening to Ms. Lai talk about herbal tea is like listening to someone discuss a cherished collection. Herbs such as verbena, coreopsis, marigold, passionflower, mulberry leaves, and dandelion all have their unique characteristics and aromas. Much of her knowledge comes from self-study after developing an interest in herbal tea. Before opening the shop, she drank herbal tea daily and even shared some with family and friends. The shop currently offers 37 single-ingredient teas and 40 compound herbal teas, all blended by Ms. Lai herself. Each herbal tea has benefits for beauty or regulating bodily functions, and she categorizes them carefully, labeling ingredients in detail and offering personalized recommendations. Each herbal tea also has a lovely name—for example, “Oriole Out of the Valley,” which contains loquat and eucalyptus leaves; “Sweet Dreams,” with lavender, passionflower, and sleep-relieving properties; and “Zhao Feiyan Reborn,” which helps sculpt the figure.

Besides tea, Ms. Lai has also created several light snacks to pair with afternoon tea, each infused with herbs. Oregon pancake may sound like the name of a U.S. state, but it’s actually a type of herb. It’s pan-fried in olive oil infused with the herb’s aroma, and when served, it looks like Thailand’s “moon shrimp pancakes.” Fruit salad topped with her homemade herbal sauce combining kumquats and passionfruit is another of her creations. There’s also pumpkin soup, lavender cookies, and herbal muffins with rose geranium and cinnamon.

The lofty wooden lattice ceiling and the subdued wooden color scheme create the modern countryside style that the owner and designer hoped for. On regular days, guests can chat over tea and freely browse the books nearby. Aside from the beverages served on-site, Ms. Lai also produces a variety of herbal teas for sale in the shop, including tea bags made from the leaves, roots, and stems of herbs, which can be used for baths or foot soaks, as well as related products like herbal olive oil.

 

【Info】

Address: No. 246-17, Section 2, Qinghai Road, West District, Taichung City

Phone: 04-2451-3166

 

 

●  Read More:

【Sunday Slow Time】A Gourmet Shop with Artisan Spirit – Taipei’s Wen Shi

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