Page 28 - JaKita 02rd Edition 2021

28 CULINARY

Kindness from Captain
Gan Djie

t’s easy to find Pantjoran Tea House, for it
Ihas unique building. Its window and door
frames are made of wood covered with
Chinese ornaments. What’s interesting is there
will always be small table set on the front
terrace, along with eight teapots on it.

Pantjoran tea house provides tea inside their
eight teapots in the morning and evening:
everyone who’s happen to pass by the area
can drink the tea for free. It’s called Patekoan
tradition.

According to Pantjoran Tea House manager white tea, Chinese oolong tea, Taiwanese
Rico Solehuddin, since the COVID-19 pandemic oolong tea, Indonesian oolong tea, or pu’er
started to emerge in Jakarta, the Patekoan premium tea. The price range between 120,000
tradition had to be cancelled temporarily. to 200,000 rupiahs for 15 gram each.
For now, the eight teapots were empty, they
were only there for symbolic meaning, for the That afternoon, the manager of Pantjoran Tea
visitors who wanted to take pictures. House Rico Solehuddin served us with gongfu
cha and a Chinese dish. He also handed us
Patekoan, derived from the words Pa which two bundles of plastic maps, which contain the
means eight in Mandarin and tekoan which scrapbook of tea history in Batavia for us to
means teapot. Eight is considered a lucky read there.
number for the Chinese for it has no end,
infinite shape. For the reason, the owner of Rico also offered us genmaicha, a tea that is
Pantjoran Tea House hopes this tradition of known to reduce sinusitis. Genmaicha must be
Patekoan will bring fortune to its family as well brewed for four times maximum. Rico practiced
as to those who drink it. the steps: First of all, he prepared and set the
brewing tools on cha pan (wooden tray).
This free tea banquet was inspired by the After that, he poured hot water into cha hai
kindness of Kapiten der Chineezen Gan Djie (transparant tea pitcher). Secondly, he filled 1/3
and his wife, who came from Bali to Batavia. of the teapot with tea leaves, brewed them with
At that time, Batavia was under scorching sun. hot water and poured it into the cha hai.
Oftentimes, peddlers and travellers who got
tired took the front office area of the generous Brewed tea water from cha hai should be
Gan Djie as shelter. As it was hard to find poured into the wall of cups and teapot in
drinks for there were no drink-sellers around, order to create the same temperature as the
the wife of Gan Djie suggested to provide tea outside’s, to get the best tea flavor.
for those people.
Again, Rico brewed the tea leaves inside the
Kapiten Gan Djie served from April 10th 1663 teapot until it was full. He then set the tea aside
to 1675, after succeeding the old Kapiten der for a minute before pouring it down to cha hai.
Chineezen Phoa Beng Gam. yen We were asked to pour the tea from cha hai into
the wenxiang bei (tea aroma cups) and moved

2nd EDITION 2021
Sarana Informasi Pemerintah Provinsi DKI Jakarta