IPOH, Sept 21 — The brackish tonic is served in a large bowl typically used for soups, and comes with a slice of dehydrated Chinese olive on a tiny saucer.
Before serving, Francis Kan first transfers it from a colourful flask to a stainless steel plate to cool it slightly so as not to scald the customer’s tongue.
It may appear vile, as most traditional herbal concoctions tend to be, and a certain level of bitterness is to be expected (hence, the sweet olive slice) but Poh Woh Thong’s Fever Tea is actually quite gentle on the tastebuds, with a kam (golden) flavour as the Chinese would say.
Its efficacy, on the other hand, is fairly potent and Francis promises that if you’re on the brink of falling sick, just one dose of this will be enough to restore your strength and vitality.
Having taken it on several occasions, I can attest to its rapid healing properties. The morning after downing a bowl of it, my sore throat was soothed and the insides of my cheeks (which had felt swollen) subsided back to normal. Not only that, but I also felt rejuvenated and refreshed, practically brand new and raring to go!
So what exactly is in this powerful brew that does the trick so well? The recipe is a family inheritance passed down through three generations. Francis’ grandfather, Cheong Keng Quee, first started selling the herbs from his medical hall and general goods store in Ipoh’s Jalan Hugh Low (now Jalan Sultan Iskandar Shah) back in 1895.
“Poh Woh Thong’s history began 120 years ago,” says Francis, “but the Fever Tea has been in existence even longer. When my grandfather left China for then-Malaya, his godmother gave it to him for his personal use. We don’t know where, how or when the original recipe came from.”
Back in the day, the late Cheong catered mostly to tin mining workers who had to endure harsh environmental elements in their daily toil and fell sick easily.
There were no doctors around at the time, so everyone relied on herbal solutions for their health concerns. While most of them were Chinese, there were also some Malay workers and they too, would drink this Fever Tea to stay in tip-top health.
The recipe has remained unchanged over the years, although Poh Woh Thong itself has gone through several transformations. After his grandfather passed away at the age of 40 from cancer, Francis’ mother took over and kept it going in its initial incarnation and at the original location.
Then, 18 years ago, Francis left Kuala Lumpur and a career in advertising, and returned to Ipoh to take over the family business. The first thing he did was to reconceptualise the business to what it is now — a herbal tea shop that also offers other traditional herb-based health food.
“Traditional medical halls are only as good as the Chinese physicians who can write effective prescriptions. When I took over nearly two decades ago, that was sorely lacking as people were not as keen on traditional Chinese medicine as they are now,” Francis explains.
“We also used to only sell the Fever Tea as pre-packed medicine that customers would have to boil at home. In modern times, everyone wants things fast and easy, so I thought why not sell ready-boiled tea for the convenience of those who don’t have the luxury of time?”
Poh Woh Thong relocated to its present premise, a quaint space at the side of a shoplot that faces Jalan Theatre in Ipoh’s old town. A couple of small tables are placed on the five-foot walkway fronting the simple shop, where an industrial-sized refrigerator stocks a variety of cooling herbal teas and puddings, including guai ling gou (tortoise jelly). A black and white portrait of Francis’ grandfather hangs on the wall next to the shop’s name in old-fashioned Chinese characters.
The front counter, covered in nondescript white tiles, displays hot herbal teas including the proprietary Fever Tea. The latter is kept in colourful flasks with mismatched caps, to keep them hot. The tea is boiled in the small kitchen at the back of the shop.
Lined up along a brick-coloured wall is a row of open stoves, each with a claypot or stainless steel teapot sitting atop. Each portion of the Fever Tea is boiled over slow fire for 45 minutes to an hour; a more accurate way to tell when it’s done is to start with four bowls of water and keep it over the fire until the liquid reduces to one bowl’s worth.
The ready tea is then poured through a strainer and into the flasks. There are two variants of this tea — one is diuretic while the other is not. The former contains the addition of salt and also helps the body detoxify. For the best results, Francis advises, the tea should be taken on an empty stomach so that the herbs can go to work right away.
As the tea uses only naturally-occurring substances, it does not require a serial number from the Ministry of Health and you can be assured that there are no side effects.
Poh Woh Thong still sells their Fever Tea in dried, pre-packed form and they can keep for up to a month, or two in the refrigerator. Any longer and their potency is lessened — though the tea is still edible — and sometimes the herbs may become mouldy due to moisture. All you need to do is dry them out in the sun.
Poh Woh Thong’s name is well established and their Fever Tea is time-tested, and now Francis is looking at expanding by franchising the brand.
For the time being, he just wants to focus on Ipoh, and a second outlet is already opened. It’s probably just a matter of time before the rest of the country gets to enjoy the healing powers of an ancient formula that dates back more than a century.
Poh Woh Thong outlets are at:
71 Jalan Theatre, Ipoh, Perak Tel+605 241 5604 Opens 9.30am-9pm, Mon-Fri; 9.30am-6pm, Saturdays.
287 Jalan Gunung Rapat, Taman Ipoh Jaya (same road as Pasaraya Billion) Tel +605 225 9645 Opens 10am-9pm, Mon-Sat
Vivian Chong is a nomad and foodie who documents her travel and lifestyle adventures at http://thisbunnyhops.com/
