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THE NEW AMSTERDAMMERS
When she opened high-end tea shop Formocha in 2006, Amanda Yiu (52) gifted Amsterdam with the delicacy and decorum of the tea ceremony, an ancient tradition of her Chinese homeland. text and photo Marie-Charlotte Pezé
‘Amsterdam saved me’ 1. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN AMSTERDAM? I first came to Holland after high school in Hong Kong. I was a creative spirit, I didn’t want to work as a salesgirl or in a Chinese restaurant. I travelled many places – I tried England, Germany, America – but it’s Amsterdam that saved me. I was 29 and it was my last shot; I thought, if it doesn’t work out, I’ll go back to Hong Kong. 2. SO IT WORKED OUT? Amsterdam is very small, and international. That combination makes it very easy to be daring, because people here will try anything, and they believe in quality. I first opened a hair salon, my first passion. On the other side of my shop, I had a long table where I served tea. People would come in and sit, make art or paint, drink my tea and ask questions about its origins. So when I realised that hairdressing would be too taxing in my old age and was considering new career options, tea seemed like a natural fit.
3. WHAT IS DIFFERENT ABOUT FORMOCHA? You can buy regular tea everywhere, so it was very clear to me that I wanted to open a high-quality shop, for connoisseurs. I come from Chinese tea money: I learned all about it from my father. Tea is very complicated: you need to know about geography, history, agriculture. It took me five years to open the shop; I invested all my money and travelled all over the world to visit farms and factories, to taste, research and network. I am specialised in Asian teas, and today I am the official ambassador of Pu-erh tea in Europe. 4. IS YOUR CLIENTELE MOSTLY COMPRISED OF CONNOISSEURS? Most of my clients are men. People believe tea is a woman’s drink, but in Asia, tea is traditionally for highly-educated men: they get together to discuss business, the economy. That’s why we don’t carry anything too fruity or flowery. Our famous ice tea is a mix of Oolong and black tea, with fresh lemon and mint.
5. DO YOU DO TEA CEREMONIES? We can accommodate four people here on Looiersgracht, but our flagship store on Brouwersgracht is like a cultural centre, where we organise many tea events, often with musicians. At the end of April we’ll have our Spring Tea Festival. We serve Chinese and Japanese snacks, such as spicy pecans and delicate vegetable tempuras. They go wonderfully with the tea. 6. BOTH OF YOUR SHOPS ARE IN THE JORDAAN? It’s my favourite neighbourhood of Amsterdam, the western part of the canal belt. It’s the best area to walk around, to enjoy all the galleries. It’s great to rent a bike, or even a boat. 7. WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT AMSTERDAM? It’s so open-minded and creative, nobody cares about how you dress – and I like to wear a lot of vintage. In Asian countries people are more uptight about fashion trends.
8. AND WHAT DO YOU NOT LIKE SO MUCH? In the past couple of years, AirBnB has really killed the housing market, and prices have gone up so much. It’s terribly painful for residents. 9. WHERE DO YOU FIND AUTHENTIC CHINESE FOOD? For noodles, New King in Chinatown is the best, and Sea Palace and Oriental City have the best dim sum for a quick lunch. For dinner, Taste of Culture on Leidseplein offers delicious Cantonese fare. 10. AFTER ALL THIS TIME, DOES AMSTERDAM FEEL LIKE HOME? It always did, in a very natural way. I am an Amsterdammer. formocha.nl