多春茶座 Toh Soon Cafe

28 October2015

这一切都是从一幅速写开始。

2015年9月16日的面子书问我要不要分享一幅我在5年前所画的速写，画的是多春茶座。一般上我不太理会这些回顾过去的照片，但这幅画却勾起了我许多回忆。5年前的那一天是马来西亚日，还在念小六的女儿配合节日到就读的韩江小学表演民族舞，我在那里画了很多速写。下午我们又去了多春叹咖啡，我也画了一幅速写。没想到一转眼就5年了，女儿今年也已中五。于是我分享了这幅回顾历史的图片，也不忘写道：“五年前的旧作，如今多春人潮汹涌、座无虚席，我想很难可以再霸着一个位子悠闲地画画了。”

Sketch of Toh Soon Cafe done on 16.09.2010

It all started with a sketch of Toh Soon Café five years ago. It was Malaysia Day (16.09.2010) and I accompanied my daughter to her school to perform dances during the Malaysia Day celebration. I did many sketches of the performers on that day. And in the afternoon we went to Toh Soon Café for local coffee and toast and this was when the sketch came about.

这幅速写经过再分享后，不小心给多春的老闆娘看到了，于是通过一位朋友私讯问我是否愿意出让？我说因为速写是画在线装的速写本子，不能拆开，但我可以给她存档照片，代价是一杯咖啡。

然后约定了时间，9月28日下午我就带了一个存档的光碟前往多春，一来就看到老闆娘在滑手机，心想幸好人不多，老闆娘还有时间滑手机，表示还有时间聊聊天了。于是道明来意，也把5年前的画作给她看，老闆老闆娘很开心，话匣子一打开就聊了半个钟头，当中老闆老闆娘还请我喝了两杯咖啡，还有烤面包和半生熟蛋。原来多春1950年就开始营业，老东家已九十多岁，儿子接手后也已经经营了30年，老闆娘嫁入黄家后老闆更如虎添翼，两夫妇配合无间，把一个座落后巷的小档口发扬光大。配合这几年乔治市入世遗后带来的大批游客，如今在高峰期多春可是人头躜动，一席难求。

Sharing my sketch with Mrs Ooi

Five years later I shared this sketch again after FB prompted me on this down memory lane photo. The owner of Toh Soon Café somehow saw this post and wanted to collect this sketch. I couldn’t part with this sketch as this was done on a binded sketchbook. So I suggested to exchange a soft copy of my sketch with a cup of their famous local coffee.

Photo with the owners of Toh Soon Cafe, Mr & Mrs Ooi. They are the 2nd generation of Toh Soon after Mr Ooi senior (now age 90+) passed the trade to Ooi 30 years ago.

Toh Soon's bosses and workers busy preparing coffee, half boiled eggs and toast for customers.
The toasts are prepared with traditional charcoal burnt method.

My sketch of Toh Soon after the bosses treated me with a set of coffee, half boiled eggs and toast. While I was sketching, the bosses made me another cup of coffee. And I left the stall with another free packet of glutinous rice dessert and a pack of famous Toh Soon coffee powder.

谈话结束后已是四点半左右，人潮开始多起来，老闆娘也去忙了，我抓紧时间赶快画了一幅速写才走，临走时老闆娘又递上了一包黑糯米粥和一包招牌多春咖啡粉让我带回家。

Sketch of the day. Colours put on at home.