SWEET TASTE OF VICTORY IN TEH TARIK DUEL
Self-confidence key to ‘pulling’ tea, says Syed Khaidir Syed Abdullah
EXPERIENCE is the best teacher for Syed Khaidir Syed Abdullah on Saturday when he walked away with RM10,000 after winning the Battle of Teh Tarik 2018.
He won both the individual and restaurant categories.
The art of “pulling” tea has attracted many enthusiasts and contestants never fail to put on thrilling acrobatic shows.
“I am so happy I won. For the restaurant category, my friend, Zainal of Banafee Enterprise, and I didn’t have much time to practise together as he was in Selangor and I was in Johor. But we pulled it off,” Syed Khaidir said.
Armed with experience garnered from other teh tarik competitions, he said the secret to performing spinning and leaping stunts on stage while handling between two and six pitchers of boiling tea was self-confidence.
“Years of practice allow us to anticipate how the tea will flow as we ‘pull’ it from one pitcher to another.”
Battle of Teh Tarik organising chairman William Lee said contestants were judged based on showmanship.
“The restaurant category emphasises taste, aroma and how synchronised a team is.”
Lee said 15 people participated in the individual category while seven groups contested the restaurant category.
Among interesting debuts in the third edition of the competition was an all-woman team.
Tahira Bee Vi and her daugh- ters — Salima, Siti Amirah and Siti Anisah — of Restoran HJ Yahiya & Fatimah took to the stage with confidence after re- hearsing for three weeks.
Lee said there were also teh tarik sampling sessions.
Cameron Valley Tea Group and Able Dairies Marketing Sdn Bhd were the sponsors.
Able Dairies general manager Yong Swee Chong said the quality of condensed milk and evaporated milk was key to making lipsmacking teh tarik.
“The teh tarik has to be thick and creamy so that when it’s ‘pulled’, the air that goes into the tea makes it bubbly.”
Lee said Tea Trade Association of Malaysia was thankful for the support of Invest Selangor Bhd in making this event a success.
Co-organisers include the Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association, Malaysian Indian Restaurant Owners’ Association, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur Chinese Coffee and Tea Shopkeeper’s Association and KL Tea Art Society Malaysia.