YumchaisaterminCantonesewhichliterallymeans"drinktea".ItreferstothecustomofeatingsmallservingsofdifferentfoodswhilesippingChineseteainCantonesespeakingareasofsouthernChina.ItisanintegralpartoftheculinarycultureofGuangdongProvince,HongKongandMacau.InanycitywithasizeablepopulationofCantonesepeople,toyumchaisatraditiononweekendmornings,andwholefamiliesgathertochatandeatdimsumanddrinkChinesetea.Yumchaisalsoamorningritualfortheelderlytospendagoodpartofthemorningafterearlymorningexerciseoftaichiorawalk.Theteaisimportant,foritissaidtohelpdigesttherichfoods.Inthepast,peoplewenttoateahousetoyumcha,butDimsumrestaurantshavebeengainingoverwhelmingpopularityoflate. 　　Teahouse 　　TheritualiseddrinkingofteaisoftenpractisedinChina.ThemostimportantworkonteamakingistheChaJing(鑼剁粡).ItistheonlyextantworkoftheTangDynastyscholarandpoetLuYuandwaswrittenduringthe700s.Hedescribesmanyaspectsofteamakingfromthelocationoftheteahousetothemodeofdrinking.Histreatiseisconsidereddefinitivebymany. 　　InNorthernImperialChinateahouseswereregardedasretreatsforgentlemenandlaterforbusinessmen.Dealswouldbediscussedandsealedintheneutral,relaxedsurroundingsofateahouseratherthaninoffices. 　　Teahouseswereandareplaceswheredisputescouldbesettledharmoniouslyovertea.Courtsoflawarenotspotswheremostpeoplefeelatease.TheChineseattimesreplacedthissettingwithateahouseandthepresenceofamutuallyrespectedarbiter.Thedisputingpartieswouldagreeontermsandapologies,payforthetea,shakehandsandpartinpeace.InthesamewaythatinsuranceagenciesandstockbrokeragesinEnglanddevelopedoutofsimplecoffeeshops,teahousesinChinawereareusedasplacestoconductbusiness. 　　SometeahousesinHongKongstillupholdsuchatraditionandarefrequentedbyHongKongChineseindustrialistsandentrepreneurs.Traditionalteahousescanstillbefoundintheoldercommunities.Themostwell-knownexampleinCentralistheLukYuTeahouse,ahalf-century-oldlivingmonumenttothesedatestylishnessofoldHongKong.Stained-glassmuralsandmassiveframedscrollsdecoratewhitewalls.Theteahouse'soriginalblackceilingfansspinidlyintheair-conditionedrooms.Mirroredandmarbledprivatewoodenboothsareconspiratorialbusinessmen'shavens.TogoforyumchaattheLukYuistoenteranewera.Itisbestexperiencedmid-morningormid-afternoon,outsidethebreakfastandlunchrushhourswheneveryseatandtableisusuallyreservedforregularcustomers.ThisveryspecialteahouseisHongKong'stributetothe8th-Centuryteamaster-LukYubeingtheCantoneseversionofLuYu. 　　[edit]Eatingutensils 　　Teabowl 　　Methodsoftea-tastinghaveundergoneconsiderablechangessincetheTangDynastyandtheuseofcoveredteabowlsisonedevelopmentofnote.Thesimpleyetpracticaldesignofcoveredteabowlsmakesthemanexcellentutensilfortea-tasting.Thefinepaintingonthesebowlsalsoenhancestheiraestheticvalue.Nowadaysasmallteacupisusedinsteadinmostdimsumrestaurantsmoreoftenthannot. 　　[edit]Chopsticks 　　Chopsticks,apairofsmalleven-lengthtaperedsticks,arethetraditionaleatingutensilsusedtoyumcha.ChopsticksarecommonlymadeofplasticintheChineseres