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Coffee fragrant "China Street" the image of coffee shops in the old days

Published: 2026-07-13 Author: World Gafei

Last Updated: 2026/07/13, China Street in the early 20th century in the 1930s Central Street (renamed Central Street in 1928) as Harbin people know, at the beginning of the last century, the Central Street has been a mixture of Chinese and foreign prosperity. But do you know the name of the first western restaurant here, and when was it built? As early as 1900, there was already a Russian-owned western restaurant on Central Street.

China Street at the beginning of the 20th century

Street view of Central Street in the 1930s (renamed Central Street in 1928)

As Harbin people know, in the early years of the last century, Central Street has been mixed with Chinese and foreign, a prosperous. But do you know what the name of the first Western restaurant here is and when it was founded?

As early as 1900, there was already a Russian-run Western restaurant called "Five Pear Valley" on Central Street. Lin Piji, a generation of Western masters in Harbin, started his Western career in this restaurant. In the decades since then, the western restaurants in the central hall have grown rapidly, with nearly 40 western restaurants operating at the same time at its peak. Born in the 1930s, Professor He Hong of Harbin Business University recalled that in his childhood memory, Western restaurants were everywhere on Central Street, so that almost most basements on the street were Western restaurants.

When it comes to western food, coffee is naturally an indispensable leisure culture representative here. It is more like a flower in western culture, quiet and quiet quietly blooming in the corner of western restaurants and cafes. Romantic dating, warm reminiscence, simple discussion…Western food and coffee add quality and personality to life, beauty and style.

I couldn't help but think of the dozens of western restaurants and coffee shops on Central Street, and the aroma of coffee drifted across the street. It was a beautiful scene of warmth and romance.

Cafe Lu on Central Street in the 1930s

A western restaurant on central street has coffee written on its window

Victoria Western Restaurant on Central Street in 1938, neon cafe in the window

Victoria's Bakery on Chaman Street

Now, this coffee fragrance has passed through a hundred years and once again floated out of the old and new Ming...

After 60 years, the old Xinming Western Restaurant reopened at its original site (the east end of the first floor of Balas Food City, No.55 West Qidao Street). At the same time of reviving the environment and dishes, it also launched its own exclusive coffee-Harbin Street Coffee.

Postcards from Harbin in the 1930s

Harbin Street in Huayang Complex

Take a bag of delicately packaged street coffee, the pattern on the front is taken from an old Harbin letter more than 80 years ago, a grand scene in front of Sofia Church, blonde hair and cheongsam waving, top hat and gown parallel...

Turn it over and see a few short lines of text that evoke aftertaste and reverie:

Central Street, a long historical street, carries too many memories. It is no longer a person we recall, but the past, that era, that memory, that fragrant Chinese street that he/she represents.

He casually picked up the beautiful European-style long-mouthed pot and poured the hot trickle on the coffee powder. In an instant, he was surrounded by the aroma of coffee, and there was a faint jasmine fragrance floating out slowly. Shouldn't coffee be bitter? Why is this glass so light? Take a sip. It's amazing. There's both the joy of sipping tea with my dad when I was a child and the sadness of sitting alone in a cafe when I grew up, but they're all good parts of my memory.

This coffee is so special. The mellow taste is rich and long, jasmine fragrance and coffee fragrance perfectly blend the characteristics of oriental ancient charm and western fusion, and it seems to be a historical witness of Harbin's combination of Chinese and Western. This taste is unique and can only be found in such old shops.

Looking out of the window, a group of young people walk in the vicissitudes of the old street, continuing the memories of generations after generations...

Old and new Ming, a cup of coffee, remember a hundred years.

Old Xinming "Harbin Street" coffee, specially prepared by Harbin coffee master Zhu teacher, as long as 15 yuan cup.

Source: Big talk Harbin

FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou China, selling freshly roasted beans from its own farm in Yunnan as well as dozens of carefully selected single-origin beans from around the world for both pour-over and espresso. The products deliver consistently excellent quality and great value, with shipping within 24 hours. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers, and the beans are now available online at the Tmall 。