LAM DONG – Coffee shop allows visitors to admire and take pictures with more than 300 types of stone lotus, including ancient varieties that few people know.
About 15 minutes drive from the center of Dalat city, Vuon Sen coffee shop on Cao Ba Quat street (ward 7), nearly 400 m2 wide, is an ideal destination for stone lotus devotees and young people who love to take pictures. “virtual life”.
“At present, the yard has about 300 types of stone lotus, such as brown, blue stone, jade jelly, jade string, cabbage, ancient … planted by my own hands,” said Mr. Phan Cong Bang, an experienced garden owner. 20 years of “playing” the stone lotus, said.
This plant has succulent leaves that are often arranged in the shape of a lotus flower, preferring to grow on arid soil like rocky soil, so it is called the stone lotus (or sambari, stone flower).
It is estimated that there are about 60 families of stone lotus with nearly 400 species. In which, most of the varieties grown in Da Lat often have origin of cold regions such as Korea, Japan, Russia.
Coming to the garden, visitors will learn more about various kinds of stone lotus besides the popular trees that are often bought for display. For example, this is a lotus cluster of ancient silver stone (ghost stone) like in Da Lat, rarely found elsewhere.
On the premises, the owner of the shop displays many varieties of stone lotus that have been grown in the locality for a long time. “I want to improve this garden more beautiful, I hope this place becomes a stone lotus museum for visitors and tree players”, Mr. Bang expressed.
Not only are displayed for each type of pot, some species of stone lotus are also planted together according to the artistic point of view of the garden owner.
All stone lotus in the yard are arranged by the garden owner, so that they live together on the same substrate (soil) and in harmony with the aesthetics. “There are 150 types of stone lotus on this turtle carriage, taken from above will be very beautiful, guests can take a good push pose”, Mr. Cong Bang introduced.
As a lover of stone lotus, Ms. Ngo Khanh Linh (Nha Trang) immediately comes to this cafe to visit when she has the opportunity to go to Dalat. “I know there are many stone lotus gardens in Dalat, but there are many types and find the best photos taken”, shared Ms. Linh.
The highlight in the shop is the stone lotus painting with an area of approximately 20m2, which has remained almost the same since it was planted for about a year. The intention of the garden owner to erect this wall is to serve as a backdrop for guests to take pictures.
Guests can take pictures for free on the premises of the shop, and can contact the garden owner to buy prices ranging from 15,000 VND to several million VND per tree. However, for conservation purposes, not all trees are sold, and the pots are monitored by the shop staff to avoid damage or theft.
The restaurant has two floors designed for guests to use water while watching the garden. Beverages including coffee, tea, smoothies, and fruit juices range from 22,000 to 45,000 VND per dish. Time of the shop is open from 7am to 10pm. Visitors should come until it is still bright to see the full color and easy to move.
vnexpress