[Profile] Tracia Chan, Dissolved Solids (Kuala Lumpur)
- ABV Project
- Mar 25
- 2 min read
Kuala Lumpur’s drinks scene is evolving rapidly, and few embody that shift quite like Tracia Chan: an entrepreneur, barista, and bartender who has spent over a decade straddling coffee, culinary, and cocktail cultures.
“I cannot take caffeine… and I can’t drink alcohol even though I make drinks,” she says wryly. It’s a contradiction that underscores her approach: one rooted less in consumption and more in craft. Since entering the industry at 18, Tracia has built a portfolio of concepts including Dissolved Solids, where experimentation and technique take center stage.
Her journey hasn’t always been understood. “My family doesn’t really understand what I’m doing… when I say I work in a bar, they think I’m a Carlsberg beer girl.” That gap reflects broader misconceptions about the industry – both its professionalism and its rigor. “People think… straightaway they can be behind the bar. It’s like, no, man, it doesn’t work this way.”
Post-pandemic, Tracia has found herself at the forefront of a growing shift towards low- and no-alcohol drinks. But she’s quick to challenge lazy assumptions. “A lot of people have a very direct perception that mocktails equals to artificially sweet drinks.” Instead, her team employs techniques such as hydrosols, freeze distillation, and milk washing to build complexity without alcohol.
For Tracia, it ultimately comes down to integrity and design. “From the bar design to the menu design to the design of the cocktail, I think everything plays a role.” That philosophy extends to pricing and value. She recalls being outrageously charged RM60 for “pineapple juice with grenadine” at a "Top 50" bar, a moment that sharpened her stance on quality.
In a market increasingly crowded with “zero-proof” options, her work insists on something more: that non-alcoholic drinks deserve the same thought, technique, and respect as any cocktail.