I'm not an expert when it comes to coffee, but hanging around with people who are passionate about it has definitely made me appreciate coffee even more. My friends would tell me about notes and the difference it makes when the beans are stale.
So on our trip to Taiwan, I made sure to hop along J's cafe crawl. Thanks to her researching, we managed to squeeze in 3 different cafes to visit in Taipei before leaving for Jiufen. And, even better, I got her to share some of her thoughts on each cafe for today's blog post!
ZABU
No. 175-1, Section 7, Zhongshan N Rd, Shilin District, Taipei City, Taiwan 111
Operating Hours: Friday-Tuesday & Thursday, 12:00PM-11:00PM
Operating Hours: Friday-Tuesday & Thursday, 12:00PM-11:00PM
Walking into Zabu is like walking into an old apartment house. A home to two lovely cats, the quaint cafe is filled with old books, sketches, faded mirros, vintage looking wooden tables, and mismatched furniture. I liked that it wasn't like most cafes I've seen, which carry the modern minimalist aesthetic. This felt more home. It was like I had been welcomed as a guest for a cup of coffee.
This family-owned cafe offers a selection of coffee, organic tea, fruit tea, and other drinks like cinnamon milk, black sesame milk, and some alcoholic beverages. The owner showed us their beans and let us choose which one called out to us most. J and I got the Ethopia and Brazil coffee.
The overall ambiance was nice and homey, but according to J, she felt the coffee was stale and over-extracted. She did, however, enjoy the friendly cats! It seemed like they were used to being around people. You can also order food in Zabu, however, the menu didn't have much English translations. I'm sure the owners will gladly explain if you'd like to try, though!
The overall ambiance was nice and homey, but according to J, she felt the coffee was stale and over-extracted. She did, however, enjoy the friendly cats! It seemed like they were used to being around people. You can also order food in Zabu, however, the menu didn't have much English translations. I'm sure the owners will gladly explain if you'd like to try, though!
GOODMAN ROASTER
No. 110, Tianyu St, Shilin District, Taipei City, Taiwan 111
Operating Hours: Monday to Sunday, 11:00AM-6:00PM
From Zabu, we headed over to Goodman Roaster which was a 5-minute walk away. Goodman Roaster had a familiar ambiance, reminded me of the cafes I've been to like 12/10 in Makati--industrial-minimalist.
Out of the three cafes we visited, J preferred Goodman Roaster's coffee the most; specifically, she tried the Iced Kenya Coffee. She also bought the Kenya AA FAQ beans from them, which included flavor notes of mango, orange, grapefruit, and white peach.
Bonus: It was the founder of Goodman Roaster, Atsuomi Ito, who even prepared the coffee for us. In J's words, "It should be called Good Looking Man Roaster." LOL!
Out of the three cafes we visited, J preferred Goodman Roaster's coffee the most; specifically, she tried the Iced Kenya Coffee. She also bought the Kenya AA FAQ beans from them, which included flavor notes of mango, orange, grapefruit, and white peach.
Bonus: It was the founder of Goodman Roaster, Atsuomi Ito, who even prepared the coffee for us. In J's words, "It should be called Good Looking Man Roaster." LOL!
SIMPLE KAFFA
106, Taiwan, Taipei City, Songshan District, Lane 177, Section 1, Dunhua S Rd, 48號
Operating Hours: Monday to Sunday, 12:30PM-10:00PM
We wanted to make one last stop and was running short on time, so we hopped on an Uber to take us to Songshan District. The area is quite hip and you'll find a lot of nice streets to take photos of or photos in (perfect for your OOTDs!). However, you might find it a bit difficult to look for Simple Kaffa. My suggestion would be to look for V Hotel and find the side of their building that has the floral wall. You'll find a flight of stairs leading down to the basement, and below the stairs is the entrance to Simple Kaffa.
J was particularly interested in going to Simple Kaffa because it is home to Berg Wu, the 2016 World Barista Champion. He wasn't there during our visit, but we stayed to experience the coffee and cafe anyway.
The cafe was dim lit and felt intimate. J also noticed that the customers were mostly women; not sure if that's a fact or just specific to the day we visited. They only have a few tables inside, while you can also opt to take the tables outside. However, the experience will definitely not be the same. Even their bathroom was interesting as you had to use a code to get in, which you can ask from the baristas. It was as if you were going to be entering a vault!
For coffee, we got the Ethiopia Chelektu Natural, which had flavor notes of strawberry, white flower, and red wine. It was good, but we were going hungry at that point and they only had cakes for food there. So the place is definitely for enjoying and experiencing your coffee.
If you plan to check out these cafes or if you have other cafe recommendations in Taipei, leave a comment below! We'll probably be back in Taiwan some time soon.
The cafe was dim lit and felt intimate. J also noticed that the customers were mostly women; not sure if that's a fact or just specific to the day we visited. They only have a few tables inside, while you can also opt to take the tables outside. However, the experience will definitely not be the same. Even their bathroom was interesting as you had to use a code to get in, which you can ask from the baristas. It was as if you were going to be entering a vault!
For coffee, we got the Ethiopia Chelektu Natural, which had flavor notes of strawberry, white flower, and red wine. It was good, but we were going hungry at that point and they only had cakes for food there. So the place is definitely for enjoying and experiencing your coffee.
If you plan to check out these cafes or if you have other cafe recommendations in Taipei, leave a comment below! We'll probably be back in Taiwan some time soon.
* Some photos of Simple Kaffa are from J.
xx,
Megann
2 comments
Great pleasure to visit your amazing blog with such beautiful pictures, truly inspiring, I love your blog. Thank you for sharing, waiting for the next exiting post!!!
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www.modelonamission.com
Thank you, Nora! :) Appreciate your kind words. Hope to see you back on the blog soon! x
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