Hong Kong’s Yardbird is the complete package. It’s a very social spot, full of very outgoing and fun people. They also have a great menu, offering a variety of yakitori sticks to pair with an abundant spirits and beers. The house cocktail we chose is called the Jolly Rancher, which we paired with chicken and meatball skewers. It’s made with shiso-infused rice shochu and fresh watermelon juice and is very refreshing. It really does taste like a Jolly Rancher candy minus some of the sugar, but it’s still one of the sweetest drinks you can have at Yardbird. The restaurant was recently name-dropped in Bobby Hundred’s book, “This is Not a T-Shirt,” which discusses community, culture, brands, and how they relate to streetwear life. A lot of restaurants neglect their cocktail menu, and a lot of cocktail bars neglect their food menu, but Yardbird hits just the right spot with both.
Essential – a fitting title to what goes on inside this space. This cafe has many different, compartmentalized spaces that have a different look in every nook. All sorts of environments for the different kinds of people who go there. Whether you want to chill on a sofa, hangout with your friends for a meal, or stay under a skylight, there will be a spot for you. The choices for seating in Coffee Essential are as wide as their menu – featured heavily on this menu is their Dutch coffee which is a drip tower cold brew that they make constantly in the front of their cafe.
If you ask Coffee Essential what to drink, they’ll insist you taste their Dutch cold drip coffee. Immediately after passing through the front door, you see Dutch towers everywhere—it’s kind of their specialty. The result of the towers (which are tall and slow cold drip systems for making coffee) is a very intense, syrupy flavored cold brew. It’s a taste you wouldn’t usually get from a traditional cold brew. Some people may not like drinking this in the morning, but it’s always a good choice on a hot afternoon.
This is not your regular slice of cheesecake. That’s the usual impression at Coffee Essential in Taipei. It’s one of their best-selling desserts and one they’re well-known for. There are a lot of different textures, contrary to the single fluffy experience of a normal cheesecake. It has a creamy center wrapped by sponge cake with a dollop of blueberry jam on top, all of which collapses onto itself. It’s a bit too much for just one person, so maybe share it with a friend or two. The cake compliments the fruity, tea-like flavor of their single origin Ethiopian coffee nicely. It’s a very simple pairing but an undeniably satisfying one. No wonder it’s so popular. Essential also puts a lot of thought into setting the mood with finely detailed interiors and selective tableware. These are small details, but taking the time to appreciate them pays off.
Ninetys in Hong Kong is the ideal brunch spot. They’ve got an excellent menu offering a wide arrange of dishes, from delicately plated salmon tartare to brimming bowls of siu wan rice. But we came for the coffee and in contrast to their lengthy lunch menu, they’ve got a very streamlined coffee flavor selection—fruity or choco. We picked the latter and had it as a long black.
Roasted and custom blended in Melbourne, Australia (where Ninetys has its roots) the choco blend hits hazelnut, milk chocolate, and caramel notes. They serve it with a small plate of dried blueberries on the side, which we were instructed to eat after every sip. The verdict? It’s rich and bold with a tinge of sweetness, just as chocolate should be. And the mild tartness of the blueberries really does complete the experience.
Whether you’re looking for a place to have a hefty meal with the whole family or just a cup of coffee by yourself, Ninetys checks each box.
Today is our inaugural monthly wrap up, wherein we count off our favorite places from all those we’ve covered. It’s so much fun stopping by the various coffee shops, cocktail bars, restaurants, and even tea places around the region, seeking out amazing and memorable drinks. And of all the great establishments visited, we’ve managed to cobble together a short list of the few who truly exceed our standards. They exemplify a mastery of their craft, ingenuity, and creativity. The four main criteria are quality of service, beverage design, space concept, and beverage philosophy. While these are our tops, we still love many more! So, without further ado, here are our best picks of June in no particular order:
The Old Man, Hong Kong – Simply put, the best bar in Asia (we concur with Asia’s 50 Best Bars).
C-Lounge, Philippines – A totally undiscovered treasure that neighbors Manila Bay’s famously pink sunset.
Cupping Room, Hong Kong – This is the very first coffee shop you should visit when in town.
Congrats Cafe, Taiwan – A concept that should not have worked, but was executed perfectly.
The Giving Cafe, Philippines – Giving Philippine specialty coffee a chance to showcase itself to the world.
The Giving Cafe has a focus on storytelling. The interior features hints of the family’s business origins, like the abaca ropes on the ceiling. They started out as one of the few abaca rope manufacturers in the Philippines before growing to become one of the biggest coffee companies in the country. Another way they are starting true to their roots is the food menu, which mirrors a classic Chinese tea house, serving up dishes like fried rice and lemon chicken.
If you want a bang for your buck, TGC’s tasting flight is quite a bargain. It’s basically three pour overs for the price of two. The cafe is also a smart way to learn about different coffees. Baristas here are well trained, with roaster Adrian Vocalan being a National Latte Art Champion, and owner Michael Harris Conlin recently awarded as the 2019 Philippine Barista Champion.
This is probably the only place you can get food like Taiwanese fried chicken along with a shot of espresso in Manila. The Giving Cafe’s meals are mostly comprised of comfort food. Eating here is something we always look forward to, mainly because of how the food pairs with the complex flavors of their coffee. We always try a different meal every time we visit and it never disappoints. On the right is their lu rou fan with Taiwanese fried chicken—it’s a crowd favorite and at 300 pesos you definitely get your money’s worth. (Just look at the serving size, the meat doesn’t even fit in the bowl!). Next is the salt and pepper spareribs, a rice-bowl that balances nicely with the sweet and fruity note of their espresso and the salty flavor of the ribs. It’s a surprisingly good combination. Since their espresso offerings vary in taste, it’s always a good idea to ask the well-informed staff about what food best pairs with which coffee.
The entire concept of Draft Land is totally not what one would expect from a cocktail bar. Instead of a fully stacked liquor shelf, which is the usual backdrop you see at bars, Draft Land has an army of taps standing in a straight row. Above them, very symmetrically installed, are the names of the 24 different cocktails to choose from. So when you order, you simply name the number to the tender on shift and within just 10 seconds, you get your drink. Sounds like a cocktail express, don’t you think?
At first, we really weren’t sure how this set up could possibly give us a memorable bar experience or produce enjoyable drinks. After all, doesn’t part of the charm of cocktails lie in witnessing your drink be put together in a very precise and artful manner right in front of you? But having been there and trying a couple of their concoctions showed us that, yes, cocktails on tap can offer an enjoyable experience. The packed bar spoke for itself and everyone there seemed to be having the time of their lives, drinks being pulled at such a fast pace.
And the cocktails themselves? Surprisingly complex and nuanced! We had their basic gin cocktail called Guk Bou, interestingly flavored with chrysanthemum, pu-erh tea and lime—simple and refreshing to the palate but with a very distinct flowery note that sneaks up on you at the end. Totally unexpected and quite the treat.
So if you happen to be on a night out in Hong Kong, drop by 63 Wyndham Street in Central and experience the speed and precision of Draft Land’s cocktails on tap, fine drinks at the drop of a dime.
A proper cocktail bar situated in Makati Poblacion? Oto is a solid choice. In an area known as the red light district and now the nightlife center of Makati, you’ll notice that Oto is a little bit off from from the strip of bars along the popular Don Pedro street; yet people still make their way around to grab a drink and listen to music from their vinyl record selection. Clearly, Oto has an allure to it. And much like the stripes driven interiors, beverages likes this coffee-themed cocktail have their flavors line up intelligently and in a sophisticated manner.
This is the Pretty Paloma, created by Oto’s barista Larry Andrada. It’s a cold summer drink inspired by the classic Paloma cocktail, which is usually a tequila-based drink prepared with grapefruit juice or soda. But Andrada forgoes the alcohol and instead combines freshly squeezed grapefruit juice with cold drip coffee, simple syrup, mango syrup, and a dehydrated grapefruit slice as garnish. It’s like biting into chocolate candy with a fruity center. The rich flavor of the coffee and its notes of dark chocolate mix with the tangy grapefruit and sweet mango in a refreshing and indulgent ensemble. Oto is set to move to a nearby location quite soon, so head down to their current home in the famous Poblacion neighborhood of Manila while you still can. And while you’re there, be sure to browse their wide collection of vinyl records—Larry will even play them for you!
Taipei’s Imperfect Coffee and Matcha is quite hard to find; they have a sign, but it’s nowhere near their door. The cafe is in a university town, so once you walk up the stairs, you’re bound to discover it full of students hanging out or studying. The second-floor windows overlook a public park with giant lawns in front of the university, and the view makes the climb worth the effort. Even during overcast days, it’s a very comforting place. Their menu also offers a variety of meals and pastries and the portions are generous, so you get a bang for your buck. (Students are always broke, after all.) A lot of their pastries highlight matcha as the main ingredient, so if you’re a fan then this is a must if you’re in town.
Dr. Fern is a speakeasy in Hong Kong hidden inside a passageway directly outside a train station. It sort of looks like a doctor’s office out front, hence the name. For the most part, it’s a gin and tonic bar, although you can find other cocktails like a Negroni. Once you’ve gone inside, however, it’s clear you’re expected to order a gin and tonic. They have an entire menu (called the Doctor’s Order) dedicated to hundreds of gins that you can pair with quite a number of tonics. The combinations are almost endless, which means its a nice place to frequent if you’re a fan of GNTs. It’s a simple premise but because gin can have so many different notes, your experience will always change.
Simple Kaffa is the place of champions. Owned by Berg Wu, 2016’s world barista champion, all their coffees are heavily floral, which is a theme in his brews. They have an element of tea like flavors in order to appeal to the Taiwanese tradition of tea drinking. Since the country has an understanding of these flavors, he pushes said notes in every single cup. Even their Ethiopian heirloom is naturally sweet but tea-like. Usually with a dark coffee, you wouldn’t expect these notes. (All their single-origin, black coffees use the clever coffee dripper, which combines a french press and a filter drip.) To capture the perfect flavors, Berg Wu personally traveled to coffee farms in Ethiopia. He worked directly with producers there to customize the coffee process so they would still taste like Ethiopian coffees but with a focus on more aromatic flavors. They conducted several experiments with different processes for the raw beans and brought them back to Taiwan for roasting. Kaffa is the only place in the world with these coffees, so if you’re in town be sure to drop by.
