Monday, March 12, 2012

Coffee & Cafes


I really don't mind beans from Yunnan's very own Hani Coffee. (哈尼咖啡) Honestly, I like Yunnan coffee black. No milk, no sugar. It isn't a coffee culture here. This is Yunnan. Tea rules. So clearly, the baristas at the indie cafes need more practice in getting their cappucinos and cafe lattes to be robust. Their current offerings are rather weak. I totally avoid Starbucks and Costa. Rather, I wasn't that desperate to have them. It wasn't so long ago that I complained Singapore had so few good coffee joints either. Heh.

When I want quesadillas, and decent spaghetti aglio e olio that comes with broiled Chinese spinach, Salvador's Coffee House is a good spot. They don't liberally sprinkle MSG into the food. At other eateries, I've to remind them, "no MSG, less salt and less oil please", otherwise, you get food swimming in oil. However, the cigarette smoke will get to you because it's soooooo tiny. So I always eat really quickly here and get out. Their fresh juices are properly done. No added sugar or any funny syrup.

I like the bright airy second floor space of Mazagran Coffee (水井咖啡). It's nice that they don't allow smoking in there, and the free wifi makes me a very happy imp. It's here that I'm happy to linger for a cuppa. Or I switch to tea. A big cup of hot tea is just as comforting on a windy day when it can get quite cold, but not enough to pull on a hat and gloves. It's fairly fun to sit at the cafe to listen to the many foreigners getting tutored by the locals in the language (putonghua) over drinks and cakes.


Mazagran Coffee (水井咖啡)
昆明市文林街文化巷7栋201号
T: 0871 5352697
(Closed on Mondays)

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