Top Nine Cafes of 2023
Here are our Top Nine Cafes of 2023.
Generally, we value three qualities when it comes to cafes – quality of food/drinks, ambiance, and service.
Obviously, there were a handful of cafes that excelled in at least two of three of the criteria above – but among the many cafes we’ve visited this year, these are the ones that made a lasting impression on us.
Max is an avid coffee drinker who brews his own coffee at home – so he has an affinity towards microbrewers with a large selection of beans. Both of us enjoy a well-executed dessert, so these are represented in this list as well.
Top Nine Cafes of 2023
Finally, ambiance makes a difference as these are represented by the likes of Magokoro Teahouse in Chiang Mai and Simple Kaffa located on the 88th floor of Taipei 101.
To be clear, this Top Nine Cafes of 2023 list includes cafes that we discovered during the year (regardless of when they first opened for business). This list is not in any order of preference.
Find our previous list – Favourite Cafes of 2022 here.
1. Kuro Coffee, PJ
[Pork-free] Kuro Coffee in PJ was highly recommended by a friend for its excellent coffee, and it did not disappoint.
Sharing a space with Dainese in Seksyen 51a PJ, Kuro Coffee is smartly decked in a monochrome palette, as it shines the spotlight on coffee beans sourced from Ethiopia to Yunnan.
All the beans here are brewed in-house. While Colombia and Ethiopia single-origin are usual suspects in most microbreweries – we were most delighted to find Geisha varietals from Yunnan, China served here. We also enjoyed the Charcoal Swiss Roll here.
Click here for the full post.
2. Snow Dessert Café, Taman Paramount [Closed Permanently]
[UPDATE: Snow has permanently closed]
Pork-free] Snow Dessert Cafe in Taman Paramount offers a great selection of shaved ice dessert, but our favourite here is the Oppa Bingsu (RM26) – which is the traditional snow ice dessert served with injeolmi/kinako (soybean powder) and rice cakes.
There’s been plenty of new spots for Korean Bingsu in town (including Sulbing from Seoul which opened in Pavilion KL), but we Snow’s version is still our favourite for its snow-like texture, portion and wonderful service.
Full story here.
3. Simple Kaffa Sola, Taipei 101
[Pork-free] Simple Kaffa is an award-winning roastery and cafe in Taiwan. Its founder, Mr. Berg Wu was the 2016 World Barista Champion, and his staff had also won barista championships in Taiwan.
We’ve also visited its flagship branch on Zhongxiao Road but this Simple Kaffa Sola branch is memorable as it offers a magnificent view of the city from the 88th floor of the Taipei 101 tower.
The coffee was good as expected, but the Matcha Roll here is probably the best we’ve eaten. Booking is recommended – find out how in our post here.
4. Doux Doux by Château Dionne, PJ
[Pork-free] Opened in Feb this year, Doux Doux by Château Dionne is an offshoot of the popular Château Dionne French fine dining restaurant in Bukit Damansara.
We’ve tried a few canelés all around town, and we’ve found that Doux Doux has perfected the contrast between the caramelised crust and the soft, mellow centre, which makes for a very satisfying textured bite. More details here.
5. Unfold, Subang Jaya
[Pork-free] Opened by the same folks behind The Roast Things and Cream, Unfold is a lovely new cafe located at the Subang Ria Recreational Park. Good quality coffee is to be expected, but the view of the lake is the other major selling point here.
Read more in our post here.
6. Pluto, Chiang Mai
[Non-halal] There’s hundreds of thematic cafes in Chiang Mai, but Pluto definitely stands out for its unique post-modern building that takes inspiration from space.
The coffee here is no shoddy work here, but the Uranus – a mille feuille dessert filled with strawberries and custard cream – was the best dessert we had in Chiang Mai.
The puff pastry was delightfully crispy with just the right amount of caramelised sugar, and the cream was just perfect in sweetness and texture. Full post here.
7. Crackpots Coffee Roaster, Subang Jaya
[Pork-free] Crackpots Coffee Roaster has found a new home in USJ1 – offering specialty coffee beans for home brewing, and a new retail space for sipping on site.
Crackpots offers an amazing selection of beans here and Max enjoyed the two bags of coffee that he brought home. The baristas are very friendly and helpful too. More on our post here.
8. Magokoro Teahouse, Chiang Mai
[Pork-free] Magokoro Teahouse is an award-winning Japanese teahouse in Chiang Mai that offers everything from ceremonial matcha tea sets paired with wagashi, to loose-tea brews and matcha lattes.
The service is lovely, but the authentic Japanese teahouse architecture and Japanese garden made for a very memorable experience for us. Full post coming soon.
9. Early Owls, Chiang Mai
[Pork-free] Early Owls Cafe offers a wide green space where patrons can set up their own seats and tables on any spot on the grounds. We spent more than two hours here simply enjoying the clean air and cool weather. Full post coming soon.
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