Hidden Coffee Gem: Cafe Golden

Cafe Golden

Room 05, 1/F, Jockey Creative Arts Centre, 30 Pak Tin Street, Shek Kip Mei

2408 8255 ‎

(Shek Kip Mei MTR)

Cafe Golden

Hidden and tucked away in Jockey Art Centre in  Shek Kip Mei, Cafe Golden is one of my favorite places in Hong Kong that I don't get to visit enough. Plus, every time I do visit, maybe due to its rather random location and modest and simple decor, the cafe was never packed full and always had an relaxed and tranquil atmosphere.

                                         
Although the location is rather strange, it's perfect if you need to get away from the city for a while without having to completely disappear into the wilderness. Plus, although you have to walk a little from Shek Kip Mei MTR, it's easy enough to find the place (walk STRAIGHT) and stay there undisturbed for a endless hours of caffeine rushes and re-rushes.

I've gone here couple of times, sometimes alone and sometimes with a friend but I think this is more of a place to go if you want to catch up properly on a lazy afternoon or read/work in solitude. Plus there's no wifi here, so that always leaves me no choice to be either social with my friend or focus on work completely.

Everytime I came here I ended up trying either the Latte, Piccolo Latte, Doppio Espresso Doppio or the Cappucino depending on my mood (and amount of sleep). They are all excellent coffee that I always have to spend such a long time assessing myself before ordering that I feel so silly and sorry for the waiters who patiently wait for me to make up my mind.

The Latte here is not as strong and intense as the ones in Barista Jam but they are much smoother and silkier. It's not that they lack flavor or taste but it's just a different experience all together, and I can't quite put my finger on which one I prefer more. 

 Espresso Doppio

I am actually not much of an espresso drinker. It's gone too quickly and usually I find the bitterness and the acidity too over-powering and long lasting. But this espresso was surprisingly smooth and silky lingering around my mouth for what seemed like hours... It was actually one of the first espresso I truly enjoyed and have been coming back for ever since!

Piccolo Latte

Gone So Quickly!! :(

 And then was my Piccolo Latte. 

 Piccolo Latte is a variation from Caffe Macchiato. Caffe Macchiato, literally meaning 'espresso stained/marked with milk'. Although traditionally it had been espresso with small amount of milk, the 'stain' came to indicate the foamed milk on top of the espresso. Piccolo Latte apparently deviated slightly from the 'staining with foam' instead increasing the ratio of foam to espresso to 1:1!  

It had always been a good trade-off between espresso (which is usually too strong for me) and a simple Latte! It is my mini-latte with a stronger velvety aroma and taste!

    

Blueberry Cheese Caake

Sometimes, I even indulge a little more on small treats such as this blueberry cheese cake pictured above. The portions are actually quite small, so it's a nice accompaniment to a strong cup of espresso or any other coffee. 

And sometimes... I even steal my fiend's cup of coffee because when is one cup simply enough for a lazy lethargic afternoon. 

Mini European Holiday at Cafe Loisl

Cafe Loisl

Tai On Terrace, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong (link to map)

Rating: 8.3/10 

Price: Around 30-50 HKD for coffee/tea and 60 HKD for dessert
You know you have found your favorite cafe, when you don't hestiate to take the MTR for 40 minutes, walk up close to 100 steps of stairs for a cup of coffee and maybe a slice of cake.
Although, I do have to admit that Cafe Loisl is much more than cup of coffee (if it was just a coffee i'm craving, there's always Barista Jam with its amazing lattes, beans and what not)...

To me, Cafe Loisl is everything I miss about Europe. 
I had heard about this place for a while, and its alluring tag of 'viennese cafe' in Hong Kong... But it just seemed to good to be true. Could such a place really exist in Hong Kong? 
In Amsterdam, a nice cafe meant sitting outside, enjoying maybe one too many coffees in the sun.. it was about the whole atmosphere, the weather and a lifestyle...

SO there it was, I had expected nothing from Cafe Loisl, but it had given me my secret-european getaway. It was a beautiful cafe, tucked away from the city center.... where we could actually sit outside and fool ourselves into thinking we are on a holiday.

     

The owner had obviously an eye for details..... everything from the tea-sets, the waiter's clean and simple black and white uniform and the wooden chairs... it was just as if it was plucked straight from Vienna and plunged into streets of Hong Kong.

Anyhow after spending ridiculous amount of time looking around, taking photos and being excessively giddy at finding such a place.. .we finally calmed down enough to take a look at the desserts (after ordering coffee too!)

We went for the Applestrudel and Mille-feuille and 3 cups of Wiener Melange (espresso with foamed milk)  :)
I had never tried Mille-feuille and although the Applestrudel was suppose to be the specialty, i loved the Mille-feuille even more! :D 

Having not known what it was... I looked it up in Wikipedia! 

Mille-feuille (French pronunciation: ​[mil fœj], "thousand sheets"),^[1] vanilla slice, custard slice, also known as the Napoleon, is a pastry of French origin.
Traditionally, a mille-feuille is made up of three layers of puff pastry (pâte feuilletée), alternating with two layers of pastry cream (crème pâtissière), but sometimes whipped cream, or jam are substituted. The top pastry layer is dusted with confectioner's sugar, and sometimes cocoa, or pulverized seeds (e.g. roasted almonds). Alternatively the top is glazed with icing or fondant in alternating white (icing) and brown (chocolate) stripes, and combed.

Thousand Sheets.... What a name for a pastry eh? :)
I also loved the Wiener Melange! It was a little bit lighter than piccolo latte but definitely stronger than a latte, and it went perfectly with the desserts! :) It took so much restraint to not go for another cup straight after.

I returned almost days after my first visit here... I just had to show off to a German friend that such a place existed in Hong Kong! Although he was also skeptical at first, we soon found ourselves perfectly content enjoying the sun and indulging in a slice of strawberry cheesecake (AMAZING) with cup of  proper black coffee!

I also took a peak at the Menu.. and fund two MUST try items! Sacher Torte and Currywurst! How long has it been since I had either of those! 

I love love and love this amazing place and I will definitely return again and again, and will extend to this post with all the lovely desserts I will try!
P.S look at this cute logo for the cafe... :D (You can tell i'm completely hooked!)