Cafe Loisl - A Viennese Corner in Sheung Wan

When the sun comes out after all these damp and rainy days, what's better than spending an afternoon alfresco enjoying a cup of coffee and a piece of delicious cake? The experience would even be greater if the location is quiet without people buzzing around and stressing you to finish your coffee. Cafe Loisl is one of the kind, you only have to walk up a bit for it.

This artisan Vienna style coffee house is located on the stair landing up Po Hing Fong, Sheung Wan. People who have visited would describe it as an oasis, or a corner of Vienna in Hong Kong. Yes, these are all correct descriptions for Cafe Loisl. The place is furnished with a Viennese touch, from the chandelier, marble coffee tables, floor tiles, wall decors to tableware, all the details suggest the owner's passion to bring the Viennese coffee shop culture to Hong Kong.

 

For those who have been to Austria, or wish to go there, you'll be happy to find some of the very best of this beautiful country. Number one on my list is definitely the Sacher Torte, this devilish chocolate cake traditionally consists of two layers of dense chocolate sponge cake with a thin layer of apricot jam in the middle, coated in dark chocolate icing on the top and sides, and served with whipped cream. The version at Cafe Loisl is more like a chocolate truffle cake, with alternate layers of chocolate sponge cake and rich ganache, coated with smooth chocolate icings. A Viennese coffee is a must to go with this sumptuous cake. Apfelstrudel, or apple strudel, is also a traditional Viennese dessert available in the menu. I didn't get to try it this time but it looked like a nice treat for people who loves the combination of apples cooked with cinnamon in puff pastry. 

The mille feuilles was a bit on the heavy side with custard.It would have been awesome if there were more layers of puff pastry (and must be fresh and crispy). The taste was great though, just too heavy.

 

Apart from desserts, classics like bratwurst, omelette and currywurst were also available. I was just a happy girl at Cafe Loisl having the food I miss from Europe :)

Cafe Loisl
G/F, 8A Tai On Terrace - Pound Lane, Sheung Wan
9179 0209

Coffee Alley - A Sought-After Taiwanese Coffee Shop Is In Hong Kong

Coffee culture has grown enormous in Taiwan in recent years, visiting a cafe for an ice drip coffee has become part of the itinerary. What would happen if a popular Taiwanese cafe opens in HK? The answer is a two-hour wait in order to get in for its delish menu and be served by its good-looking, friendly and mandarin speaking waiters.

Coffee Alley (咖啡弄),  a sought-after chain coffee shop in Taipei, has just brought a replica to Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. It has all the traits of a good Taiwanese cafe, which would incorporate international food and localize to suit the local taste, pay great attention to details and give an effort to impress customers.

A group size of 4-5 is perfect if you want to taste the most out of Coffee Alley's overwhelming menu. These are what comprised a delightful lunch for 5 girls today:

Baguette with curry beef - A fun 'East meets West' dish, the curry was more peppery than the usual Indian curry, quite appetizing

 

Club sandwich - A fulfilling dish with a nice egg salad and Doritos chips on the side, the marinated chicken in the sandwich was sweet and smoky, which turned up to be a nice surprise

 

Pizza with roast chicken - It's not exactly a pizza but a thin crispy baguette with tasty toppings, it's better named a toast for a more accurate expectation though

 

Waffles with black sesame ice-cream, chestnut paste and sunflower seeds - These phenomenal waffles popped out fresh with beautiful dark brown and light brown colors on both sides, the whipped cream was firm and rich, while the scoop of lightly sweet chestnut paste and sunflower seeds helped add more texture to the waffles. The ideas of black sesame ice-cream and black sesame sauce were nice too, though the sauce could be more intense in sesame flavor, very satisfying overall!

 

Strawberry mille feuilles - it's such an eye-candy already, the crunchy buttery puff pastry, heavenly custard and fresh strawberries with the right ripeness came altogether in harmony, fantastic!

 

Chocolate brownie with vanilla ice-cream - It's good but not for those expecting an avalanche of chocolate sensation, 'cause this brownie has more walnut and black currants than chocolate cake. The good thing is the refreshing berries actually lighten up this massive looking dessert, so you could still manage it after a big meal, quite clever ;)

Other not to be missed are the variety of hand drip coffees from around the world and some unique and devilish ice coffees and lattes (I enjoyed my sea salt caramel latte with hazelnuts and almonds scattered around the whipped cream on the side, very thoughtful). 

It's also perfectly fine if you are not a coffee person because the fresh fruit teas are also to die for. The iced fresh fruit tea with passion fruit seeds, lime, orange, apple..and Lipton breakfast tea is a genius creation, the colorful mocktail comes in a carafe to pour over to a slice of frozen lemon embedded in an ice cube in a glass.

The menu portions are big, I guess it's because Coffee Alley insists to put so much details in each plate to wow its guests with sky-high expectations. Great job! The long wait surely worth it! (Recommended not to go during weekends)

Coffee Alley
Address: Room B1-B3, 1/F, Dragon Rise, 9-11 Pennington Street, Causeway Bay
Tel: 2493 3033