We watched as workers spent ten minutes masterfully preparing our kombucha at a breakfast restaurant, adding all sorts of ingredients, straining things, shaking things ...
And then there is the coffee culture; Chiang Mai is bursting with the most adorable, unique, and creative coffee shops. They are absolutely everywhere, and we only hit a few of them. There are some where you enjoy your coffee in a tree house, or at a table in a stream, or in tents around a campground-like setting. Those we'll have to visit next time.
We did get to Chom, where it's like having coffee in a fairy garden.
And Ristr8o, where they take coffee more seriously than anywhere we've ever been. They have placed and also came in 1st place in many world championships for latte art.
And now I see why ...
We stopped in a few times to try all sorts of delicious coffees.
And they are not the only place that takes coffee seriously - every coffee shop seemed to put extraordinary time and effort into each cup. We also noticed that all the coffee shops served their coffee on a platter, saucer, or coaster, they always gave us water on the side, and sometimes a little cookie as well, and they almost always brought the cream/milk out steamed and frothed.
Into the Woods:
The Barisotel:
Random coffee shop in the mall:
Sip and Repeat (Tea Tales):
We only ordered a cup of tea, and a cup of black coffee, but they also gave us welcome drinks (iced tea), and a slice of cake. No matter where we went, the service was just unreal.
Fuu:
Manifreshto:
Rustic and Blue:
And Outside In:
There were also a couple more, but my phone crashed on our last flight home, and I lost everything on there, including some of our better photos from our trip, and loads of other pics 😩ðŸ˜
We didn't see a single coffee pot during our entire stay. Beans were always ground fresh for each cup of coffee, and brewed to order, using a variety of different methods, depending on where we went.
Of all the cities we have visited, we've never seen a coffee culture like there is in Chiang Mai. There are so many cool coffee shops we still want to visit one day. That being said, the locals love their Starbucks! One guy told us it's just because of the brand name.
Getting back to the good service ... even the spa (which I visited six times - so cheap!!!) brought me a tray of goodies at the end of each treatment. Tea, ice cream, watermelon and cookies:
So sweet.
What is the coffee scene like in your city?
What is your favourite coffee shop?
1 comment:
Wow, that latte art is amazing! Of course my favorite is the cat! I love that they put such care into coffee. I think that helps us savor it instead of drinking it without even processing how it tastes, etc. I haven't encountered coffee shops like you describe but I would say their approach to coffee is similar in France. They don't have to go cups for coffee - you are meant to sit there and savor it instead of dashing out the door and mindlessly consuming it while commuting to work!
We have quite a few independently owned coffee shops in Minneapolis. I don't go to them very often as there aren't any close to our house. I usually only get one coffee out a week, usually on a Friday as a treat for making it through the week! But i used to go to a locally-owned coffee shop with a friend when we went to the farmer's market. I'm hoping we can resume that tradition this summer as Paul naps later in the mornings now so we'll be able to hit up the market before his first nap!
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