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Daily Coffee Notes: Manila Coffee Crawl Part 1

We all know that the world stopped for about two years because of the pandemic but for some, it was a time of rediscovery. If there's something I learned about the pandemic, it is about how to make good coffee and discover good coffeeshops. 

Arabica 

I'm making a list here of some of the coffeeshops that we've visited since the lockdown in year 2020:

1. %ARABICA
%Arabica hails from Kyoto, Japan where the coffee scene is strong. We love the popular Spanish Latte as well as the Matcha Latte in % Arabica. And the cookies, too. And the freshly-grind coffee! %Arabica used to have a branch at The Podium but it is closed already. They do promise to re-open again but no news about that yet. Guess we have to go to Bangkok or Tokyo soon for that much needed cup of iced Spanish Latte. 

%ARABICA
G/level
The Podium
Mandaluyong City 
(closed shop)

Because Coffee

2. BECAUSE COFFEE
Because Coffee is part of Harlan + Holden. We travel all the way from Manila to BGC just Because Coffee. My daughter loves the Sea Salt Latte while I usually go for Madagascar or Mocha. Their iced chocolate is also good! Then we discovered that we can order a bottle via Coop-grocer. But of course, it's still nice to visit the BGC branch for some photo-ops. 

Because Coffee
Harlan + Holden
28th corner 5th Avenue
BGC, Taguig City

Because Coffee
G/level
Powerplant Mall
Makati City 

Elephant Grounds 

3. ELEPHANT GROUNDS 
This is a specialty coffeeshop from Hong Kong. Elephant Grounds has been around since 2013 and now has several branches in HK, China, and now here in Manila. My default order here is the Affogato, French Vanilla Latte and Salted Caramel Latte. The Cappuccino is quite good also, according to my cappuccino-loving husband. 

Elephant Grounds
G/level
The Podium
Mandaluyong City

Elephant Grounds
28th corner 3rd Avenue
BGC, Taguig City

ILLY 

4. ILLY
If you're craving for Italian coffee, then you go to ILLY. We frequent the branch in Powerplant Mall. I do love the Cafe Freddo here, and Affogato. They do serve pastries that complements well with the espresso-based coffee. 

ILLY
2/level
Powerplant Mall
Makati City

Omotesando Koffee

5. OMOTESANDO KOFFEE
Omotesando Koffee is another Japanese coffeeshop that opened here in Manila. It is known for its hand-drip coffee. It hails from Tokyo and has since expanded to Hong Kong, Singapore, and UK. Aside from having nice photo-ops at Omotesando Koffee, I have yet to find the drink for me here. We've tried the coffee here 3x already but no such luck. 

Omotesando Koffee
Lopez Drive
Powerplant Mall
Makati City


So here's the first part of our coffee crawl. Stay tuned for part two. You can also follow our IG- @dailycoffeenotes for that much-needed caffeine fix. 


Related post:

Product Review: XTREME HOME Coffee Machine




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