Aug 5, 2017
While at kissatens, some of the best times are had when you meet some of the Joren-san, i.e., the regular customers. In volume 3 of our kissaten series, I visit three of my favorite coffee shops to chat with some …
Jun 22, 2017
The other week the Good Coffee team was invited to KINTO’s showroom to catch a glimpse of their new autumn & winter collection. We got to touch and feel the new items and we were served delicious coffee in them! …
Feb 24, 2017
I am thinking and talking a lot about kissatens – the Japanese traditional coffee houses that have been operating for decades and that have nonchalantly resisted the intense progress that third wave coffee shops embody. I am not the only kissaten denizen. I see …
Jan 26, 2017
Omotesando Koffee fans, we don’t have to wait much longer. On January 27, 2017, we will be looked after in their new concept shop “KOFFEE MAMEYA“ opening in the same location as the original Omotesando Koffee. “Koffee Mameya” translates as …
Dec 31, 2016
To cappuccino off the end of 2016, let’s revisit some of our highlights of this year. On the Good Coffee English site (en.goodcoffee.me) we try to bring you a column every week – interviews, area reports, event reports, guest columns, …
Dec 10, 2016
As foodies will testify, there is no shortage of excellent restaurants on this side of the world. But living here over the years, whenever I’ve asked waiters “Where is your coffee from?” or, “Who roasts your coffee?”; all I usually …
Nov 25, 2016
I was looking through old magazines at a store in Shiomokitazawa when my eyes landed on a rare 1995 Brutus Magazine edition titled: “Garcon! Un cafe, s’il vous plait. カフェに行こう”. Featured content on the front cover – “TOKYO CAFE LOVE STORY” and “Cafes are …
Sep 17, 2016
SUBJECT: THE BIGGEST PROBLEM ALL COFFEE LOVERS HAVE, AND THE WAY YOU CAN HELP SOLVE IT. To dearest coffee lovers around the world, Do we all have the same problem? Isn’t it next to impossible to find good local coffee …
Jun 3, 2016
Vaughan catches up with Colby Barr, the man behind Verve Coffee Roasters, which has just opened smack bang in the newly renovated Shinjuku station in Tokyo. Vaughan: Colby Barr, you’re co-founder and green coffee buyer of Verve Coffee Roasters. …
May 21, 2016
My family and I have called Shinjuku home for the past 5 years. We live about 5 minutes from the station and despite the crowds and the concrete, we have really enjoyed checking out a lot of coffee shops in …
May 13, 2016
Vaughan: Thank you for taking time to speak with us Moe. I saw you on an ad on the Yamanote line coming here today! Moe Nakase: hahha… a few people I’ve met recently look at me and say that I …
May 6, 2016
Vaughan: Hi Mariya!! We first met at the first ever Tokyo Coffee Festival about a year ago… I saw you drawing one of the stalls in your sketchbook and was blown away – I’m a big fan of your drawings! …
Apr 28, 2016
It’s spring time. Which means it’s time to take that someone special, somewhere special. And what better than a trip to the Shonan area, about an hour from Tokyo, comprising of areas such as Kamakura, Chigasaki, and Tsujido. After spending …
Apr 22, 2016
Coffee Fest Latte Art Championship 2016 was held at Tokyo Big Site over 3 days, from April 13-15 2016. It’s a knock out competition in which baristas free pour their latte art within a 3 minute timeframe. The judges decide …
Apr 10, 2016
I have been surrounded by specialist Japanese coffee equipment ever since I was little. My mother and father both owned Jazz Kissaten’s in Kyoto and brewing coffee in our house was a normal part of day to day life. All …
Apr 8, 2016
I’m back in Tokyo. Send help. This is my second time round in the outrageously incredible city and I decided that this time I’d make a bit of a go of it for three months. The first time I …
Apr 1, 2016
For all you coffee lovers visiting Tokyo for the first time, there are certain areas where clusters of coffee shops have formed that make for the perfect coffee crawl. For this column, we head out of Shibuya station, walk straight …
Feb 20, 2016
People wouldn’t queue in Melbourne for anything else. If you know Melbourne, you know that you’re never too far away from a decent cup of coffee, served to you by an exceptional barista (who most probably is handsomely/beautifully hip!), working …
Jan 29, 2016
I switched on the TV and landed on something fascinating. There was a lot of big machinery hard at work in various factories across Japan showing how products are made. Robotic hands cracking eggs, bean sprouts being grown, the bristles of toothbrushes being …
Jan 8, 2016
Two Thousand and Fifteen was a big year for third wave coffee in Tokyo. The roasters and the baristas were extremely motivated in experimenting with different roasts and brews, the customers were more curious than ever, various coffee festivals were …
Dec 4, 2015
Five years ago, on a back street of Omotesando, on the ground floor of an old Japanese home, Omotesando Koffee opened shop. One Japanese man pulling espresso shots on a La Cimbali M31. Originally, it was only supposed to be …
Nov 21, 2015
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, there are more than 80,000 kissatens across the country. And it’s our goal to visit them all (anything is possible after your third coffee before midday) and feature a handful of …
Oct 20, 2015
At 101 years of age, Ichiro Sekiguchi is the Coffee Master and head roaster at Cafe de L’Ambre in Ginza, Tokyo. Sekiguchi-san was born into a big family – 7 sisters and 2 brothers. He is a single man, has …
Sep 11, 2015
My wife used to work in an architectural firm right by Kiyosumi Shirakawa station. Every couple of months over many years, she would write me saying – “oh, by the way, did you hear another coffee shop has opened near …
Aug 7, 2015
INTRODUCTION Japanese cafes are charmingly tiny – and it’s rare to have an outside seating area like Paris or Melbourne counterparts. So when the idea of writing a column on cafes with terraces for summer/autumn was discussed, it took a …
May 15, 2015
It’s the kinda place that has turned the practice of coffee into an art form. It’s kinda like the place that everyone in the area knows when you say; I’m lost… I’m looking for that little coffee shop… It’s the kinda place …
Jan 21, 2015
Fuglen is a whole other word – great coffee by day, great cocktails by night. “Great” doesn’t do it justice. Everything they make is delicious. If you don’t know what to order, just ask for a recommendation. Trust me, you …
Nov 21, 2014
Japan, and all that it offers, attracts an average of 10 million foreign visitors each year. We here at Good Coffee believe that a lot of our guests are in search of a decent coffee. To help us reach our …
