Coffee Essential

In Minsheng community, old apartments stand close to each other, and the alleys only have enough space for one side parking. However, because the community features low houses, the population is relatively small. Along with the trees planted along the streets, which make life extraordinarily serene in the area, Minsheng community has become a place some Taipei people wish to live in. In many apartments, the first floor is converted into a cafe, receiving many SOHO workers, sales working in nearby buildings, and young artists coming here for reading. And Coffee Essential is a quite famous one among these.

Turn into the alley from Minsheng E. Rd., and you’ll find the cafe usually blocked by lush trees because it has no obvious signboard and bright exterior. But once you walk in front of the door, you'll be attracted to its large floor-to-ceiling windows and the warm lighting inside. Push the door and enter the cafe, and you’ll see a barista making coffee in the open kitchen in the center. Surrounding the bar, customers who are occupied by their work are busy using their laptops. Lamps fixed on rough red-brick wallsmake it convenient for customers to read. Seats beside the window are endowed with plenty of light, and therefore they are the most ideal seats in cold winter and those cloudy, almost rainy days. Hot dishes are not provided in the cafe. In addition to cookies and cakes, the cafe basically offers coffee and tea. And the most impressive dish in the cafe is certainly berry smoothie. Rather than drinking with a straw, you have to scoop it with a spoon from a margarita glass. The splendid red color and the ice-cream-like design are sure to wow all the customers.