The best cafes and coffee shops in Wan Chai

After previously having a pop-up store in Sogo’s Causeway Bay location, Japanese coffee shop Noda Coffee has opened its flagship store in Wan Chai. The store presents a modern Japanese style interior and displays over 60 varieties of coffee beans from around the world, each with descriptions of their flavour profiles. Customers can select their preferred coffee beans and Noda staff to roast the beans in-store. The roasting and packing process will take 20 minutes, so while waiting, grab a seat and order a fresh cuppa and baked treats from their daily selections.

Retro is a cafe that stands out for its monochrome burgundy exterior and vintage shop design that makes you feel like you’ve stepped back in time to a bygone era. In addition to offering croissants, cookies,  homemade cakes, and desserts, Retro also has a small selection of toasts and salads to go along with coffee or tea. If you need a quiet place to study while you enjoy your food, then Retro is a must-visit spot.

Just across Retro is Latter Cafe, a European-inspired shop with a cream-coloured interior. The cafe provides an inviting atmosphere and an ideal photo op background for your minimalist IG feed. Aside from standard coffees, Latter offers a selection of special beverages, such as matcha coffee latte or passion fruit iced tea. Latter Cafe also has a small outdoor seating area for anyone bringing their pets or if you want to people-watch along Jaffe Road while you enjoy your coffee.

In addition to Blue Bottle Coffee’s locations in Central, you can also find their newest location in Wan Chai. The coffee shop spans across three floors, each with a theme centred around the celestial bodies – the sun, moon, and stars. Each floor has floor-to-ceiling windows that look out towards the Starstreet Precinct. Be sure to try out their location-exclusive food menu items or grab a pint of coffee lager! Bring your pets along when you visit, and grab a seat at their spacious, pet-friendly outdoor area.

Blend and Grind’s intimate cafe provides both indoor and outdoor seating, which makes it a great spot to relax and unwind in the quaint Sun Street neighbourhood. Inspired by Australian brunch culture, this cafe has a heavy emphasis on healthy eating throughout their menus. In addition to coffee and tea, Blend and Grind also presents a large selection of healthy smoothies and water infusions. If you’re looking to get a little indulgent, they also provide all-day happy hours for espresso martinis until 7pm.

APT Coffee aka ‘a personal tailor’,  allows you to order personally tailored coffees according to your taste. Choose from your desired blend, coffee, intensity, milk foam, and any add-ons to create your perfect cup of coffee. The personalised options at APT don’t stop there, you can also customise your own open-faced toast and salad to go with your drinks, so you can really get down to the nitty-gritty of your order.

Across APT Coffee is the new flagship location of homegrown brand Matchali. Designed by Hong Kong-based interior design agency Studio Adjective, the cafe features a cream and pastel green colour scheme exterior that extends up to the top floors of the small building, making the cafe stand out when you pass by Moon Street. All matcha drinks at the cafe use hand-picked ceremonial grade matcha sourced from Uji, Kyoto. While Matchali offers classic drinks like matcha and hojicha lattes, they also update their menu with seasonal drinks such as matcha or hojicha-infused chai, or apple hojicha cold brew. They also offer an all-day food menu with items like healthy bowls, sourdough toasts, and more.

If the coffee jitters are starting to get to you, head to Basao to savour tea brewed by certified tea sommeliers. Aside from offering standard brewed teas and lattes, Basao has innovative offerings like their Chajitos, which are tea-inspired mixology drinks that take loose leaf tea to the next level. In addition to their standard menu, Basao also creates drinks and desserts with seasonal teas, so be sure to try them out before the seasons change.

Head to Maison Meiji to get a glimpse of Japan’s Meiji era located at the heritage Green Building on Wan Chai's Mallory Street. The venue serves three experiences for customers consisting of a dining concept, a bar, and a coffee and tea room. Aside from their coffee items, Maison Meiji features Japanese flavours in drinks like sakura, genmaicha, sencha, and hojicha, which can also be found in their sweet treats and wagashi as well.

The Elephant Grounds’ branch on Star Street is the first of its four branches to offer all-day dining, which includes an impressive lineup of cocktails that feature some of the finest java. You can play it safe with the classic latte or order from their seasonal single origin coffee menu. Try the Espressotini, a mixture of Belvedere vodka, Kirin whisky, Kahlua and espresso, or some of the other more unconventional creations, including the beetroot juice latte.