Despite the numerous cafés scattered throughout our sunny island, we are always looking for new coffee spots to simply kick back and relax. Hidden amongst a block of flats at Alexandra, Kyuukei Coffee is a peaceful café with a minimalistic interior inspired by Japanese Zen aesthetics. You may recognise Kyuukei Coffee’s adorable cat mascot from last year’s The Christmas Atelier and the recent Boutique Fair, where people mainly bought their coffee from a little coffee cart. The brand finally opened a physical café last November, but its coffee cart service is still up and running.
Kyuukei Coffee serves up toasties and pastries alongside coffee brews, but the café can only hold up to around 10 people due to its small size, so be sure to come early to avoid the queues, or opt for takeaway instead. You can get the classic ham, cheese, and tomato toastie for $15, or spice it up with seck ($15), a sourdough toastie with spam, kimchi, and gochujang mayo. The pastries are also made in-house, with the canelés ($4.50) and sticky buns ($6) being popular choices amongst patrons.
The café frequently hosts coffee omakase sessions ($40 per person), where you will get to taste delicious brews paired with pastries that complement the coffee’s flavour profile. During the May 2024 session, we had the Indonesian Sweet Lakshana CM served in an espresso shot that was paired with a decadent chocolate tart topped with a miso caramel sauce to bring out the boozy chocolate flavour in the coffee. Dried mango bits and chilli flakes were sprinkled on the tart to provide an extra kick. For the second course, the Kenyan Kiamwangi was served with oat milk and paired with a tangy poached apple and lemon curd galette. The sharpness of the fruits paired with the acidic coffee perfectly, allowing for a pleasant drinking experience.
These sessions have limited slots, so be sure to follow Kyuukei Coffee’s Instagram to receive updates on when the next session will be.