書店喫茶 一二三亭(每月店休請詳見FB、IG) — Restaurant in Kaohsiung

Thought this was gonna be a relaxing cafe experience but boy, we were wrong. The restaurant looked historical and aesthetic from the outside but when we walked inside (the cafe is located on the second floor), we noticed that it was really stuffy inside and the air conditioning was not very strong. Maybe they were trying to save money on their electricity bill. As we walked in, nobody greeted us so we assumed it was a self serve place where we could find our own seats, but the lady working there called us to come back to the front and told us that we needed to wait for her to seat us instead of walking in. When we sat down, we tried to move one of the chairs but she came to us and rudely asked us what type of seat we wanted and that we were not allowed to move the chairs around. (The chairs were arranged in a line but we wanted to sit facing each other) Lastly, when we were done ordering, she told us that there was a minimum amount required per person and that the cakes did not count towards that amount. That was the last straw and we immediately left the restaurant. Terrible service. I wouldn’t eat here even if it was...

Walking into a time capsule is my first impression of this cafe… all of a sudden, I was back to late 70s when I was born and grew up in the similar building. The tile, the window and the door… nostalgic yet tranquil.

Very dim background music with soft glowing light, this cafe has a zen feeling. I was here around 3:30, perfect for afternoon tea. I browsed the menu and picked a special brown sugar crisp plum sparkling coffee and earl grey pineapple cake.

The ice coffee was impressive, well balanced with sweetness and tartness from the plum and the sparkling water with espresso paired perfectly with the flavor, giving this beverage the texture that’s perfect for a warm day. I quite recommend everyone try this drink if you are an adventurous person.

Pineapple cake, I do find it ordinary. I can taste the earl grey but given pineapple cake is one of the most famous pastries in Taiwan, I don’t see it quite memorable. Maybe trying other pastries next time is a better option.

I will bring my foreign friend here for sure to experience a snap shot of...

At first glance I was excited about it. It’s hidden in a doorway with a curtain, go upstairs. They have a small overpriced menu with tiny snacks. I actually left to go eat a real meal and came back to work on my laptop. They don’t seem to really have a lot of options when it comes to espresso type coffee. WiFi costs extra unless you spend over 200. To plug in you have to pay extra. I sat at the bar and there was a very cute girl sitting next to me so I put up with the weird stuff. I ended up talking with her and getting her info, so it was all worth it. But otherwise I would have felt it was a...