Lighthouse — Restaurant in Đà Nẵng

Lighthouse Coffee Roaster & Dining – A Caffeinated Love Letter (With Minor Gripes)

Let’s get this out of the way first: Lighthouse is good. The kind of good that makes you forgive a few sins because that Salt Coffee is basically liquid gold and the space feels like someone designed it specifically for your next Instagram story. But let’s be real—no place is perfect, and I’ve got thoughts.

The Heavenly Bits ☕ ✅ Coffee That Makes You Question All Other Coffee – Their roasts have depth. The Salt Coffee? A masterpiece. The Banana Coffee? Adorably sweet, like dessert with a caffeine kick (though hardcore espresso fans might side-eye it). Even their regular brew has character—bold, slightly bitter, the way a proper wake-up call should be.

✅ Food That Doesn’t Just Play Backup – The hummus salad is so fresh I almost felt healthy eating it. The chocolate French toast? A shameless, glorious sugar bomb that I’d order again in a heartbeat. Portions are generous—none of that "tiny plate, big price" nonsense.

✅ Ambiance: Chef’s Kiss – High ceilings, moody lighting, nooks for hiding with a book, and tables big enough to pretend you’re working. It’s the kind of place that makes you want to linger, even if just to admire how pretty it all is.

✅ The Good Side of Service – When it’s on point, it’s great. There’s a particular coffee wizard behind the bar who seems to genuinely love his job, and that energy is contagious.

The "Could Be Better" Bits 🙃 ⚠️ Service Roulette: Will They Notice You Exist? – Look, I get it—everyone has slow days. But more than once, I’ve watched staff deep in conversation with their buddies or scrolling on their phones while customers wait. Not everyone, mind you, but enough to notice. When you’re paying premium prices, you kinda expect premium attention.

⚠️ Bougie Tax – Yeah, it’s pricier than your average Vietnamese café. You’re paying for the experience, the beans, and the right to sit in a chair that doesn’t look like it came from a school cafeteria. Mostly worth it, but your wallet will feel it.

⚠️ Sweet vs. Serious Coffee Lovers – That Banana Coffee? Delicious, but it’s basically a dessert. If you’re the type who scowls at sugar in coffee, stick to the classics.

Final Verdict: Should You Go? Absolutely—just go with the right expectations. Lighthouse is a gem with a few rough edges. The coffee is stellar, the food slaps, and the space is gorgeous. But if you catch the staff on an off day, just channel your inner zen and remember: that Salt Coffee is worth it.

Pro Tip: Go early to snag the best seats, and maybe avoid peak hours if you’re not in the mood for service delays.

TL;DR: One of Da Nang’s best coffee spots—flawed, but fabulous. Bring your camera, your patience, and your...

Coffee: Inconsistent and dependent on barista that day. A hot latte can be flawlessly executed with nice microfoam and latte art on one day (photo below) but then the next day … it would be steamed too long and the microfoam destroyed.

They have a roastery on site so you know they’re serious about the coffee but I just wish they trained all their baristas properly in steaming milk.

Food: chicken avo salad. Well-balanced, easy to eat. Chicken felt a little tough/dry though. Pleasantly surprised to find walnuts. Next time I’d ask for the dressing to be separate. I found it a bit too drenched in dressing for my taste.

They say their food service ends at 5pm, but I've arrived at 4pm and they said they are no longer doing food. So I wouldn't trust their comms, and instead make sure you get there before 3pm to be safe

Service: Excellent. They could leave tissues on the tables though so customers dont have to ask.

Seating: there’s a mix of seat designs. Some hard some soft. I would have preferred more ergonomic chairs with soft padding for your butt and back support. Sometimes a table for four would have four different kinds of chairs.

Venue design: this is a 80% carbon copy of Melbourne’s Higher Ground (HG). Though HG feels warmer and more intimate since HG has rugs, sofas and different intimate settings.

Whereas Lighthouse (LH) uses less of the volume on seating and, has only 3 kinds of seating arrangements. You’ve got the high barstools on the ground floor and then communal tables varying from 4 to 10 people on the mezzanine and upper floors. I mean don’t get me wrong this is still way more than your typical Da Nang cafe.

Furthermore, it is not summer yet but for such a huge space I worry if they’d be willing to foot the AC bill or pass that on to consumers. We’ll wait and see.

Sound: The music wasn’t obnoxious vinahouse or edm but it was annoying pop music that was too loud that I could not fully block it out with my earphones. The music is unnecessary.

Payment: they accept...

I used to really like this place and came here quite often. Even though the service was sometimes slow and my order wasn't always exactly as I asked, I still enjoyed it overall. But my last visit was really disappointing, so here are a few points:

Food and drinks.

The quality really depends on who's making them. I love their egg coffee, but sometimes it comes in a full cup and tastes great, and other times the quantity is noticeably less and the flavour is just average. The Houjicha Peanut Butter was really nice the first time, but on another visit, it tasted quite different: super sweet with barely any taste of houjicha or peanut butter. The food is the same story: sometimes delicious, sometimes cold, and the bread can be rock hard.

Cleanliness.

Last time I was there, the waiter just took the dirty dishes but didn't bother wiping the table, and never came back to do it. Not surprised people mention ants in their reviews. Though, ants are common in many places across Asia, but honestly, a place like this shouldn't have them at all, especially not to the point when they start crawling on you while you're sitting there.

Prices.

The prices are on the same level with other Western-style cafes in Da Nang, which is fine if the quality is consistent. But when you end up paying nearly 3 dollars for a drink you don't even want to finish, it just feels like a waste.

Vibes.

To be fair, the space itself is great. It has a nice loft-style interior, the AC works well, the music is chill, and it's laptop-friendly. And even when it's busy, it doesn't feel too loud or chaotic. The only downside is that it can sometimes be hard to find a free spot.

Overall, I really wanted to keep this place as one of my regular spots, but these repeated issues and the fact that others seem to notice the same things make me feel like nothing's...