% ARABICA Kyoto Higashiyama

Intro – Well-established specialty coffee shop brand with locations all over the world, with its original locations in Japan.

Ambiance – Small coffee shop with concrete and wooden aesthetics

What we ordered

• Kyoto Latte (left) – This was a standard latte with espresso and milk, sweetened with condensed milk. My wife ordered this because she loves sweetened condensed milk, and she really liked this latte. This was her favorite one of the trip. The coffee flavor was bold, typical of Japan’s roasting. The sweetened condensed milk added rich mouthfeel and unique lactose sweetness. This was also sweet to her liking. Usually, she likes to add additional syrup but this was perfect for her. Rating 8.1/10
• Espresso Tonic (right) – Espresso tonics are my go-to coffee shop order and I didn’t get any all of Japan except here because I needed my fix. It was a crazy hot day and it definitely hit the spot for me. Japan loves gin and tonics and they did the espresso tonic justice. There were no additional flavoring syrups and their tonic was unflavored. This was just a well-roasted and brewed espresso with a great ratio to classic tonic water. I usually prefer a little less tonic and a lighter roast espresso but this was still very well executed. Rating 8.2/10

Conclusion – The hype behind this coffee brand is well deserved. There aren’t any smoke and mirrors when it comes to their menu. I love that they focused on just high-quality beans and the balance of their espresso with their milk/water/tonic. This was the best cup of coffee we had in all of Japan. We would be back and we can’t wait to visit their other locations

Overall Rating – 8.2/10