Rating: ★★★★★

Address: 3/F, No.12 Songren Road, Taipei 110, Taiwan

Telephone: +886 2 7737 0700

https://www.coffee-alley.com/index.html

Hong Kong has been catching on the cafe culture these few years, with a number of chic cafes taking up residence in the dining scene. However, by comparison, the cafes in Taipei are at the moment a notch above the ones in Hong Kong, and offer many innovative culinary creations that are both beautiful and scrumptious.

One of the must-try cafe chains in Taipei is Coffee Alley, which specialises in coffee, waffles, sandwiches and desserts and currently has 6 outlets in Taipei and 1 outlet in Hong Kong. As the Hong Kong outlet is incredibly busy all the time, I seized the opportunity to try out the outlet in Taipei when I was there!

I was staying at W Hotel in Taipei (see my review here), which was within walking distance from the ATT mall where the cafe was located. My friend and I were very lucky to be seated straightaway without a booking when we went there at around 4.30pm in the afternoon.

(1) We ordered a corn and cheese croissant sandwich (NT$180), which was not only beautifully colourful but also completely satisfying, with the corn giving a mild crunch and the cheese and dressing adding rich flavours to the dish.

(2) The mustard bacon cheese sandwich (NT$180) was accomplished – the serving of bacon was generous without making the sandwich overly salty at all.

(3) The waffles here are absolutely unmissable, and a signature waffle, the waffle with fresh strawberry, ice cream and custard (NT$180) was swiftly ordered. Coffee Alley’s waffles were utterly mouthwatering – they were spongy and eggy, and tasted a bit like sponge cake but with more bite. Fresh strawberries were piled next to our waffles, which were dressed in a faux strawberry sauce and served with some strawberry ice cream and custard.

(4) The other waffle we ordered was the chocolate ice cream and banana waffle (NT$170), which was also a popular option at the cafe. Chocolate ice cream and bananas were a match made in heaven with waffles – this dish was an explosion of decadent flavours!

(5) Besides the outstanding food, the coffees at Coffee Alley were also completely delicious. My cafe latte (NT$150) had a refined espresso taste, and the milk was well frothed and velvety. The coffee was served with two pieces of biscotti and a brown sugar stick.

(6) The sea salt caramel latte (NT$150) was a guilty pleasure, as it came with a huge dollop of whipped cream drizzled in sea salt caramel. The combination of coffee, fresh cream, caramel and almonds was unforgettable!

(7) Besides lattes, we also ordered a white chocolate mocha (NT$150), which was recommended to us by the waitress. We were very thankful for her suggestion – the mocha was utterly milky and scrumptious, and the white chocolate accentuated its delicious flavours!

With such playful and creative offerings, reasonable prices and likeable staff, it is no surprise that the chain boasts a steady clientele in all of its Taipei and Hong Kong branches!