IF you walk past the month-old Cong Caphe in Nu Sentral, Kuala Lumpur, do take a minute to admire the retro décor of this franchise outlet from Hanoi.
The coffee chain was started by singer Nguyen Ha Linh, who had the brilliant idea to inject her childhood memories into the café so as to make it stand out among the numerous cafes in Hanoi.
Today, there are 62 Cong Caphe outlets in Vietnam alone.
The wood panelling is striking but there’s plenty of charm everywhere you look; the furnishings are sourced from Hanoi and closely resemble those in Cong Caphe there.
Some chairs, for instance are upholstered in cheerful floral cloth. Old books (unfortunately they are in Vietnamese) line the shelves downstairs and upstairs.
Yes, there’s seating available on a small balcony over the kitchen.
Ambience aside, do stop and smell the coffee. Two of the café’s partners, Jaemie Lew and Peter Tan, tell us that coffee is freshly made daily with huge metal filters. You can see a row of these standing guard on the bar counter.
Cong Caphe uses robusta coffee beans. Vietnamese coffee is thick, strong and, though black coffee is available, most Vietnamese like their coffee with condensed milk.
Creamy and strong with an irresistible aroma, Nau-Da (RM10.90/hot) is the perfect morning pick-me-up for those on their way to work.
With a 1.5cm thick layer of condensed milk at the bottom, I thought it’d be sweet, so I take a cautious sip, but to my surprise, the level of sweetness is just right. It could be that Vietnamese condensed milk has a lower sugar content.
Then we have Bac-Xiu or Coconut Milk With Coffee (RM12.90/hot; RM13.90/iced). The combination may sound a little odd but the coconut aroma is mild and dances a beautiful tango with the coffee.
There’s more coconut. This time, it’s the café’s signature drink, Coconut Milk Coffee Smoothie (RM14.90-RM16.90). To say it’s delicious does not quite do it justice.
Whether sipped or scooped up by the teaspoonful, this is my coffee fantasy come alive; I’m already making plans for a second visit. Soon.
Cong Caphe also has western-style brews such as Americano, cappuccino, espresso and latte. But, in my opinion, these taste weak after a sip of the Hanoi-style coffee.
If you’re not into coffee, there are teas and juices including lime and passionfruit juice as well as Iced Honey Kumquat (RM14.90) and Peach Tea with Passionfruit (RM13.90/hot).
There’s food but choices are limited. For the peckish, nibble on sunflower seeds (RM4.90) and cakes or have a croissant, served with a saucer of condensed milk (RM6.90).
Do try the banh mi. What makes it stand out is the crusty baguette. We take our time snapping pictures, yet the baguette stays crisp and crusty.
The scrumptious vegetarian Tofu Banh Mi (RM11.90) is stuffed with thick slices of tofu, shredded lettuce, cucumber, carrot and coriander. The flavour in the tofu comes from soya sauce and sesame oil.
I prefer this to Chicken Ham Banh Mi (RM13.90) but I’m told the Beef Ham Banh Mi (RM15.90) is very satisfying. Meat banh mi also has pate, shredded vegetables, onion and coriander. Meat patties and pate are made in-house.
Tan Bee Hong is a food critic-cum-blogger at fatphoenix.my. She can contacted at phoenixbee@gmail.com.
