The definitive guide to Hong Kong’s newest cafes and brunch spots: February 2023

Keep abreast of Hong Kong’s ever-expanding pool of beautiful cafes worth visiting with our city guide to coffee, updated monthly

Cafes in Hong Kong are about as diverse as the people within the city—that's to be expected given the hundreds of cafes dotting each neighbourhood in every shape and size. From grab-and-go counters to your conventional latte hotspots, to pastry specialists all the way up to full-blown bar-cafes and eateries, there's a cuppa—and a brunch plate—for everyone, and chances are it's only a stone's throw from where you are right now.

Here, we round up the best additions to Hong Kong's ever-growing cafe scene that you should know about. Whether it's a rowdy coffee-fuelled brunch with friends, or a quiet afternoon pick-me-up with a book in hand, look no further when it comes to find your next caffeine pitstop.

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Halfway Coffee

First opened in 1952 and famed for its red booth seating and pot-style instant noodles, Hoi On Cafe was a landmark in the collective consciousness of the city, and its closure in October 2021 dealt yet another blow to the ever-dwindling pool of historic F&B establishments in Hong Kong. Thankfully, artisanal cafe chain Halfway Coffee has stepped in to save the building that previously housed the cha chaan teng, transforming the venue into a modern-day coffee shop serving brunch plates and the brand's signature lattes in old Chinese porcelain teacups. While the interior bears few traces of the original business, it's nonetheless a happier outcome than most when it comes to the state of heritage in Hong Kong

Halfway Coffee, G/F, 17 Connaught Road West, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong

N.O.T.

This cafe brand's second location in Causeway Bay continues the same airy atmosphere of the first in Hysan Place. Located in the atrium of Lee Gardens One, the cafe features a large terrace for outdoor caffeine consumption. Opt for the house cross blend roasted by Colonna Coffee and best served in a piccolo.

N.O.T., Shop 204, 2/F, Lee Gardens One, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Cupping Room

This artisanal cafe brand's expands its footprint all the way to Tuen Mun with the opening of its latest location in the neighbourhood's V City mall. Conceptualised by interior design studio Unite Unit, the cafe evokes warm Japandi minimalism, with a section in the voluminous lobby that is flooded with natural light. In addition to the usual coffee lineup and savoury dishes like braised beef cheek linguine, red shrimp sakura salad and Thai crab spaghetti, this location also has an exclusive selection of nine sweet and savoury crepes on offer.

Shop 13-15, G/F, V City, Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road, Tuen Mun, Hong Kong

Coast Coffee

Adding to its original location in Tin Hau, Coast has expanded to Causeway Bay with a curvaceous interior designed by Jaak Design to evoke an oceanside landscape, with cacti, rattan furniture and a sand-coloured palette to boot. Themed as a coffee journey, the menu features drinks like the banana dirty and sea salt caramel latte, alongside savoury options like linguine aglio e olio with tiger prawns, and desserts like caramel double cheesecake with caramelised apple.

Coast Coffee, 4 Sun Wui Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Backyard

New to Sai Ying Pun is this all-in-one cafe and barber shop. Featuring a coffee counter up front that serves everything from long blacks to mocha made using 72% Belizean dark chocolate, guests can opt to sit out front, or move to the eponymous backyard space for a spot of calm caffeine consumption while watching the hairdressers work their magic.

Backyard, 81 High Street, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong

Relax B&M Cafe

Taking up an entire three-floor building in Tai Mei Tuk, this cafe offers so much more than coffee. Visitors to the ground-floor restaurant can order a latte to wash down the signature fish and chips, all while taking in the views of Lung Mei Beach and the calm waters of Tolo Harbour. On the first floor is a cat house, home to three adopted cats; while the second floor is a Thai massage parlour. Finally, the roof offers alfresco seating for guests to catch a breeze while sipping on their coffee, making for the perfect end point to a weekend cycling trip from Tai Po.

Relax B&M Cafe, G/F, 165A Lung Ting Kok Road, Tai Po, Hong Kong

South Lane

South Lane heads to the Mid-Levels with a new location taking over what was a former The Coffee Academics venue. Featuring bright and airy interiors, the cafe's menu is similarly easygoing, with 80 percent of the dishes being vegetarian, and 100 percent of the drinks being dairy-free. Highlights include the signature sweet potato coconut pancake; roasted beetroot risotto with popped capers, dill and feta; and the crispy snapper burger, alongside healthful drinks like broccoli latte and organic hojicha.

South Lane, G/F, Peace Tower, 30-32 Robinson Road, Mid-Levels, Hong Kong

Draft & Craft

Serving espresso to bleary-eyed workers coming off the Star Ferry in the morning, as well as a cold pint to salarymen winding down in the evening, Draft & Craft is a new and welcome sight at Central's Pier 7. The grab-and-go counter sources its beans from Phoenix Coffee Roastery in Peng Chau, while pours from local craft brewery Lovecraft are also available. Peng Chau residents also get a special "islander" discount, so don't miss out.

Draft & Craft, Basement, Pier 7, Central, Hong Kong

Parabolica

Opened by the team behind Good Good Eatery and Milk magazine, Parabolica is a cafe and bakery in sunny Repulse Bay that's sure to stoke your wanderlust. While there's no indoor seating, visitors are encouraged to enjoy the cafe's European baked goods in the evocative alfresco arcade of The Repulse Bay, including creations like financiers, Hokkaido milk loaf, fig and cheese tart, and sesame and yuzu cream puff. Apart from the usual coffee drink selection, don't miss out on the iced chocolate either, made using a rich single origin chocolate base.

Parabolica, Shop 102 & 103, The Repulse Bay, 109 Repulse Bay Road, Repulse Bay, Hong Kong

OWO

Standing for "original without ordinary", OWO is a bijou Wan Chai cafe that's not only serious about its coffee, but also plants and (wait for it) designer chairs from Emeco. Perfect for those looking to decorate their home while fulfilling their caffeine quota, visitors are welcome to make purchases from the plant and chair sections while they wait for their yuzu espresso tonic to be made. OWO also serves small pastries for those with a sweet tooth.

OWO, 59 Queen's Road East, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Coze

Tucked away on a quiet residential street in Kennedy Town, Coze certainly delivers on the cosiness, with dependable brunch plates and coffee drinks on offer. Visitors are advised to order the lemon butter mussels with a side of dark rye sourdough bread to soak up the sauce, as well as the cioppino seafood stew for colder days.

Coze, 28 Li Po Lung Path, Kennedy Town, Hong Kong

Find The Way

Styled like a retro Japanese teahouse, this minuscule cafe in Yuen Long has no shortage of charm thanks to its Showa-era decorations that are redolent of a past era. Seating only eight people each time, Find The Way serves classic drinks like cream soda and matcha latte, alongside bites like tamagoyaki sandos, chestnut cream tart, and coffee caramel puffs that wouldn't look out of place in a decades-old Tokyo kissaten.

Find The Way, Shop P3, G/F, Tung Fat Building, 9 Ping Wui Street, Yuen Long, Hong Kong

2 Soon

Found in Prince Edward, this cafe by day, bar by night features a brick-dominant interior and a modest footprint that goes beyond in its all-day offerings. The food offerings are moreish—think crayfish rolls with cajun fries, truffle cream orecchiette, beef tendon shakshuka and churros—best washed down with a matcha dirty or Americano. Come nightfall, 2 Soon rolls out its cocktail menu with highlights like the Palo Santo Old Fashioned, alongside a healthy selection of shisha flavours for leisurely puffing.

2 Soon, 324 Sai Yeung Choi Street North, Prince Edward, Hong Kong

Goodin' Out

Channeling the industrial character of its home in gritty Tai Kok Tsui, this car shop-turned-Korean-owned cafe offers stylish surrounds in which to enjoy a sugar-coated croffle with ice cream, or the signature grapefruit and blueberry toast. The house latte and Americano, made using sweet and slightly spicy Darbo blossom honey, is also not to be missed.

Goodin' Out, 25 Ka Shin Street, Tai Kok Tsui, Hong Kong

Fika Fabriken

Japanese-style cafes are a dime a dozen in Hong Kong, but Scandinavian-inspired cafes might just have their moment yet, if the opening of Fika Fabriken in Sai Ying Pun is anything to go by. Translating to "coffee factory" in Swedish, Fika Fabriken serves Nordic comfort food like house-baked cinnamon rolls, open-faced smørrebrød sandwiches with parma ham and fig, as well as Swedish meatballs. The cafe also serves dog-friendly waffles, donuts and meat patties on its pet menu, so your fur babies aren't left out either.

Fika Fabriken, Shop 6, G/F, Island Crest, 8 First Street, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong

Craft Coffee Roaster

Wan Chai has a new pitstop for serious coffee aficionados in the form of Craft Coffee Roaster's new location. Featuring a sleek metallic interior by Hintegro Design, the grab-and-go shop serves meticulous brews made using beans sourced from small estates from around the world. While you're there, make sure to pick up a space-age coffee tumbler or a bag of the cafe's house blend in stylish packaging by local design studio PNO.

Craft Coffee Roaster, Shop B1, G/F, EIB Tower, 4-6 Morrison Hill Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

t.w.i.g.

Sweet tooths will want to make a beeline to this new Wan Chai cafe, which serves a medley of cakes and pastries as pleasing to the eye as they are to the palate. The pastry programme is headed by an alum of Lady M and Tiffany Blue Box Cafe, so it's a veritable goldmine for pastry lovers, with the likes of whisky cheesecake to American scones and shortcakes on offer. The drinks also hold their own, with options like the Salted Lotus Latte and the passionfruit butterfly pea sparkling tea.

t.w.i.g., Shop A2, G/F, 4 Swatow Street, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Mato

Mato has quickly established itself as a destination for coffee and wine enthusiasts alike in Central. On the caffeine side of the equation, guests can expect single-origin espresso or drip coffee made using beans from Copenhagen's April Coffee Roasters. Wine-wise, sommelier Wallace Lo curates a wine list that links lesser-known varietals to mainstream grapes in an effort to introduce drinkers to similar flavour profiles. On the food menu, seven different Japanese pastas offer the perfect meal to chow down on with your choice of liquid.

Mato, G02, Nan Fung Place, 173 Des Voeux Road Central, Central, Hong Kong

NOC Kai Tak

True to its motto to serve "curated coffee in spaces of substance", homegrown cafe chain NOC has opened yet another futuristic location, this time in Kai Tak. Clad in metallic accents throughout, this location offers new additions to the menu like crab quinoa salad, Angus beef burger, potato waffle with crab meat salad, and sencha lemonade.

NOC, Shop F&B 1 & 5, G/F & 1/F, Retail Block 2, The Henley, 7 Muk Tai Street, Kai Tak, Hong Kong

Chill Pill

Serving American-Japanese comfort food, Chill Pill is a new addition to the Prince Edward cafe scene that's bedecked in a palette of orange and wooden accents to evoke a retro Americana aesthetic. Dig into the karaage chicken pancake with caramelised green apple and honey, the US ribeye beef steak donburi, or mix and match your own brunch plate. The drinks are equally indulgent, with options like peanut butter latte, mint chocolate milkshake, and banana milkshake with crushed Oreo.

Chill Pill, Shop 2, G/F, Kadak Building, 167-175A Sai Yee Street, Mong Kok, Hong Kong

Blossom

Adding to locations in Sai Ying Pun and Kowloon City, Blossom has opened an outdoor cafe in Wan Chai's Harbour Road Garden. Bask in the fresh air as you take a generous spoonful of the signature tiramisu with a cup of joe on the side. Those looking for a more substantial feed will also find it in the cafe's offerings of bagel sandwiches, baked pasta and tofu bowls.

Blossom, Harbour Road Garden, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Gwee Coffee

It's hard to miss the newly expanded Gwee Coffee on Tai Ping Shan Street in Sheung Wan, thanks to a whimsical facade of bulbous window cutouts. The interior is no less charming thanks to a soothing palette of woods, pastels and pale terrazzo—a suitable space as any to enjoy the cafe's penchant for 3D lattes, so named for the expertly sculpted meringue characters that sit atop each drink. The baked goods selection is supplied by Tsukimi Bakery and includes seasonal specialties like maritozzo sweet cream buns, osmanthus mochi bagel with edamame paste, and the experimental Indomie bagel with ABC sauce and dried shallots.

Gwee Coffee, 1 Tai Ping Shan Road, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong

HOW Tsuen Wan

Furniture boutique and cafe HOW adds a third location to its portfolio all the way in Tsuen Wan. With high ceilings and bright interiors, it's as comfortable a place as any to enjoy the signature items, including honey cheese pizza, wild mushroom farfalle in laksa sauce, and the Baby Cigar, a tiramisu-inspired coffee drink garnished with a ladyfinger.

HOW, Shop 343-345, 3/F, Tsuen Wan Plaza 4, 30 Tai Pa Street, Tsuen Wan, Hong Kong

Topics

Cafe Brunch Coffee Hong Kong cafes

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