Caffe Latte Review: Bandung

Food is always be a part of our travel itinerary. Where ever we go, we always want to try local food and coffee as much as possible. Food is part of our adventure. When we were in Bandung we allocated certain days to hunt for best latte in town. Our friends warned us to lower down our expectation or else we would end up in a disappointment. We ignored the warning and carrying high hope that Bandung may be a good place to enjoy a cup of great or good latte. We started latte adventure with a hope to find good aroma, light to medium body and balanced acidity in a well steamed milk. Like we always do, we did not pay attention to what brand and type of coffee machine is used in creating caffe latte. The person behind the machine, the barista, is much more important than the machine. Anyway, almost 95% of the coffee shops nowadays are using state of the art coffee machine. So, barista and the quality of the coffee beans differentiate one coffee shop to another.

After trying two famous coffee shops, we began to understand why we needed to adjust our expectation. Starting with the aroma of the coffee, it could not be found in any latte we ever tasted. There seemed to be a challenge in storing coffee beans properly, perhaps due to temperature and humidity or lack of coffee cupping to ensure the quality of the coffee that would be served for the day. We lose the essence of the espresso therefore. The milk was another problem. The choice of milk could have been better to create rich and more creamy taste. The way the milk was frothed was another disappointment. It was frothed in high temperature reaching to boiling point. In other word, the milk was burnt.

I will stop pointing out what could have been better. Let’s look at the bright side. The cafes are good place to hang out and catching up with friends and family. Unlike in Japan where many cafes are not that spacious and finding a table for four will always be a challenge, there is always a table for everyone in coffee shops in Bandung. Well, it may not always be the case over the weekend but still you could easily find a table. I am impressed with the interior decoration of all the cafes we went to. It’s modern, artistic and young. Latte art comes easy for all baristas in Bandung. Latte looks beautiful and tempting with leaves and heart shapes.

Lattes from Two Hands Full and Morning Glory excelled amongst all the cafes we went to. The milk properly frothed to the right temperature, just about right to reach silky foam. If you ask me which cafe offers best latte in Bandung, I would recommend those two.