%Arabica, a cafe brand from Kyoto, Japan opened its first store in the Philippines in Manila in 2018. It is located in W City Centre in Bonifacio Global City (BGC). Embarrassingly enough, I hadn’t even been aware of it until recently!
Believe it or not, there are only 4 %Arabica stores in two cities in Japan: Kyoto & Niseko. Since there is no %Arabica store in Tokyo (what?), I had never gone to any of them until I visited one in Manila! Currently there are two locations in the Philippines. Both of them are in Manila: One in BGC and the other in Ortigas.
%Arabica Story
The founder of %Arabica, Kenneth Shoji, opened the flagship store in Kyoto in September 2014. In the Philosophy of the company, he wrote that Kyoto being the historic city of Japan, it felt appropriate to establish a Japanese brand coffee in Kyoto. In fact, the flagship store stands in Higashiyama, one of the best preserved historic districts in Kyoto. You can read their story here.
By the way, I read somewhere that Kyoto is a city also known for its cafe culture. Many cafe fans apparently go there in a search of wonderful coffee and cafes.
As a Scandinavian interior design fan, I fell in love with the sleek design of the %Arabica store in BGC. While I love coffee, I go crazy over interior design of any establishment.
I will let my photos do the talk.
Some delicious looking pastries are also available.
The lovely design feature of the %Arabica store in BGC, Manila, may be the seating areas on the upper level. The seating arrangement is all counter space. It provides a bit more privacy and a lovely view that is perfect for people watching.
I have visited %Arabica twice in a week. At the first visit, I tried their Spanish Latte. It was creamy and sweet. My kind of latte.
Below is my recommended reads.
%Arabica Manila by A Crafted Lifestyle
Is this coffee shop from Japan worth the hype? by NOLISOLI
「% Arabica Kyoto」とは？ by キナリノ
%
Why percentage? Right? Apparently the logo is a branch with two coffee cherries. Who would’ve thought!
Barista Junichi Yamaguchi In Action
YouTube by cycleroid123
%Arabica Manila in BGC
ADDRESS: Unit 1, Ground Floor, W City Center, 7th Avenue corner 30th Street, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City Philippines 1634
PHONE: +63-2-821-6744
HOURS: Weekdays : 6am – 10pm / Weekend & Holidays : 9am – 7pm
If you would like to find out their worldwide locations, please click here.
%Arabica Stores Will Open In Indonesia in 2020
The big news for Indonesians is that four %Arabica stores are scheduled to open in 2020 in Indonesia, the country we lived from 2010 to 2013. How exciting!!
https://www.instagram.com/p/B8G0LGBFyWL/
The very first time when I became aware of %Arabica was after seeing this photo on Instagram account by Aki.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B60xzrNg5Z5/
One of the most striking %Arabica store designs might be the %Arabica Kuwait. It was designed by a design firm from Japan, Nendo. You can see their photos on Dezeen.
Image Dezeen
Thank you for reading!
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