Despite how tough 2020 was for many small and medium enterprises (SMEs), we also saw how some took a risk to open amid the pandemic.
Espresso Lab
Opening around July 2020, Espresso Lab offers a satisfying cup of coffee and delicious food as well. Located on the ground floor of Lanang Suites in Lanang, the coffee shop is spacious with several comfortable seating areas.
What I love about them is the variety of coffee beans they offer for their manual brew. Each coffee experience is different every time I come here. You can read my full review here.
Dough Story by 8th Block Café
The coffee shop opened around November 2020. When it comes to the look and feel of the place, they are pleasing to the eyes. What I am crazy about is their facade. I love the feel and look of the store from the outside, especially in the evening.
Aside from coffee, they also offer cookies and burnt cheesecake. I have tried their cookies several times already. When fresh from the oven, the chocolate chip tasted good. Crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside.
I also had a decent cup of coffee when I ordered it the last time I visited.
Dough Story is along the Circumferential Road in Marfori Heights.
Jamelle’s Garden Café
I found out about Jamelle’s Garden Café through Ana Banana, one of my favorite local brands in the city. However, it took a lot of planning to come here since it was in Eden, Toril. For those not from Davao, going to Toril is like traveling to another town or city.
Anyway, Jamelle is a lovely garden café. With the cool climate of the place, it is a wonderful café to spend some quality time with family or friends. The food is good overall. They also serve cakes from Confex and banana bread from Ana Banana, which is already a win in the desserts department. Not quite a fan of the coffee, but it does the trick to satisfy you in the cool climate of Eden.
Dine-in is at their garden, which is good for social distancing.
The garden cafe is just several meters ahead of Eden Nature Park.
Kilometer 7 Café
Opening in July 2020, Kilometer 7 Nature & Café is also a unique café in its own right. Situated along Bayabas-Eden Road in Toril, the open-air café gives its guests a stunning view of Mt. Sibulan in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur.
Unfortunately, I have not been to this coffee shop yet. When we went to Jamelle’s Garden Cafe a few months ago, Kilometer 7 Nature & Cafe was temporarily closed. But last I checked, they have reopened.
Acacia Lane Coffee Shop
I discovered Acacia Lane Coffee Shop by accident. If I remember correctly, I was exploring Juna for new food experiences when I found them.
The coffee shop is along Acacia St. in Juna Subd. I cannot give a full review on them yet because it was only a quick visit when I came here. But based on the visit, the spaghetti tasted fine.
New coffee shops and cafes in the new normal
Despite the pandemic, I observed that the new coffee shops have adapted to the situation in any way they can.
The coffee shops have several signs reminding guests to wear masks at all times and to remove them when eating or drinking only. There are also reminders for guests to observe proper social distancing.
You can also find alcohol dispensers and contact tracing forms or logbooks at the entrance. Some also have a QR code for you to access their contact tracing forms.
The staff is also scanning the Safe Davao QR (DQR) codes of those entering their shop. The DQR will become mandatory in Davao City on February 3, 2021.
The staff is also wearing face masks, some with face shields. For food preparation, they are wearing gloves. I also observed that many crews in these cafes and coffee shops are also practicing regular hand washing.
Meanwhile, a new trend of coffee shops also emerged amid the pandemic: the mobile cafes. I will talk more about that in an upcoming blogpost.
You can read the first part of #KapeScene 2020 here.