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2009-10-01 29 浏览
Drop by Fuel this morning for breakfast.The cappuccino was just OK and definitely nowhere near other good Indies. The milk has a hint of creaminess and only extremely faintly sweetness in it while the texture wasn’t quite enough for me to feel anything special about it, ie neither rich nor luxury.As both Fuel and Crema use Pura, the comparison came to my mind. Crema showed a consistently rich, creamy and velvety texture over the past two years. I could say its milk based drink is consistent g
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Drop by Fuel this morning for breakfast.

The cappuccino was just OK and definitely nowhere near other good Indies. The milk has a hint of creaminess and only extremely faintly sweetness in it while the texture wasn’t quite enough for me to feel anything special about it, ie neither rich nor luxury.

As both Fuel and Crema use Pura, the comparison came to my mind. Crema showed a consistently rich, creamy and velvety texture over the past two years. I could say its milk based drink is consistent good year in year out from my experience there. I even like Capps at Corridor/Assembly duo and Zambra much much more than that at Fuel. I would rank Fuel capp quite close to Coco style, ie not quite rich, not quite creamy but a good and decent one though I would notch up Coco a bit higher on this front. BTW, the comment is more of a nitpicking on Fuel as Fuel’s Capp will beat any mainstream café and would not be far off from good Indie café, particularly on the temp side.

I also had two ristrettos from each blend too. The first one was from a darker blend, its default blend for black coffee. Nothing came close to the shot I had last time there which I considered the best from Fuel so far. However, it wasn’t bad either, ie passable cup, nothing’s really memorable kinda thing.

I asked for the second one to be made from the lighter roast blend which is a default blend for milk drink as I want to see how it tasted like. While the acidity was sharp, in your face and much more prominent, it was OK and I like it more than its default darker roast. Mind you that I like acidity in my coffee and I like to borrow words from Andrea Immelt’s wine book that I am also an acid freak. If I have to choose among these two blends for espresso/ristretto, I will go with the lighter one for a much more interesting dimension of its coffee vs. the darker roast for both milk and espresso drink

The good point is that I can now easily sense lots of aroma, flowery taste in the cup that was sorely missed from its dark roast. It still maintained an Italian taste profile but not to the point of caramel dark sweetness like its darker one.

Nevertheless, what’s sorely missed is the liveliness of the cup I typically had from Indie café in Hong Kong like Crema, Assembly/Corridor duo, Soft Aroma and, to a lesser extent, Coco Espresso. This prevents me from rating this cafe as a must go even you're out of the way.

The very weak link was its baked goods offering. The blueberry muffin was kinda crummy, way too sweet and very sticky to my tongue and mouth I had to chase its sweetness away with lots of water before I can sense the taste of the coffee. In a way, one could have this muffin with any coffee and you won’t feel a thing no matter how good or bad the coffee is which should give lots of flexibility to the café on its down day.

The $100 I paid for two shots of ristretto (not double as I order one shot from each blend), one muffin and one capp was on an expensive side but I don’t feel much regret vs. any $ I spend on coffee at Habitu. The Habitu/Fuel shouldn’t be compared at all at any level of café but it came to my mind when I think of the first Grand Barista Championship in Hong Kong last June, I believe. There you have it, Sanjay of Fuel Espresso and Lena Tsang of Café Habitu sitting side by side judging the barista for the first HK GBC title. However, their products were like night and day/a total pole apart with Sanjay coming on top of the game. For Lena. err... , let’s not go anywhere near that. You can read my experience on Habitu elsewhere on this website.
(以上食记乃用户个人意见 , 并不代表OpenRice之观点。)
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  • Lighter roast blend for both ristretto and milk drink
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2009-09-13 33 浏览
For those who have been following local food magazines, you know that Fuel Espresso has been in the news very frequently and has created much noise in the local community both for coffee lovers and food lovers alike. I have visited this place many times, usually around 6 - 630pm when I got off work nearby. One major factor that attracted me back to this place aside for the coffee is the casual atmosphere and the cheerful + friendly character of the Baristas here. (personally, I still prefer Coff
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For those who have been following local food magazines, you know that Fuel Espresso has been in the news very frequently and has created much noise in the local community both for coffee lovers and food lovers alike. I have visited this place many times, usually around 6 - 630pm when I got off work nearby. One major factor that attracted me back to this place aside for the coffee is the casual atmosphere and the cheerful + friendly character of the Baristas here. (personally, I still prefer Coffee Assembly @ SoHo over this place for its environment and atmosphere because it is more cozy and non-commercial compared with others similar establishment)

I think I had too many cups of espresso here at the wrong time of the day before (ie: evening), so today I opted for something different. I ask the friendly barista here to pick one to surprise me. My surprise turned out to be Cafe Mocha. Not my usual order but if other I would not call it a surprise would I? Surprise it was, a delightful one as well. It was not too sweet while maintaining a very strong coffee flavors from the double espresso shots. Extra chocolate sprinkles were placed on top but I am equally happy without them. The foam was of the creamy type which was increasing hard to find in Hong Kong in my opinion. I think many coffee places have foamy type, especially chain stores in Hong Kong, because the cold milk was heated up too fast from the highly pressured steam wand, affecting the frothing of the milk (and its quality). It should be heated up gradually during the frothing process at a certain steaming pressure. Time is of the essence in Hong Kong so speed is a major element in serving coffee as well I guess. Rather unfortunate in my opinion. (of course the quality of the milk matters as well for the frothing of the milk) The above is my understanding of how foamy foam is formed, but please do correct me and enlighten me otherwise because I still have much more to learn about coffee making, especially the frothing techniques. (really tempted to buy a machine to play around for myself!)

As a side note, the espresso here was strong and carried a slight earthy flavors to it. In my opinion, a good espresso to me should be strong while able to stimulate my taste bud to have an aftertaste of ... humm ... bittersweet taste for a lack of a better word. The many cups of espresso I had here were able to give me that lovely aftertaste, hence another reason for my frequent revisits.

Likes:

* Service & Atmosphere
* Consistent coffee / espresso - semi-creamy foam

Dislikes:

* Closes too early in my opinion

Avg Spending: Below HKD 100 per person

Original Blog: http://jason-bonvivant.blogspot.com/2009/09/fuel-espresso.html
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(以上食记乃用户个人意见 , 并不代表OpenRice之观点。)
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2009-09-08 26 浏览
Ever since my last review awhile ago in Feb 09, preaching about the coffee but not entirely without heldbacks - I was hesitant to believe at first when I began experiencing a resurgent improvement in my coffee experiences @ FUEL Espresso starting around April. I used to depart from here somewhat satisfied but still hoping for a more multi-dimensional cup of a Caffe Lattes/Cappucino that reflects more of its traditional Heritage, while the Espresso in the past was dark and moody, a bit burnt
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Ever since my last review awhile ago in Feb 09, preaching about the coffee but not entirely without heldbacks - I was hesitant to believe at first when I began experiencing a resurgent improvement in my coffee experiences @ FUEL Espresso starting around April. I used to depart from here somewhat satisfied but still hoping for a more multi-dimensional cup of a Caffe Lattes/Cappucino that reflects more of its traditional Heritage, while the Espresso in the past was dark and moody, a bit burnt to be enjoyable and slight cringe worthy unless your style belongs to old school Italian. Its possible it takes time to iron out the kinks, or that slight adjustments have been brought about gradually as customers began to understand the products. Perhaps its partly physiologically on my part too, which is a variable that must never be discounted. Nowadays? The Espresso from FUEL now has vastly improved, rekindling my love and belief. It has probably overtaken the milk based drinks in performance and that suits me just fine

**********
ESPRESSO -
Here, I believe ordering a Single Espresso at FUEL is the preferred choice rather than a Double Espresso or the shorter Ristretto, since the longer extractiong encapsulates all the possible lively characteristics in 1 shot. Its partly to do with the 'blending' characteristics and it certainly carries enough body to support a largish 25+ml extraction easily.
As I began slurping this wonderfully extracted Golden-Red nectar, instantly, as if someone had waited for a pouncing opportunity to prove me wrong for once slagging off their efforts and acting in protest to what I'd penned, I was grabbed unexpectedly by the collar of my shirt and taken on a trip to an unfamiliar foreign land.. I caught glimpse of dark steely faces working on high uncontaminated mountain plateaus, their only daily focus involves picking away at red berries and retaining as much of its original freshness flavour with a delicate touch. I could sense the nutritional soil and wet tree barks around me, a whiff of ozone filling the high altitude air proves refreshening. I figure I had probably landed in Africa somewhere....
Just as I was getting accustomed to my new surroundings, greed made me take in my final, 2nd decisive sip as I longed to continue this free afternoon trip, this time engulfing and inhaling in all the remaining thick tiger-striped crema that lined up the bottom of the ceramic demitasse... it was yet another spellbinding moment, only this time, the extraction proved so dense, the remaining crema coating the inner rim was all soapy bubbles not unlike that from a naked portafilter. It was a land of high humidity and sweaty environment, the palm trees in the distance signalling that the ocean couldn't be far away. Where I stand overlooking the 3rd world slopes, one could smell spice and saltiness in the air, an exotic earthiness together with mango ripeness penetrate the senses ever so mildly. It provides the backdrop and body that togethers culminates in an emotionally charged, slightly poignant cupping..
My free travel comes courtesy of my one shot that lasts approximately a minute and a half. Finally arriving back at the highly contrasting real world at International Financial Centre, it suddenly occurred to me that what I had just been through was as real as it gets. The coffee here contains all the correct components which were so alive in the cup, it was like going to an old world Bazaar market, where coffee trades and auctions still thrives and people live off the tiny profits from a non-guaranteed cropping vintage. It happens everyday on a parallel world and we mutually support each other somehow from different ends of the earth.

************************
There is a great sense of comradery in the staff here. Everyone is also smiling, friendly and proud. The Espresso coffee was great, the Caffe Latte rendered to become more of a formality afterwards and acts as a 'cooling down period' after a quite overseas holiday.
Although relatively expensive, FUEL Espresso is without doubt the most professional and arguably ONLY hardcore Coffee House in Hong Kong. Although I've personally had slightly better in other parts of the world, this is already so good and nowadays also my no.1 preference for coffee. It still remains more affordable than the often inferior drinks from a 5 Star Hotel or even Michelin Starred Restaurants - afterall, high pricing and a blind following of so-called brandnames or world famous Coffee Beans to please high-rollers (these often pre-packed as stale, pod-forms), is not conducive to quality. FUEL definitely buys the best beans from reputable suppliers as well and roasts then keeps them in perfect conditions, each step of the Quality Control is guaranteed from Farm to Cup. There are lots of variables which makes a great coffee, brandname constitutes may be only 10% of the equation. Even here, its not entirely perfect (and so as not to give out seemingly blind appraisals): As BOBLAM has mentioned rightly below - I also find that different baristas even on the same day may make a pour that's notably different in the resulting cup, both espresso and milk texturing... I find this slightly hard to believe since everything else seems perfect. Although I already know whom I prefer to make my coffees, perhaps other customers might not.

If FUEL on HK Island is hard for you to access, CREMA is Tsim Sa Tsui East is also a great alternative, they even share some DNA in the coffee - but the latter carries a slightly rawer expression. If you like either, you're guaranteed to like them both in my opinion. For me, I probably enjoy the Professionalism here the most.

A HIGH '4' to MID '5' PERSONALLY!
Slightly Weak For me. I Shall Order Strong!
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I Went Traveling For a While... with this Cup.
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2009-08-25 25 浏览
Let me make a short note on two single ristretto shots I had at FuelThe first one was pulled by a caucasian and was the first time I had such a flavorful offering from Fuel with a nice acidity note at the beginning and a bit of quite dark but not bitter chocolate at the end. The body was decent though not as syrupy as the best I had.It was so good I had to order the other one. This time it was pulled by a Chinese lady. It was OK and a bit better than what I had when I last posted it but it's
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Let me make a short note on two single ristretto shots I had at Fuel

The first one was pulled by a caucasian and was the first time I had such a flavorful offering from Fuel with a nice acidity note at the beginning and a bit of quite dark but not bitter chocolate at the end. The body was decent though not as syrupy as the best I had.

It was so good I had to order the other one. This time it was pulled by a Chinese lady. It was OK and a bit better than what I had when I last posted it but it's nowhere near the good first one. Bitterness is quite prominent, particularly toward the end.

I wasn't really sure why. Its could be the blend choice as Fuel offers a lighter and a default dark roast for espresso. Or the blend was quite hard to get it right. Or the water temperature was lower than it was as there's lots of customers when I ordered my first shot and much less on my second though La Marzocco and Astoria (I believe) were known to have a rock solid temp control relative to other brands.

Guess another visit is needed so I will maintain an OK for Fuel for this time first. However, I decide to put a note here as I thought it might benefit someone who wants to try Fuel as I don't know when my next time at Fuel will be, particularly on a week day like this time.
(以上食记乃用户个人意见 , 并不代表OpenRice之观点。)
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2009-08-19
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  • Ristretto
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2009-08-19 89 浏览
I recalled 太公's compliment to Fuel Espresso's cappuccino while I was in IFC the other day. So there's no better time in trying it out. Despite being near the end of lunch time many are still enjoying their coffee over chat. After making my order at the counter, I managed to find a seat near the hallway. Chocolate shavings on the side, my cappuccino ($36) not only had a better texture than that using chocolate powder, but its fluffy foam balanced out the somewhat bold sharp espresso base, leaving
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I recalled 太公's compliment to Fuel Espresso's cappuccino while I was in IFC the other day. So there's no better time in trying it out. Despite being near the end of lunch time many are still enjoying their coffee over chat. After making my order at the counter, I managed to find a seat near the hallway.

Chocolate shavings on the side, my cappuccino ($36) not only had a better texture than that using chocolate powder, but its fluffy foam balanced out the somewhat bold sharp espresso base, leaving a soft and smooth finish.

My companion to the cappuccino was Savoury Pumpkin, Spinach & Feta Muffin ($16). Very interesting indeed. I'd liken it to Chinese steamed spongy cake "鬆糕", but with a savoury twist of nutritious pumpkin, spinach and feta cheese. A refreshing treat.

The highlight of my first visit, however, was the samples of hot chocolate, Dutch style, offered for tasting as an attempt to formulate "the blend" for the local market. Although I preferred the richer version with a very slight hint of cocoa-y bitterness, many would also want to satisfy their sweet tooth once in a while, then why not have 2 versions, like their blends of coffee?

Of course, no quest of quality coffee is complete without trying the joint's signature esproesso. This time I specifically went for its Espresso Ristretto ($24), a "Restricted" short espresso as the size suggested - it had an even smaller volume than a regular espresso shot...or you can call it more "concentrated". I paired my espresso with a Morning Glory Muffin ($16) [Currant, Carrot, Apple, Coconut] even it was well past morning. I was first impressed by the "roasty", or nutty aroma of the coffee. The crema here was darker than usual, yet not overly burnt-looking. (Or were the ones I'd had before too weak?)

There are 2 varieties of beans at Fuel, namely "Dark" roast (with aromas of cocoa, malt, licorice), Classic (a more fruity touch). I have a long long way to go before I can recognize all these complex flavours, but this is the wisdom I got from an unexpected but wonderful encounter with the mastermind behind FUEL...

As I was enjoying my coffee and surveying the cafe, a gentleman sitting at the bar area working on his computer suddenly turned to me and said,

"So you like coffee?"

He gave me his name card, and it turned out that he was Mr Sanjay Ponnapa, the CEO/founder of Fuel. Unassuming in looks, yet he insisted on using the best beans, rosted meticulously to perfection, being a proud descendent of several generations of coffee planters in India. In fact he had come to HK to check out on his beans and hold tasting sessions, which he gave me an impromptu one by pulling me a shot of his signature espresso. Wow! As Mr Ponnapa guided me through the aromas and flavours of his espresso, I was getting a glimpse of how to actually taste a coffee...while there's so much more to learn about coffee, Mr Ponnapa even let me have a look at the "bible" of the coffee industry, a book on the origins and processing of coffee.

Well I'm still some amateur on coffee, but this was indeed an interesting experience that sparkled my interest on the subject. Coffee-wise, Fuel is one of those places that I'll come once in a while for a nice shot if it's not too crowded, or if I want to have more coffee news - the baristas here actually know the stuff and are generous enough to tell you where else to get good coffees as well!

Drawbacks? Yes, maybe it's better for them to have a formal cash till showing, as I didn't know where to pay my bill every time I was there!
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I visited Fuel Espresso a couple of times since last 2008. The good thing is that its deco exceeded my expectation and I think most Indie cafe should look up to this one.For the coffee, I don't think existing Indie cafes in Hong Kong have anything to worry about. The overall taste profiles from Fuel Espresso reminded me of a typical Italian chained espresso but better, not the same complexity as Indie café espresso though.My single espresso was pulled with a double basket and barista let the o
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I visited Fuel Espresso a couple of times since last 2008. The good thing is that its deco exceeded my expectation and I think most Indie cafe should look up to this one.

For the coffee, I don't think existing Indie cafes in Hong Kong have anything to worry about. The overall taste profiles from Fuel Espresso reminded me of a typical Italian chained espresso but better, not the same complexity as Indie café espresso though.

My single espresso was pulled with a double basket and barista let the other shot dripped down the drain. It's a nice touch as it showed how much barista care about the coffee. (Double basket typically tasted better than single, IMHO)

However, my espresso was run until blond. While the coffee does not seem to have much robusta taste, ie burned rubber aftertaste and caffeine kick, it's not memorable but taste quite good a long shot like this, considering the blonding the pull which was supposed to give you an acrid espresso that you find at most café.

The cappuccino I had got a nice milk texture via Pura full cream milk and just warm, not hot, which fit my requirement and was a nice touch. However, no distinct sweet milk taste like I had at Zambra and just on par with Crema Coffee. I needed to spoon the top off as barista sprinkled quite a few of sweet chocolate powder on top. Maybe the cocoa powder was there for a reason.

Also, there was one customer ordered coffee and just walk away on my first visit to Fuel. Barista should tell the customers that they are adjusting the espresso machine as they kept on brewing and throwing the coffee and steamed milk away. While it's a good intention on the barista side, most customers will not understand/appreciate what they were doing. It took me a long while before I could get my drink with a barista forgetting my cappuccino order too.

On my latte visit in early May 2009, I did not see this throw away thing anymore. Nevertheless, the espresso I received was kinda subpar and worse than my two previous experiences there in late 2008. The lively cup was gone and the stale bean taste was prominent. I don’t remember the strong dark roast taste last time I had coffee there; it was a bit too forward and way too much for me. Maybe the darker roast taste was actually there to begin with but it was well balanced thanks to the relative freshness of the roasted bean at the time. For my recent visit, the freshness was gone so the darker roast taste reared its head up… L

This makes me wonder how it likes for a lighter roast. I learned after my first visit that this coffee bar used lighter roast for its milk drink and a darker roast for its espresso which is counterintuitive to me but is like a fact for some. To me, one needs a bolder taste of the roast to ‘punch’ through the milk.

In all, not bad for coffee if you are in the area. For those who are in to deco, a must for those who are looking for a relatively posh espresso bar.
(以上食记乃用户个人意见 , 并不代表OpenRice之观点。)
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  • Nothing's in particular. Most coffee is just OK
  • not great
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2009-06-03 21 浏览
早前寫pacific coffee的食評,得食友Babedolphin推介Fuel 的咖啡,早已心思思,又有件事。(係,太公好多心事架!嘿! ) 只是少於港島區出沒的太公,一直苦無機會路過IFC, 路過又記錯舖頭.....今次終於可以一嘗Fuel的cappucino!週末11時多的Fuel, 客不多。我們要了兩杯cappucino,坐著慢慢喝。fuel的cappucino果然是好;foam是剛好約1/3杯,打得很細緻,質感順滑,香港難得喝到此水準的cappucino;Babedolphin 謂此是top one, 果然不錯。咖啡底則屬細水長流型;不如S記,甫喝下即有一股濃烈的咖啡味衝著味蕾,卻稍瞬即逝;這兒的咖啡味卻是慢慢地慘進味蕾,愈喝愈見甘香芳醇;喝畢,齒頰留香,教人滿足得很!我上癮了,下次轉工,最好找一份在附近上班的,以便有空蛇下來歎咖啡!
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早前寫pacific coffee的食評,得食友Babedolphin推介Fuel 的咖啡,早已心思思,又有件事。(係,太公好多心事架!嘿!
) 只是少於港島區出沒的太公,一直苦無機會路過IFC, 路過又記錯舖頭.....今次終於可以一嘗Fuel的cappucino!

週末11時多的Fuel, 客不多。我們要了兩杯cappucino,坐著慢慢喝。

fuel的cappucino果然是好;foam是剛好約1/3杯,打得很細緻,質感順滑,香港難得喝到此水準的cappucino;Babedolphin 謂此是top one, 果然不錯。

咖啡底則屬細水長流型;不如S記,甫喝下即有一股濃烈的咖啡味衝著味蕾,卻稍瞬即逝;這兒的咖啡味卻是慢慢地慘進味蕾,愈喝愈見甘香芳醇;喝畢,齒頰留香,教人滿足得很!

我上癮了,下次轉工,最好找一份在附近上班的,以便有空蛇下來歎咖啡!
cappunccino
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2009-05-08 18 浏览
下午辦好事, 麻麻煩煩的, 不如蛇一蛇先回公司. 同事亦來到, 補上應要的東西後. 我大叫頂..不如蛇一蛇....同事說好. 完事後, 同事直入那coffee shop. 我問道, 說真的...........真架.......二人決定蛇王.咁悠閒既環境, 30多元一杯Coffee, 唔算太貴. 兩個人, 一人一杯latte. 咖啡弄好了, 本來以為有人serve的. 但原來好似一般的Coffee Shop, 要自己出去攞.飲得多SP既咖啡, 成日覺得佢地杯野好full, 呢度, 雖然是細杯左少少, 但不會一入口就會令你覺得飲完杯咖啡會好飽果隻. 呢度既唔會. 而且外面層泡都做得幾靚.地方, 比起其他咖啡店清靜同舒適既. IFC三樓人流不多. 蛇皇要High少少, 黎呢度.
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下午辦好事, 麻麻煩煩的, 不如蛇一蛇先回公司. 同事亦來到, 補上應要的東西後. 我大叫頂..不如蛇一蛇....同事說好. 完事後, 同事直入那coffee shop. 我問道, 說真的...........真架.......二人決定蛇王.

咁悠閒既環境, 30多元一杯Coffee, 唔算太貴. 兩個人, 一人一杯latte. 咖啡弄好了, 本來以為有人serve的. 但原來好似一般的Coffee Shop, 要自己出去攞.

飲得多SP既咖啡, 成日覺得佢地杯野好full, 呢度, 雖然是細杯左少少, 但不會一入口就會令你覺得飲完杯咖啡會好飽果隻. 呢度既唔會. 而且外面層泡都做得幾靚.

地方, 比起其他咖啡店清靜同舒適既. IFC三樓人流不多. 蛇皇要High少少, 黎呢度.
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2009-02-24 43 浏览
Have tried here before but to give it an accurate review again, I'll comment on my Caffe Latte. I did not specifically choose my 'blending' by the way, so this is just what they would give out by default for a Latte.Strongish, darkish underlying Espresso base. The 'blend' and roasting was definitely towards a more dark chocolatey type of espresso, therefore I did not expect lots of Italian style coffee aromas which are usually a bit more complex, but only more of a strongish 'roast' aroma. Thi
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Have tried here before but to give it an accurate review again, I'll comment on my Caffe Latte. I did not specifically choose my 'blending' by the way, so this is just what they would give out by default for a Latte.
Strongish, darkish underlying Espresso base. The 'blend' and roasting was definitely towards a more dark chocolatey type of espresso, therefore I did not expect lots of Italian style coffee aromas which are usually a bit more complex, but only more of a strongish 'roast' aroma.
This blending in my latte resembled very much the flavours of roasted chocolate peanut plus hazelnuts, it was pretty much straight forward sweet, rich, profound, nutty, but no hints of earthiness or freshness of fruit, although there was still an underlying hint of complexity and back palate plus lingering aftertaste. There's no bitterness at all. Nice sharp and very thick finish in the mouth, from a very syrupy Espresso base.
If there are any complaints - it will be that this is not very Italian at all, it was new world coffee. I also could not really taste much of the original taste of the coffee, as it was slightly too roasty and mocha like (but not dark roasted so, quite hard to quantify). My latte's milk texture was slightly too frothy rather than silky, it was more like a correctly textured Cappucino. Milk was slightly over-powering in this instance though not due to over-heating - batch or brand problem?
Coffee Taste preference is more of a subjective matter (barista skills is another thing) - but FUEL is definitely a Top 1 coffee place in Hong Kong. The other shops that I rank equally Top 1 in Hong Kong and worth a try:
- FUEL @ IFC

- CREMA @ TST

- DEBAILLEUL @ TST (when the tall skinny guy with glasses make it. Very complex underlying flavours. Not easy to understand by beginners.)

A close 2nd:
- Cafe Suzuki's Causeway Bay branch opposit Jockey Club, next to Cafe Habitu.

(when a guy called Henry I think, only works there night time around Wed-Fri).
Don't underestimate Cafe Suzuki's coffee, especially the Caffe Latte, when they have a capable barista - the new blend, method of espresso pour, milk texture, latte art are all World Class Material. Slightly Japanese/Italian flavoured, milder blend but very long lasting taste and aroma. Just don't try their other branches to judge.
Not far behind around 2nd or 3rd:
- Cafe Assembly's Ristrettos/Espresso (Fire blend) is very very nice
, probably worth a Top 1 spot. However, not a big fan of their milk based coffees.
By the way, I heard Coffee Corridor does not use the 'Fire Blend' for their Espresso but only for their Milk coffees. They change blends for their espressos by default without telling you, unlike Cafe Assembly which only has 1 brand for both drinks. So don't judge their espressos on Coffee Corridor experience unless you knew exactly what you ordered.
- Robuchon Le Salon - pretty good blend and coffee. Needs slightly better baristas though. Has potential.

PS: Haven't had chance to review Cafe Zambras more accurately. Will do that again soon.
All the other ones I've tried, aren't worth a mention! Coffee in Hong Kong is so bad. Especially the barista skills. 99% of shops do 5-10s Espresso pours, unbelievable...


(以上食记乃用户个人意见 , 并不代表OpenRice之观点。)
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2009-01-28 46 浏览
(21/1/09)知道IFC開左間新咖啡店。話說用上印度、非洲特選咖啡豆,人手烘焙。咖啡精的我,一定去試試。Mocha (Regular size $36)(Tall size $42)。揀左細size真係好細杯。一飲之下,與星記、太平洋,完全兩回事,Fuel的極之濃既咖啡….?唔係!係朱古力味…..?dep真D,係朱古力味重D。濃度,杰杰地啊。不過就無Mandarin杯hot choco咁creamy。雖然係貴,不過真係有佢實力。所以這裡既 Chocolate cake $40, Lemon sliced $25有機會都會買來食食。
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(21/1/09)知道IFC開左間新咖啡店。話說用上印度、非洲特選咖啡豆,人手烘焙。咖啡精的我,一定去試試。
Mocha (Regular size $36)(Tall size $42)。揀左細size真係好細杯。一飲之下,與星記、太平洋,完全兩回事,Fuel的極之濃既咖啡….?唔係!係朱古力味…..?dep真D,係朱古力味重D。濃度,杰杰地啊。不過就無Mandarin杯hot choco咁creamy。雖然係貴,不過真係有佢實力。所以這裡既 Chocolate cake $40, Lemon sliced $25有機會都會買來食食。
好鍾意呢個轉轉menu,唔洗噩高頭睇咁辛苦
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homemade食品、沙津
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細杯左D lor....
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好鍾意呢個轉轉menu,唔洗噩高頭睇咁辛苦
細杯左D lor....
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2008-11-01 21 浏览
Spotted its poster on podium level 1, boasted as coffee boutique named FUEL, when contemplating if it's truly a coffee joint or actually something else as boutique, I was already hurrying to pay my pilgrimage.As seen its other reviews' pics, its dark wooden decor offers a chic and modern atmosphere for a refreshment. Scanning down its menu, I'm already dazzled by its vast variety. Staff were friendly and helped explain difference between americano and long expresso. Latte was always my favourite
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Spotted its poster on podium level 1, boasted as coffee boutique named FUEL, when contemplating if it's truly a coffee joint or actually something else as boutique, I was already hurrying to pay my pilgrimage.

As seen its other reviews' pics, its dark wooden decor offers a chic and modern atmosphere for a refreshment. Scanning down its menu, I'm already dazzled by its vast variety. Staff were friendly and helped explain difference between americano and long expresso. Latte was always my favourite, yet wanna try its own blend of coffee, I finally picked long expresso, there were 2 types of coffee bean one may choose, one's classic and the other one dark roasted, as it's named I prefer a stronger favour so no doubt I tried the latter one.

Its strong aroma captured me right away, with a slight acidity it did offer a strong boost, the favour is complex and yet unique. The barista even offered me a hand-made eared cup which made me laugh all the way out of the shop.

Oh yea I was also offered a taste of its ginger cake, lovely ginger puree with crunchy cake underneath, a small piece of it made a good company to its nice coffee.

Its other snacks were tempting too, like lemon sour cream cake, white chocolate rhubarg muffin....It's definitely a must for a second visit.
(以上食记乃用户个人意见 , 并不代表OpenRice之观点。)
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2008-10-31 30 浏览
十月初二‧晴在這個容易令人氣餒的時勢,在適當時候幫自己加加油,很緊要。難搞的事太多,就蛇下來喝杯濃濃的咖啡。 這裡是正宗咖啡店,以特濃咖啡作主打,沒有座位供應,大家喝完就走。不過其實在外國也有不少的咖啡店是「立」飲店來的。 要了杯Latte Ristretto,即是在espresso上面加一層奶沬。奶泡濃密滑溜,咖啡辛香,回甘帶點微微甜味。對於咖啡的大世界,我是門外漢,只知道能在混沌中喝一杯有水準的咖啡,也是給自己加油的一個方法。 26蚊,價錢比美式連鎖咖啡店便宜,質素也好好多,希望這裡會做得住。
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十月初二‧晴

在這個容易令人氣餒的時勢,在適當時候幫自己加加油,很緊要。難搞的事太多,就蛇下來喝杯濃濃的咖啡。

這裡是正宗咖啡店,以特濃咖啡作主打,沒有座位供應,大家喝完就走。不過其實在外國也有不少的咖啡店是「立」飲店來的。

要了杯Latte Ristretto,即是在espresso上面加一層奶沬。奶泡濃密滑溜,咖啡辛香,回甘帶點微微甜味。對於咖啡的大世界,我是門外漢,只知道能在混沌中喝一杯有水準的咖啡,也是給自己加油的一個方法。

26蚊,價錢比美式連鎖咖啡店便宜,質素也好好多,希望這裡會做得住。
香濃的Latte Ristretto
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在這個容易令人氣餒好時勢,要密密加油
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咖啡機
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香濃的Latte Ristretto
在這個容易令人氣餒好時勢,要密密加油
  • 各式特濃咖啡
等级4
In the old days when we crammed up over the next midterms or finals, we drink coffees...lots of caffeine until the next day we were so charged up we couldn't sleep for the next 5 days. Nowadays coffee ceased to compete with certain energy drink which not only offer fuel to your body like fossil fuel to machines, its taste almost resembles fossil fuel including the resenting smell you can detect from a mile away. Good thing coffees have now evolved into a beverage for enjoyment, and there are ple
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In the old days when we crammed up over the next midterms or finals, we drink coffees...lots of caffeine until the next day we were so charged up we couldn't sleep for the next 5 days. Nowadays coffee ceased to compete with certain energy drink which not only offer fuel to your body like fossil fuel to machines, its taste almost resembles fossil fuel including the resenting smell you can detect from a mile away. Good thing coffees have now evolved into a beverage for enjoyment, and there are plenty of places that offer coffees not for cramming up, but for appreciation. Already a hit with 10 locations in Wellington, New Zealand, Sanjay Ponnapa, with his love of jazz music and the vision of perfect espresso and an endearing relationship kept between coffee, baristas and customers, opened FUEL here in Hong Kong.

Located on the 3rd floor, quieter level of the IFC mall, FUEL is a new joint that hailed all the way from New Zealand, the initial impression is its sleek dark wooden counters and matching walls with a soft mellow tune of jazz...There it was, calmly blending against the whiteness of the mall, allowing the joint to catch your eyes even more. Everything in FUEL stands out on its own, be it the jazz labels at the top, or the green coffee/ espresso cups on the lacquered black coffee machine, or the sweet smell of coffee beans just ground upon orders.

Espresso Ristretto (restricted shot of espresso) is literally a small puddle of rich-crema espresso for tasting. You're realize the freshness and complexities of freshly ground coffee made to the order right in front of you. Caffe Mocha ($42 for Large) and Hot Chocolate are both made with Dutch-processed cocoa from Africa, while with each coffee you get to choose whether you prefer a classic blend (with complex layers of flavour but more acidic) or a dark roast (whose flavor is more subtle). Don't forget the chitchat with your barista. The staff here are knowledgable and you're welcomed to talk to them, swap stories and experiences with coffee. They're here to break the icy barriers between metropolitan citizens and with coffee hopefully it'll be enough to warm us up a bit.

Snacks are also offered here. Blueberry Barn muffin ($25 apiece) is a favorite, but compared with Rhubarb White chocolate muffin it's certainly something new and intriguing to try. Carrot cake is frosted with Cream cheese and NZ honey ($25). Chocolate mud cake ($40) is tempting...dark and fudgy and not too sweet, with plenty of butter it spells indulgence in every bite. At the time of writing FUEL has only opened for a week, stools will be installed later on but frankly I prefer coffee lovers dwell in the free space offered here, immersing in the getaway of jazz, coffee, and possibly the friendly relationships you build with others, and yourselves here.
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  • Caffe Mocha
  • Chocolate Mud Cake