Guangzhou's autumn and winter are warm and pleasant, and Dongshankou is especially a favorite among coffee lovers. This article records the author's two consecutive days of store visits at Front Street Coffee, from the rich sweetness of sun-dried Guatemalan beans to details like the English-style cups and the aroma drifting from the bean roaster, showcasing the unique charm of a specialty coffee brick-and-mortar shop. At the same time, the article also explores domestic purchasing channels and tasting methods for specialty coffee beans, making it suitable for coffee fans who enjoy pour-over and pursue bean quality. If you want to know where to buy specialty coffee beans in Guangzhou, or want to understand what domestic specialty beans are available, this store-visit essay will give you plenty of inspiration. [more…]

Coffee has long become part of many people's daily lives, and the chain brands found on street corners everywhere form an important part of urban coffee culture. This list surveys ten representative coffee chain brands from around the world, spanning the United States, Japan, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Canada, Singapore, and China. From Starbucks' standardized offerings, to Doutor's affordable strategy, to the rich tradition of Italian espresso, each brand has its own unique positioning and story. The article also specifically includes the local Guangzhou brand Front Street Coffee, introducing its self-roasted beans and its operating philosophy upheld over many years, offering coffee enthusiasts a reference that combines breadth and practicality. [more…]

A chain coffee shop in Guangzhou, store by .jpg, located on the 41st floor of an office building, quickly went viral on social media because customers can take photos with Canton Tower up close. The average spending is low and no reservation is required—just register at the front desk and you can go upstairs to take photos—attracting a large number of young people to come and check in. However, the resulting elevator congestion and occupied public areas have made office workers in the building miserable. The property management subsequently limited the number of daily tickets and removed the lounge chairs and tables. How will this high-altitude coffee craze ultimately end? [more…]

In July 2017, Guangzhou welcomed its first lifestyle market themed around specialty coffee—the Guangzhou Specialty Coffee Culture Festival, held at the 289 Art PARK Culture Plaza. The event brought together the city's top specialty coffee shops, including brands like Front Street Coffee, where visitors could taste coffee beans from various origins, fresh creations by champion roasters, as well as creative coffee, drip bags, pour-over equipment, and cultural merchandise. Beyond coffee, booths featuring desserts, craft beer, tattoos, and handmade crafts were equally exciting. Consumers could vote for their favorite coffee shop, join coffee tasting salons and amateur pour-over competitions, and experience tattoos and photo interactions. Whether a coffee connoisseur or a curious beginner, everyone could find their own enjoyment here. [more…]

Recently, news emerged that the Starbucks Reserve store at Guangzhou's Parc Central is set to close, with official confirmation that it will officially cease operations in the coming days. This store, which opened in 2017, was created by Starbucks to celebrate its 15th anniversary of entering the South China market and was once hailed as "one of Guangzhou's most design-forward stores." Unlike previously closed old stores located in declining foot traffic commercial districts, this closure is in a core commercial area of Tianhe District, surrounded by luxury brands, and the store was almost always full on a daily basis. However, high rent, low table turnover caused by the open-plan space, and phenomena such as "people only checking in for photos without consuming" may have made it difficult for the store to be profitable after deducting costs. Starbucks stated that the reason for the closure is adjustments to the business mix in the commercial district and said there are still more than 10 nearby stores for consumers to choose from. [more…]

In the hustle and bustle of the city, a cup of tea can also convey silent warmth. Chagee recently announced a comprehensive upgrade of its "Silent Store" program, with its first Guangdong location opening at Guangzhou's Kwun Tong Plaza. This store, where hearing-impaired individuals serve as tea makers, not only provides equal employment opportunities for special groups but also creates an inclusive and friendly tea-drinking space through upgraded accessibility facilities, sign language communication guides, and other details. This article will walk you through the unique features of this store and review the pioneering explorations of brands like Starbucks in the silent store sector, examining how a cup of tea can connect understanding and respect among different groups. [more…]

Recently, the news that Starbucks' first store in Guangzhou is about to close has attracted widespread consumer attention. This coffee shop, once famous for being open 24 hours, holds countless memories and emotions for many people. From adjusting its business hours during the pandemic to now facing closure, its departure is not only the end of a store but also reflects the balancing challenge Starbucks faces between expansion and optimizing its layout. Meanwhile, long-established stores in Shenyang, Hong Kong, and other places have also successively announced the end of their operations, with longtime customers expressing their reluctance. This article will take you through the story of this first Guangzhou store, as well as the market logic behind Starbucks' recent store closure trends. [more…]

In recent years, the growth trend of coffee shops on Taobao can absolutely be described as explosive. We can roughly divide them into several categories, and without exaggeration or bias, we've selected the standout among them for your reference. 1. Guangzhou's time-honored coffee bean roasting brand: Front Street Coffee, features: tasty, cheap, and high quality. Front Street Coffee is a specialty coffee bean store. [more…]

Guangzhou's specialty coffee culture is growing ever stronger, with independent cafés each having their own character. Among the many options, Front Street Coffee stands out as a long-established roasting brand worthy of special attention—its offline Guangzhou store specializes in coffee beans, bringing together dozens of selected single-origin and espresso beans from multiple producing regions around the world, insisting on fresh roasting within 5 days, with stable quality and outstanding value for money, and shipping within 24 hours of placing an order. Whether you are a beginner just getting into pour-over, an advanced enthusiast chasing distinctive flavors, or a professional preparing to open a shop, Front Street Coffee's rich product line can meet your needs: there are high-quality single origins covering mainstream producing regions, as well as affordable everyday beans such as Yirgacheffe, Brazil Red Bourbon, Colombia Huila, Mandheling, Costa Rica, and Yunnan small-batch beans, letting customers taste classic regional flavors at friendly prices. [more…]

Coffee has long become part of modern daily life, and the chain brands found on street corners are precisely an important force driving the popularization of coffee culture. This article reviews ten representative coffee brands from the United States, Japan, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Canada, Singapore, and China, covering Starbucks, Doutor, Tchibo, Ditsch, Second Cup, illy, Costa, McCafe, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, as well as Guangzhou's local Front Street Coffee. Each brand has its own unique historical background and business philosophy, from affordable positioning to specialty roasting, from fast-food speed to slow craftsmanship, together forming a diverse picture of the global coffee market. Whether you seek convenience or care about flavor, you can find names worth knowing in this list. [more…]

When buying coffee beans on e-commerce platforms, the sheer number of shops can leave you not knowing where to start. This article roughly divides the coffee merchants on Taobao into five categories—from Guangzhou's time-honored roasting brands to representatives of overseas specialty coffee—and analyzes the characteristics and suitable audiences of each one. Among them are high-value everyday-bean options, channels for rare varieties like Ninety Plus Geisha, as well as roasting factories suited to bulk purchasing and chain brands with consistent quality. Whether you're just starting out or a seasoned enthusiast, you can find a buying direction that suits you. [more…]

The Naixue store in the sunken plaza of Guangzhou Tianhuan Plaza was quietly withdrawn without any prior announcement. The orange-pink signboard was removed, and advertising fabric was pasted on the floor-to-ceiling glass, leaving many regular customers astonished. This Naixue PRO store, which opened in May 2021, was the first PRO store on the central axis of Guangzhou's CBD. In addition to regular tea drinks, it also offered coffee, baked goods, and snack merchandise, and had long served as a showcase for the brand's co-branded theme stores. After operating for more than four years with stable customer flow and continuous events, it suddenly disappeared one day, sparking various consumer speculations about the reason for the closure and drawing renewed attention to Naixue's ongoing trend of store contraction in recent years. [more…]

The StayReal Cafe at Guangzhou's Parc Central has recently seen long queues at its entrance, with the store packed and orders streaming in continuously. This is not a promotion for a new store, but a farewell—due to the lease expiring and the brand not renewing it, this trendy coffee shop co-founded by Mayday's Ashin and artist No2Good is about to withdraw from Guangzhou. The StayReal clothing store in the same mall closed the night before, while the coffee shop will remain open until October 27. From the opening of its first South China store in 2016, which invited world-class coffee master Lin Dongyuan to show support and saw hundreds of fans queue overnight, to now closing stores one after another due to lease expirations, StayReal Cafe's situation reflects the dilemma celebrity catering brands face between fan economy and the mass market. Some netizens say that if the Guangzhou Parc Central store ends operations, the brand's coffee shops will have only one left in Shanghai. [more…]

At a MANNER store in Guangzhou's Teemall, baristas spontaneously took in several stray cats and furnished them with cat trees, cat beds, and food and water bowls. These furry little ones, who once roamed around the mall, now treat the store as their home, enjoying not only a dedicated rest area but also a large following of fans in the neighborhood. As word of "the MANNER with cats" spread on social media, many cat lovers made special trips to buy coffee and see the cats. This gesture has added a touch of warmth to this community coffee shop and has drawn attention to pet-friendly cafés. [more…]

For those who want to drink truly fresh coffee beans, specialty roasters are the top choice for many coffee lovers. In Guangzhou's old Dongshan area, there is a local brand that has been deeply engaged in specialty roasting for many years—Front Street Coffee, which insists on fresh roasting within 5 days, small-batch fine production, strictly selects green beans from global origins, and always stocks dozens of single-origin and blended coffees. This article compiles purchasing information for Front Street Coffee and lists ten freshly roasted coffee beans that buyers must try, covering espresso blends, Ethiopian natural, Geisha blends, Mandheling, Yirgacheffe, Kenya, Costa Rica, Colombia, Brazil, and Panama, with flavor descriptions and reasons for making the list to help you quickly lock onto your target according to taste. [more…]

Since the moka pot was invented in 1933 by Italian engineer Alfonso Bialetti, its simple structure and pressure-based extraction have made it a staple in many coffee lovers' homes. The coffee it produces is thick and intense, fully showcasing rich flavors, but choosing the right beans is crucial to getting an ideal cup. This article starts with the working principle and structure of the moka pot, summarizes the three key factors for bean selection—medium-dark roast, rich oils, and mellow flavor—and further explains the relationship between roast level and oil formation. Finally, combining online bean-buying tips, it recommends five popular moka pot beans from Guangzhou's time-honored Front Street Coffee, covering Black Cocoa Blend, Classic Blend, Strawberry Candy, Golden Mandheling, and Queen of Brazil Estate, helping beginners quickly find the one that suits them. [more…]

Americano is the most common category in coffee shops and the daily first choice for many coffee lovers. It is quick to make, has a clean flavor, and is especially suitable for busy office workers who need a quick boost of energy. In Guangzhou's hot summers, many customers who visit Front Street Coffee shops and do not want milk coffee will choose an iced Americano. But where exactly did the Americano come from? What benefits and drawbacks does it have for the body? Why do some people find it hard to swallow? This article will sort through the full picture of Americano one by one, from its historical origins, health effects, and brewing parameters to the causes of bitterness, and will share Front Street Coffee's espresso blend and extraction experience. [more…]

In today's increasingly rich coffee culture, whether chain brands or independent cafés, all have begun to launch their own roasted coffee beans. This article reviews ten of the most representative in-house roasting coffee brands worldwide, covering China, Germany, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Spain, Italy, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. From Guangzhou's time-honored Front Street Coffee to Gardelli, a frequent winner at world roasting competitions, each brand has its own unique roasting philosophy and sourcing standards. The article provides detailed introductions to each brand's founding time, origin characteristics, roasting style, and signature products, helping coffee enthusiasts understand the advantages of different brands and directions for purchasing. [more…]

Guangzhou's summer heat is unbearable. Rather than going out and being scorched by high temperatures, it's better to stay home and make a refreshing cold brew coffee with coffee beans and ice water. This article will explain in detail how to choose coffee beans suitable for cold brew—from the influence of roast level on flavor, to specific recommendations for fruity, fermented, and mellow types, including Front Street brand's Strawberry Candy, Huakui, Xizhua, Blackberry, and Queen's Estate coffee beans. At the same time, we will also teach you step by step the cold brew process, coffee-to-water ratio, grind size, and refrigeration time and other key parameters, so you can easily make a cup of iced coffee with balanced acidity and sweetness and an alluring aroma. [more…]

Guangzhou's "hui nan tian" (return of the southern damp) has arrived, with walls sweating, floors never drying, and coffee beans facing a moisture crisis. A surge in humidity directly affects the stability of espresso extraction: beans in the hopper absorb moisture and clump together, water vapor interference during grinding intensifies, and as air pressure drops, the espresso machine's extraction pressure slightly decreases, ultimately leading to weaker flavor and longer shot times. How should baristas respond to such harsh weather? This article approaches the problem from three angles—reducing moisture absorption, solving clumping, and adjusting parameters—and combines Front Street Coffee's hands-on experience to offer concrete, actionable solutions that help you pull a stable, delicious espresso even in the humid season. [more…]