COFFEE SHOPS, CAFÉS AND “ANTI-CAFÉS” …?

You wake up in Ulaanbaatar City. It is 07:00 AM. I’m sure you’re craving coffee (I know how it feels, don’t worry) and a delicious breakfast. Come along.

Throughout the past decade Ulaanbaatar streets have filled up with so many modern coffee shops and cafés that one cannot even pinpoint which ones are the most popular. But giving the best attempt, the list would be: Tom N Toms (07:00-23:00), Caffe Bene (08:00-23:00), Café Camino, Caffe Ti-Amo, Station Café & Lounge, Nayra Café, The Greenzone, Turning Point Café, Café Austria, Ziferblat and Code. Official branches of the best coffee shops from various countries, some examples being Korea, Austria, Italy, are here and never run short of coffee lovers! Some serve even more than just coffees: breakfast and bakery obviously, and legions of different types of creative drinks with whipped cream, caramel, cinnamon, chocolate, coconut milk, and so forth. You get the picture. An ideal way to start a day!

This French café/restaurant is not only a great place to grab drinks (coffee & tea), but also it is well-known for its amazing quality fresh European food, incredibly relaxing atmosphere, it offers books for the customers to read during their stay, and the crucial part of the interior design – plants hanging from the walls, staying true to their name. Among some visitors The Greenzone is also known as the perfect hide-away in Ulaanbaatar. It indeed is not at all a common place one can find in UB!

What is an “anti-café”? This type of business initially became popular in Russia and some CIS countries for its unique rule where customers only pay for the time they spend at the anti-café and in return have free access to unlimited amount of coffee, tea, biscuits, snacks, board games, events and activities. Ziferblat Ulaanbaatar, where mostly the youth of UB gather and create a warm community, is the only anti-café in this city so far. Live music gigs, lectures about artists, academics, businessmen, art clubs, barista, piano, guitar courses, movie nights, and many more events are unceasingly held at Ziferblat UB. Worth a visit, perhaps even more than one!

“Jur Ur Bakery” is an original Mongolian bakery, established in 1998 and remains one of the big fish in the industry. It serves tens and hundreds of types of high-quality cakes, biscuits, pastries and, of course, coffee. The thought of JUR UR alone certainly makes any Mongolian crave their menu! One merely must have a taste of the renowned JUR UR!

Now, who wouldn’t want to go grab a cup of coffee with a tiramisu cake after this article?