As the number of cafes increased, so did the desire for experimentation.
Coffee consumers in this tea-drinking giant want to try new flavors and new brewing methods.
Yuan Jingfeng, who runs the R1070 cafe, says he imports all of his coffee beans from Japan.
“My costs are very, very high. The beans I import are both American and Italian, and they are all imported from Japan in their original packaging,” he says.
“Wholesale prices have gone up dramatically in the last few years. The wars in Yemen and Ethiopia have both had an impact. There are fewer and fewer good beans available, and fewer and fewer coffee drinkers.”
But so far, he said, he has refused to pass on the increased costs to the growing number of coffee drinkers.
AC Cafe is run by deaf people and employs deaf baristas.
Yang Yanfang, who interprets in AC for people who can’t speak with their hands, says that since the pandemic, “friends really like to meet up for coffee or drinks, and Shanghai has become a city with a really strong coffee culture.”
“You can skip meals, but you can’t skip coffee,” she added.
