The Philadelphia Inquirer has recommended CàPhê Roasters as one of the best cafes and the only Vietnamese coffee shop in Philadelphia.

Tonic Espresso. Photo: Monica Herndon

Philadelphia's Càphê Roasters is a modest wholesale roaster founded last year in Kensington's Harrowgate neighborhood by Thu Pham, who honors her family's Vietnamese heritage by sourcing her beans directly from Asia.

Without the use of chicory, she has created a three-step roasting procedure for her Vietnamese espresso mix that blends various shades of Vietnamese robusta and Thai arabica beans to evoke the same smokey, spicy, nutty, bittersweet, and chocolate overtones.

Simple choices like hot or iced fresh-roasted coffee and lattes are available, as well as a variety of uncommon delicacies like yujacha (Korean citrus tea) and oksusu cha (tea made from corn silk).

The crew is committed to providing top-notch services, but they also enjoy themselves. The soft-serve machine serves as ample evidence.

Vietnamese coffee, as prepared here by Kensington's Càphê Roasters, is sweetened with condensed milk and served over ice. Photo: Craig LaBan

Lattes and flavored tea floats can always be topped with condensed milk in a variety of flavors, but keep a look out for novel combinations like pandan-coconut, avocado, mocha, or honey butter. Pham suggests drizzling soft serve over the cafe's french fries, similar to Wendy's Frosty-and-fries combo.

The extensive menu that executive chef Jacob Trinh has created features everything from breakfast sandwiches and bánh mì to elaborate entrées and desserts. The café might feel like a catalog due to the industrial vistas outside and the mid-century contemporary decor within, yet framed family photographs and houseplants convey a different message: sit down, stay a while, and make yourself at home.

A review of Càphê Roaster on Yelp - "ample seating, the aesthetics are everything." Photo: Sherry T.

“We found a way to roast, without adding anything artificial, that brings out the smokiness that chicory adds to the Café Du Monde profile,” said Pham to the Wall Street Journal. A harmonious brew that is at once silky, flowery, and somewhat chocolatey is created by the beans. It's a wonderful cup of coffee that is definitely Vietnamese, condensed milk or not.

This is the result of owner Thu Pham's years-long mission to introduce freshly roasted Vietnamese coffee to Philadelphia turning Càphê Roasters into a popular cafe in Kensington's Harrowgate neighborhood.

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