Melaka Old Town offers many eating places, guest houses, shops and places of interest for travellers to the historical city of Malacca. There is no lack of cafes too. The old town has numerous cafes for taking breaks from sightseeing, have coffee or tea with meals and to escape the hot and humid weather. Exploring rustic cafes is one of the must-dos when in the old town.
We cafe-hopped in Melaka Old Town on several visits to the town and discovered many cafes with rustic, homely and artful ambience. It may not be easy to experience the rustic vibes of these old town cafes in modern cities.
1. The Coffee JAR (呷珈琲)
The Coffee JAR is a little cafe located just few steps from Jonker Street. The cosy cafe with retro settings has a homely vibe. Oldies are played from a cassette player with cassette tapes that are still in working conditions. The Coffee JAR coffee beans are roasted in a coffee roasting machine next to the doorway.
Apart from coffees with self-roasted beans, they serve other beverages and special drinks with desserts. One of their special drinks is an alcoholic coffee using whiskey and espresso — a must-try for adventurous coffee drinkers.
2. The Stolen Cup
The Stolen Cup is located along Jonker Street, a convenient place to rest your legs and have some beverages. The interior of this little cafe is nicely decorated with painted wooden planks, retro posters, vintage clocks, etc, giving it a rustic look and feel. The friendly staff make great coffees with toasted and croissants as one of their signatures. Their barista's specialty is the gula Melaka coffee, where palm sugar (gula Melaka, a local product) is added to cappuccino to give it some additional flavour.
3. Alley No. 5
The rustic cafe, used to be Alley No. 5, in an old shop along Lorong Jambatan and tucked away from the bustling Jonker Walk. The interior is decorated with exhibits from the old days. The cafe and its surrounding is wonderfully nostalgic, like having coffee in a village town in the 60s.
Alley No. 5 had moved out of the old shop and the cafe is now called Notrili Kedai Kopi.
Alley No. 5's latest location is along the same lane, a stone's throw from its old location. Its coffee, affogato and signature lemon cheesecake are still great things to go for.
4. Mods Cafe
Located along Jalan Tokong, near to Cheng Hoon Teng Temple, is Mods Cafe which serves great coffees and cakes. At the entrance of Mods Cafe, a message on the glass door says "Serious Coffee Drinker Only". Well, don't just turn away. Even if you know nuts about coffee, you can still enjoy a cup of coffee. Inside the cafe, a retro Volkswagen is the centre of attraction which also functions as a bar counter. Go with a slice of the homemade cheesecake, or other cakes, while sipping a cup of coffee. Their have hand-brew coffee too.
5. Ola Lavanderia Cafe
Ola Lavanderia Cafe looks just like a cafe externally but it is a dormitory too. The cafe is a great place for budget lodgings and coffee. Ola Lavanderia Cafe serves great coffee and their white Melaka cheesecake is also a hot favourite. The Melaka-style cheesecake is served in a cup and definitely a must-try. Unlike strong and cheesy cheesecakes that are too cloying to finish after few mouths, Ola Lavanderia's cheesecake is light and goes well with coffee.
6. Limau Limau Cafe (狸猫咖啡馆)
Limau Limau Cafe is located along a narrow road off Jonker Walk towards Masjid Kampung Kling Mosque. The cafe's walls are decorated with photos in all makes of photo frames and big and small mirrors. The cafe seems small at first glance, but there are more tables available on the second floor and outside the cafe.
Limau Limau Cafe is another great place to go for meals and coffee. They have quite a list of sandwiches, salads, Italian cuisines and desserts, especially banana pancakes, and a lot more options. Apart from coffee, there are fruity milkshakes and other beverages too.
Wonder what "limau-limau" means? It is rather interesting, almost teasing. In Malay, limau means lime, which is why some Malaysian websites interpreted them as "lime lime cafe". When we learned that the Chinese name of the cafe is "狸猫咖啡馆", we realised that li-mau sounds similar to "狸猫", meaning "civet cat", in hanyu pinyin, so the cafe is named based on pronunciation rather than translation.
Facebook Address: 9, Jalan Hang Lekiu, Malacca Opening Hours: 10am to 5pm | Daily
7. Backlane Coffee
Backlane Coffee can be easily missed as it is hidden behind a toy collectibles store almost towards the rear of Jonker Walk. The cafe uses toy soldiers and pots of plant as simple decors, giving the feel of having coffee in a small garden guarded by little soldiers. Comfy sofas and spacious environment allow customers to chill out from the scorching sun. Besides coffee, they also serve western-style food, such as pizza, desserts and cakes.
Address: 129 Jalan Hang Jebat, Malacca
Opening Hours: 11am to 6pm | Closed on Wednesday
8. The Daily Fix Cafe
The Daily Fix Cafe is located along Jonker Walk and housed in a shop that has retained its old-day look. The cafe uses vintage decor to preserve and maintain a rustic ambience. There are great selection of food and variety of beverages. Their signature pancakes and brownies are popular choices among customers. Western dished such as burgers, fish and chips, duck breasts, etc, are available too. The cafe is usually packed during meal times.
9. Calanthe Art Cafe
Calanthe Art Cafe's specialties are local coffees from all 13 states of Malaysia on top of other beverages. Iced and creamy drinks options, such as milkshakes and smoothies, teas and soda are also available. The cafe also serves local food. Their signature dishes are the Calanthe laksa and claypot laksa among others. Nasi lemak and roti canai are also served as breakfast set.
10. Forever Cafe
Perhaps, the most rustic cafe in Melaka Old Town is Forever Cafe, located along Jonker Walk. The little cafe sells only bottle mineral water instead of coffee and light bites. But it is still a cafe and seats (on a long bench) are available inside or outside the shop depending on the position of the sun. Many people may have walked past the old shop, bought a bottle of water or even taken a photo with the shop but few will remember it.
Locations:
Join us in cafe-hopping around Malacca too.
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