If you’ve been to Japan, you may have spotted their small specialty cafés tucked in hipster neighborhoods and corner streets. This one in Rizal Village, Makati, will give you that Osaka-like minimalist coffee shop vibe.
I first learned about Kohi Mkt from my fellow writers at Spot.ph, who featured the coffee shop in 2021. According to Spot, owners Bryan Co and Rayan Moussa put up Kohi Mkt in May 2021 as an homage to coffee and Japanese food.
In December I found Kohi Mkt’s unassuming location along Antipolo Street, a mostly residential area where you wouldn’t think you’d find a minimalist but artsy coffee shop, now a favorite stop of bikers and food delivery services.
When I arrived, I saw duo Co and Moussa serving coffee through the wooden window. There are two wooden tables out front, where you’ll be tempted to Instagram everything to your heart’s content, such as the wall of stickers, a shrine of kawaii items, and the sticker-bombed wooden barrier.
Small caveat: Kohi is located on a street where lots of public vehicles drive by, some a little noisier than the others, so you may not exactly get the peaceful coffee break you were hoping for
While you’ll find the usual coffee picks, the star of the menu is the Kori Kohi, frozen coffee cubes made of coffee and sugar syrup. If you’ve lived in Manila long enough, you’ll know that this was first popularized by designer coffee chain UCC, but it’s good to have another option of Kori Kohi away from the busy malls.
If you’re hungry, ask for the breakfast pocket sandwich or the hottu doggu, which, simply put, is a Japanese sausage sandwich. Co owns the pop-up sausage stand, Hottu Doggu.
Whether you’re dining al fresco (What level of lockdown are we in this time, Manila?) or you’re booking through a food delivery app, Kohi Mkt is one of the small Filipino businesses that popped up during the pandemic and deserve your support.
See you there, or as they say in Japan, mata ne!
Kohi Mkt is located at 1147 Antipolo St. Rizal Village, Makati, Philippines