Tamp Temper Taichung Coffee

Review

Tamp Temper Taichung Coffee is a tiny house-roasting coffee bar at 286 Minquan Road in Taichung's West District, near the Qinmei greenway and Shenji New Village. An overseas travel site listed it among Taiwan's 25 best cafés, some coverage calls it one of Asia's top 50 coffee shops, and it is credited with starting Taichung's trend for drinking specialty coffee standing up; a second branch has opened near the science museum.

The owner, known as Xiao Qiao, buys green beans in bulk and selects and roasts them himself to keep costs down, believing coffee should be for everyone, so prices are friendly: single-origin americanos and lattes run about NT$80 to NT$90, a matcha latte about NT$100, a geisha coffee NT$120 and a Yirgacheffe sparkling coffee about NT$100. Bags on the wall run from light to dark roast, you pick your beans, and staff happily recommend. One blogger found a medium roast smooth with a lingering finish and an iced latte that resists dilution; the matcha latte is rich and pleasantly bitter.

Most reviews call specialty coffee for around NT$100 a great deal, and the industrial décor with leather seats and vintage chandeliers chosen by the owner adds character. On the other hand, some online posts questioned the bean quality, though the blogger who tried it found no problem; the space is also tiny, which feels cramped if you want to linger.

Seating is minimal, so it is not for long chats or laptop work, and most people take away. It opens around 9 a.m. on weekdays and closes in the late afternoon, keeps shorter Saturday hours and closes on Sundays; sources give closing times of 17:30 or 18:00, so check first.

Best for a specialty coffee at about NT$100 grabbed on the go. First-timers can ask staff to recommend a medium roast for an iced latte, or try the geisha or the Yirgacheffe sparkling coffee for something new.