The cat is out of the bag

"The cat is out of the bag"

Sun.Star Davao, May 30, 2009

After almost a year of planning, the cat is finally out of the bag. Davao City welcomes the latest addition for its caffeine-loving citizens—Coffee Cat!

“Coffee Cat is simply a coined term for people who love coffee. It is an intriguing play of words that many people find appealing”, explains Eugene Tan, one of the owners of Coffee Cat.

“Our family loves food. We spend our quality time by dining out and bonding over a cup of coffee. Through Coffee Cat, we want to share that experience to everyone”, the 28-year old entrepreneur discloses.

The corporation which owns Coffee Cat is composed of Eugene and his family together with brother-in-law Jason Lao, the general manager of 8telcom Inc. Together, they represent a highly-experienced management team with backgrounds in business management, culinary arts, food retail, and marketing.

Through close collaboration with Architect Patrick Tan, the coffee shop’s impressive interior design was inspired by “modern minimalist architecture with certain elements grounded on Filipino sensibilities”.

The bright lights, hip white and black chairs, stainless steel countertops and cream-colored brick and wooden walls exude a contemporary yet cozy feel to the 120-square meter lifestyle coffee destination which can comfortably accommodate 60 persons at any given time.

“Coffee Cat is proud to offer Illy, a well-known Italian coffee brand which is served in 140 countries in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and South America. Illy is a unique blend of high quality coffee made from 100 percent Arabica beans”, shares Eugene.

The De La Salle University business management graduate relates that friends only found out that they were opening a coffee shop during the final stages of construction. “Many were excited to try out the food and drinks our coffee shop had to offer”, says Eugene.

Aside from Illy coffee, Coffee Cat boasts of its Avalanche Ice Blends which has a variety of flavors like Double Chocolate, Strawberry Creme and Vanilla that kids and families can surely enjoy.

“Our Yogo (yogurt smoothies) is also a must-try. Made from 98% fat-free yogurt, it is a guiltless treat for those diet-conscious individuals”, suggests the young entrepreneur.

Other refreshing drinks include wide selections of hot and iced tea drinks and Cremosa Sodas in strawberry, lime and apple flavors.

Among Coffee Cat’s delightful desserts are the Mango Crème Cake, Coffee Sansrival, Crème Brulee Cake, Oreo Cake, Concorde Cake, Cinnamon Roll and Choco Pinipig. The Green Tea Cheesecake and Sachertorte Cake are not only sinfully delicious but visually appealing as well with three-dimensional white chocolate cat designs incorporated on top.

Food items range from P18 to P95 while drinks start from P75 to P145.

“A lot of people have been quite receptive to the Coffee Cat concept. And to satisfy our customers, we can customize our drinks according to their taste. All they need is to ask and we will be happy to do it for them”, Eugene smiles.

With this innovative kind of service, Coffee Cat proves that it is first rate and is definitely no copy cat when it comes to perking up Davao’s discriminating coffee-sipping clientele.

Coffee Cat is located at F. Torres Street, Davao City. Website: www.yourcoffeecat.com. E-mail address: info@yourcoffeecat.com. Opening hours: 9:00am-12mn (Mon-Thurs), 9:00am-2:00am (Fri-Sat), and 8:00am-11:00pm (Sun).

Special thanks to Jasper Huang for the photos you see in this page.

E-mail the author at mom.about.town.dvo@gmail.com. Visit http://www.momabouttowndavao.blogspot.com/.