The two most beautiful words every Houstonian wants to hear this time of year?
“Cold front.”
Sadly, in our case, a cold front usually means it’s 85 degrees instead of 95.
Of course, that’s 85 degrees Fahrenheit, but did you know 85 degrees Celsius is the perfect brewing temperature for espresso coffee?
It’s where the name of one of the Spring Branch District’s most popular coffee shops comes from.
At 85°C Bakery Cafe, 1027 Blalock Rd., premium coffee is always on the menu, no matter what the temperature is outside, but a warm cup of Sea Salt Coffee or a Jasmine Green Tea or Pumpkin Spice Latte just sounds better on a cooler day.
Founder Cheng-Hsueh Wu opened the first 85°C Bakery Cafe in Taipei County in 2004, with the first overseas store opening in Australia. In 2017, the company — dubbed the “Starbucks of Taiwan” — opened its 1,000th store right here in Houston in Asiatown.
Houston’s second store — the one in the Spring Branch District — opened in 2017.
Featured in TIME and on CNN, NPR and the Travel Channel, 85°C Bakery Cafe has become a culinary phenomenon. And it’s not just because of the coffee.
With a team of master chefs from luxury hotels in Taiwan, 85°C Bakery Cafe offers an extensive menu of savory and sweet baked goods.
Houston Press ranked 85°C Bakery’s pastries back in 2017 and said; “Tarts and fruit-centric breads are done really well here. … 85°C definitely has a variety of yeast breads on lock.”
The Houston Press also sampled the coffee and said the bakery’s signature coffee — 85°C Coffee — is “highly enjoyable” and balances out the sweet pastries.
The Sea Salt Caramel coffee is “straight-up delicious,” the paper said, and we couldn’t agree more.
Sweet and salty with bitter coffee undertones, it’s the perfect treat on a Houston fall day. And, if the temp is 85°F while you’re enjoying your 85°C, you can always get it on ice.
Check out 85°C Bakery Cafe and these other coffee shops in the Spring Branch District this fall:
Buzz & Bites
1444 Blalock Rd.
buzznbites.com
Cambrian Coffee
9461 Hammerly Blvd.
cambriancoffeehtx.com
Common Bond On-The-Go at the MarqE
7680 Katy Fwy.
commonbondcafe.com
Magnol
1500 N Post Oak Rd.
magnolfrenchbaking.square.site
NoPo Cafe, Market & Bar
1244 N Post Oak Rd.
nopocafe.com
Paris Baguette
1304 Blalock Rd.
parisbaguette.com
PJ’s Coffee
9221 Long Point Rd.
order.pjscoffee.com
Slowpokes
8147B Long Point Rd.
imaslowpoke.com
— Dorothy Puch Lillig
