One of the first and only sentences I mastered in three years of (not) learning German was ¡±Wo ist der Bahnhof?¡± (¡°Where is the station?¡°) I never thought I¡¯d have a chance to put this into practice in Japan, but my hopes were raised when I heard about Bahnhof, a specialty coffee shop. Sadly, as it turned out, finding Bahnhof was easy. Unsurprisingly, it is located near Noda train station.
They take coffee pretty seriously at this small cafe; several of the staff are even certified ¡°Coffee Meisters.¡± On a recent visit, one staff member was hunched over next to the in-house roaster, sifting through a tray of green coffee beans looking for anything improper prior to roasting. This process is repeated again after roasting. It¡¯s painstaking but purposeful work.
The food menu is based around cakes and sweets ¡ª roll cake, chiffon cake, cheese cake and madeleines ¡ª but we opted for French toast.
Bahnhof¡¯s version is small without any of the usual over-the-top sweetness that is often the norm in Japan. As for the coffee, Bahnhof has gathered beans from nations all across the world, so it¡¯s worth asking the friendly staff for recommendations or perusing the menu before deciding. We went with two specialty blends: one from Costa Rica (deep roasted) and the other from Sumatra (a medium-deep roast). Common to both was a smooth, rich flavor. For any budding ¡°meisters¡± Bahnhof also runs coffee brewing classes.
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