UNIQLO Coffee: The Japanese Retail Giant Opens Its First Cafe in Its UNIQLO Manila Global Flagship Store (I Tried Every Item in the Menu!)

Last weekend, UNIQLO Manila, the Japanese brand’s Global Flagship Store in the Philippines located in Glorietta 5, celebrated its fifth anniversary. As expected, they offered good discounts and giveaways.

But aside from these usual promos, they celebrated their anniversary by opening a cafe inside its massive, two-story store. Luckily, I work in the same building so I got to visit it right away. And because I was so near, I decided to try an item or two a day until I get to try them all!

But before I talk about the food, let me share my I experienced first. As expected, it has a minimalistic interior like the entire store.

And it has a colorful mural on one of its sides:

There’s also an al fresco area. Even though there’s a ceiling fan there, it can still be warm.

I like that they have sockets. So you can plug your laptops and work, or simply charge your mobile devices.

Let’s now talk about their food. They have a simple menu, consisting of only eight items. Well, it’s nine because they have two kinds of cookies. But wait, it’s twelve if we consider the hot and iced drinks. But who’s counting? LOL.

UNIQLO Coffee Menu (as of this time of writing)

Here’s what I think of their drinks and pastries:

Drinks

Americano (Hot/Cold): I like that it’s not acidic like others.

Cafe Latte (Hot/Cold): It’s rightly strong and milky.

Chocolate (Hot): It’s foamy and has a fruity note.

Spanish Latte (Hot/Cold): At first, I thought I got the wrong order because it isn’t sweet. But I stirred it and voila, it became sweet. I hope they stir their Spanish Latte by default.

Pastries

An Pan (Bread with Red Bean): The bread is soft and the red bean paste is sweet and earthy.

Cookies (Chocolate Chip and Triple Chocolate Chip): The Chocolate Chip is soft, buttery, and gooey. The Triple Chocolate Chip is also soft and has a nice chocolate taste.

Left to Right: Chocolate Chip Cookie (PHP90) and Triple Chocolate Chip Cookie (PHP90)

Pan De Sal: To the uninitiated, this is a popular Filipino breakfast bread. UNIQLO Coffee’s version is soft and fluffy. But I wished it’s a tad sweeter. A jam or any sweet spread can fix this. But I’m not sure if it’s available by request.

Pan De Sal (PHP30). Can you still read the “UNIQLO Coffee”? LOL.

Smoked Salmon Panini: This pressed sandwich has two kinds of cheese—cream cheese and, if I’m not mistaken, mozzarella. The bread is soft and nicely chewy, and there are capers in it, which gives the sandwich a hint of spice. The only downside is the salmon, which is borderline fishy.

I appreciate that all their pastries are served warm. However, it can be too warm that I can barely touch it! LOL.

So what do I think of UNIQLO Coffee? It has certainly went beyond my expectations. I thought it would be mediocre, as with most cafes opened by a retail brand. But I’m pleased that it isn’t the case. Their drinks and food are definitely not the best, but it’s better than most cafe chains.

I hope they will still improve (they’re just more than a week old as of this time of writing) and they will add more items. I also hope that they will add unique drinks to their menu and not just settle for generic ones. After all, it’s what their brandname suggests.

Anyway, I recommend you give UNIQLO Coffee a try.

Address: UNIQLO Manila Global Flagship Store, 2/F Glorietta 5, Ayala Ave., San Lorenzo, Makati City, Philippines | Operating Hours: Monday-Thursday, 10AM-9PM | Friday-Sunday, 10AM-10PM | Facebook | Instagram