Plenty of salty cream cheese foam atop the coffee—Cheese Coffee is a Ho Chi Minh City-born café that grabbed attention with the unexpected combination of "cheese × coffee" right in its name. The saltiness and sweetness of the first sip, the bitterness mixing in at the end. An experiential drink whose face changes the more you drink draws young people of the social media generation.
| Genre | Coffee |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2016 (Ho Chi Minh City) |
| Origin | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam |
| Coverage area | Ho Chi Minh City |
| Number of locations | 10 stores |
| Signature menu | Salted cream cheese coffee is the standard specialty |
| Official site | https://cheesecoffee.net/ |
What Is Cheese Coffee | A New-Generation Café Showcasing Cheese Foam
The founding story
Cheese Coffee is an up-and-coming café chain born around 2018 in Ho Chi Minh City. Founder John Trung Nguyen says he hit on this concept during a year-long sabbatical. Built around cream cheese foam placed atop coffee and tea, it launched a unique style where saltiness, sweetness, and bitterness become one.
Another feature is a worldview inspired by European coffee shops, incorporating elements of art, architecture, and graphic design into the space. It digested the Taiwanese-born cheese tea trend in a Vietnamese way and captured the hearts of millennials all at once.
Why it resonates with young people
Cheese Coffee's appeal is, above all, offering a "flavor you've never had." The salty cheese foam atop deep-roast espresso layers sweet, salty, and bitter that change as you stir and drink. It's a cup hard to recreate at home, savored only at the store.
The design-forward stores and photogenic drinks pair perfectly with Instagram and TikTok. Many young people visit just to take photos, creating a virtuous cycle where social media reviews bring in new customers.
Cheese Coffee's signature menu and flavor
The menu stars coffee and tea topped with cheese foam, and also offers macchiato-style drinks using Arabica beans. Prices center in the few-hundred-yen range.
Salted Cream Caffè
The cup you could call Cheese Coffee's namesake. Atop deep-roast espresso sits plenty of salty cream cheese foam. At first the saltiness and richness stand out, and as you stir, it melds with the coffee's bitterness and the flavor changes—an experiential drink you can enjoy down to the last sip.
Cloud Caffè
A creamy coffee topped with fluffy cream like a cloud. A popular item on par with the salted cream cheese coffee, it suits those who like a mellow mouthfeel. It's also an easy entry cup for those new to cheese-foam drinks.
Other popular drinks
| Drink | Characteristics |
|---|---|
| Marble Caffè | The signature best-seller. Coffee and foam mix in a marble pattern |
| Arabica Hazelnut Macchiato | A toasty cup combining Arabica beans with the aroma of hazelnut |
| Cheese Matcha | A twist combining matcha with cheese foam. For when you want to choose something other than coffee |
| Various cheese teas | Tea-based, combining jasmine tea and the like with cheese foam |
Food and sweets
Beyond drinks, it offers its prized cheesecake, light meals, and fruit smoothies. The less-sweet cakes matched to the saltiness of cheese foam are a combination mindful of pairing with the drinks.
Cups that win over reviewers
We have rounded up the well-reviewed items that come up again and again in travel and food-site reviews (focusing on dishes praised across multiple reviews).
| Menu | Why reviewers rate it |
|---|---|
| Almond Coffee Macchiato (cà phê hạnh nhân macchiato) | A cup repeatedly cited as a best seller for the good balance of the cheese foam's richness and the almond aroma |
| Cheese Macchiato | Praised as a signature item layering a creamy cheese layer over the flavor of tea leaves |
| Marble Bạc Xỉu | Well-reviewed in several places as a popular standard Vietnamese-style milk coffee |
Cheese Coffee's store network and recommended ways to drop by
Scale and coverage area
ホーチミン発の新興チェーンだが、現在はハノイ・ダナンをはじめ中部・西部の地方都市にも展開エリアを広げ、30店舗以上を構えるまでに成長した。1区・3区・タオディエン地区など若者の集まるエリアを中心に、SNSでの話題化に伴って出店ペースを上げている。
Stores in tourist-oriented areas handle English too, easy to enter even for first-timers. Local youth and tourists mingle in pursuit of the talked-about cheese coffee.
Main cities where you can enjoy this store:Ho Chi Minh City. You can check each city's tourist information from its city page.
Cheese Coffee's interior atmosphere and how to spend time
Features of the interior and design
The basic interior is minimalist and stylish, built around white, gray, and wood grain. Each store varies its Art Deco-style decoration and theme, providing plenty of photo spots.
Some stores incorporate Japanese-style roofs and white hanging lanterns, and an exterior distinct from Vietnam's traditional long, narrow houses (tube houses) draws popularity among social media users.
Wi-Fi, power outlets, and how easy it is to linger
Many stores have Wi-Fi and power, used by young people for studying, meetings, and taking photos. If you want to work calmly, aiming for a weekday morning and avoiding weekend afternoons, which get crowded with the social media crowd, is good.
Cheese Coffee's price guide and payment
| Menu | Price guide |
|---|---|
| Salted cream cheese coffee | 65,000〜75,000ドン（約390〜455円） |
| Cheese Matcha | 60,000–70,000 dong (about 410–480 yen) |
| Coffee drinks | 45,000-65,000 VND (about 300-450 yen) |
As a trendy Vietnamese café it's a mid-range price. Considering its satisfaction as an experiential drink, it's within easy reach. Besides cash, some stores accept QR payment or card.
Prices can change by store and season. Check the latest at the counter or on the official menu.
Cheese Coffee's takeout and souvenirs
There's ingenuity in the logo design even on takeout cups, looking the part just by carrying one around. Bringing your own bottle sometimes gets you a drink discount. That said, since cheese coffee is hard to recreate at home, it's the kind of café where the in-store experience itself becomes the story you bring back.
Cheese Coffee's map, access, and ordering tips
Known as a café with photogenic interiors where Saigon's young people gather, it draws plenty of visits aimed at the interior design.
Vietnamese phrases for ordering
Here are the basic phrases that come in handy locally. Pointing works, but adding a word makes ordering smoother.
| Vietnamese | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Cho tôi một … | One [drink], please |
| nóng / đá | Hot / iced |
| ít đường | Less sweet |
| không đường | No sugar |
| ít đá | Less ice |
| mang đi | Takeout |
| ở đây | For here |
| tính tiền | The check, please |
You can check the latest menu, prices, hours, and store listOfficial sitehere.
Things to know before visiting Cheese Coffee
How to enjoy it smartly
Since the balance of saltiness and sweetness is distinctive, first-timers are best off sharing one cup with a friend to check the taste. If you like it, you'll want to order and compare the wide variety of cheese-foam drinks.
Starting with the best-selling Marble Caffè or the signature salted cream cheese coffee is the easiest way to grasp what makes Cheese Coffee distinctive.
Points to note
Since the signature drinks have distinctive saltiness and sweetness, tastes are divided. If you feel the sweetness or saltiness is too strong, it's good to ask about adjusting it when ordering.
Since cold drinks are central, choose to suit your condition and stomach. Popular stores get crowded on weekends, so a weekday or right after opening is the time to aim for if you want to relax.
📖 For Cheese Coffee's history, background, and how to enjoy it, see the reading column "Cheese Coffee in More Detail.”
🗺️ If you also want to compare it with other cafés,Vietnam's 30 Popular Cafés: A Thorough Comparison Guidelets you browse from a single list.
Frequently asked questions
- What is cheese coffee?
-
An original drink with salty cream cheese foam atop coffee. An experiential cup savored while stirring, where saltiness, sweetness, and bitterness become one.
- What is the signature menu item?
-
Salted Cream Caffè and the best-selling Marble Caffè. The creamy Cloud Caffè is also popular.
- Where are the outlets?
-
It operates mainly in Ho Chi Minh City, concentrated in areas where young people gather, like District 1 and the Thao Dien area.
- Does English get through?
-
Stores in tourist-oriented areas handle English. Studying the menu on social media before visiting makes ordering easier.
- Is there Wi-Fi and power?
-
It's available at many stores and usable for studying and meetings. Avoiding crowded weekend afternoons lets you spend time calmly.
