Double Double

Like other neighbourhoods, new businesses also pop up in Chinatown. They still tend to be Chinese restaurants, even if nowadays they come from other regions instead of just Hong-Kong. But a small Malaysian coffee shop recently opened at Dundas and Spadina. Early Saturday morning, I decided to check out Papparoti.

Being a non-coffee drinker, I skipped their drinks menu. But they certainly have the usual varieties including espresso. Their selection of pastry treats are not normally found in other café, even the hipper non-chain ones. I settled on a Malaysian coffee bun with some labneh and jam ($8). It had a fragrant flavour with a slight hint of coffee. As such, it paired better with the creamy labneh; the sweet jam overpowered that delicacy. It was an interesting baked good, but overall it was a bit pricey for a couple of bites.

Update: It seems that this location has closed. There is still one in the GTA at Square One. I'm not surprised because people still come to Chinatown mostly for cheap eats and not for a trendy (and pricier) café experience. Call it the curse of the ethnic food ghetto. They should have opened just 2 blocks over in Kensington Market.