In the heart of the bustling capital of Hanoi, where every corner of the alley has been covered with a new coat of urbanization, there is a coffee shop located quietly on Chau Long Street - a small street in Hanoi's Old Quarter.
The special thing is not only the rich coffee flavor, but also the space in which it is present: an ancient house over 100 years old, with the original architecture from 1924.
Breathing the forest in the ancient house
To To Coffee Shop is located at 23 Chau Long, one of twenty houses designed by Mr. Hoi - one of the first people to plan this neighborhood in the early 20th century.
More than a century has passed, only house number 23 still retains the original design.
After a long period of abandonment since around 1990, this place was once covered by climbing plants, as if to hide both its past and ancient beauty.
By 2022, the research team of the UNESCO Hanoi Youth Creative Center (UN UNESCO YCC Hanoi) decided to restore this space through the project "Bringing forests to the city".
The goal of the project is to recreate a miniature ecosystem in the heart of the city - where trees that do not need human care can still survive, creating a true "breathing space" in the middle of a stuffy street.
It was on that inspiring foundation that To To coffee shop was born.
E De Coffee in the Heart of Hanoi
The soul of the restaurant is Y To To Kbruor, commonly known as To - a young man born in 2000 from Dak Lak.
To did not simply open a coffee shop, but turned it into a cultural space, a way to tell the story of the identity of E De.
The space of the restaurant is decorated with items imbued with the breath of the Central Highlands: from a basket, a gong, to a water bottle, traditional clothes - most of which are family souvenirs sent by To's grandmother from Dak Lak.
9.5% of the items in the restaurant are from the De people, except for the gong set given by a friend, he shared.
Not only stopping at form, coffee here is also a cultural story. All of them are Robusta coffee grown, roasted and ground by the E De people in Dak Lak - made by To's mother.
The special thing is the way of roasting coffee according to "versed knowledge", that is, the recipe has been passed down through many generations in the village, with a little Mysterious additions to enhance the characteristic aroma.
The rich, bitter and sour Robusta is the soul of Central Highlands coffee, To said.
An interesting highlight in the coffee experience at To To cafe is a coffee drinking philosophy called roots of the tree.
This is a custom of the people of E De: when making coffee for customers, they do not divide it into separate cups but drink a cup together, passing it by hand as a symbol of connection and sharing.
The skillful bowl of this custom is adapted to suit urban culture: coffee is contained in a pot - a characteristic of the M'Nong craft village - and poured into small cups to ensure hygiene while still maintaining the spirit of the original.
Thanks to that, drinkers can feel the uniqueness of the way of enjoying it and not lose the inherent comfort of a modern coffee shop.
Through To To cafe, I want to spread the culture of E De in a more positive and lively way, not limited to the image of being outdated or bored, To confided.
The restaurant's menu is not too diverse, but every drink is hand-processed and meticulously, from dishes such as black coffee. Milk coffee, silver luxury coffee... to egg coffee, camel coffee, cocoa coffee...
Reasonable price, ranging from 25,000 VND to 35,000 VND.
The early days and long-standing dreams
To To cafe officially opened on May 8, 2025. Although not located on a crowded street, the number of visitors in the early days was not much - an average of less than 20 people per day - but that did not discourage To.
Many diners, including foreigners, have come to To To cafe to enjoy the highland culture, while sharing their feelings about the restaurant through the pen-based sources.
For To, sharing culture, building a coffee-loving community and preserving a new green space are the biggest goals.
The restaurant is still in the process of completion. In addition to some repaired parts such as doors and tiled roofs, the overall ancient French architecture inside the house is still intact - from the flower brick floor to the wooden beam system and high ceilings.
To is also working with "Ga Trong Village" - a creative youth organization in the cultural industry - to continue developing the shop as a space connecting the community, art and heritage.
Among the most modern coffee shops in Hanoi, To To cafe chose another path - quiet but full of courage. It is not only a place to drink a cup of coffee with the rich flavor of the mountains and forests, but also a place to listen, feel and connect with a little-known culture, in the middle of a century-old house that still retains the mach of time.
Perhaps, sometimes the most special thing comes from the oldest things - like the way the young man from E De and To To cafe are telling their story.
