Business Idea: Cozy Cafe

In 1999, there was this movie called ‘Simply Irresistible’ which starred Sarah Michelle Gellar and Sean Patrick Flanery.  In that movie, Sarah inherited their family restaurant business. The restaurant was in the ground floor of the building while she lived in the second floor. Back then, I thought it was nice to have that kind of business- a restaurant with a cozy atmosphere with regular patrons who feel like family.

When we went a trip to Cagayan de Oro last May, my cousin introduced us to a small cafe called Chingkeetea. It is a Taiwanese milk tea place. What caught our fancy is the decor. The cafe is so pretty.

This is the entrance.

This is where you order the tea. Nice idea: Instead of letting your collection of knickknacks gather dust in the cupboard, why not create a statement wall and arrange them accordingly?

Do you have those fake plastic flowers in your home? I admit I do. Why not arrange them into a ball and hang it like this.

They also have a nice space where you can arrange for a small get-together with friends. The place is an ideal venue for baby shower or a tween’s birthday. You can actually replicate this at home. If you have those patio chairs and crocheted doilies, you can arrange them like this.

This is their milk tea. I love the wintermelon flavor.

People who visited their place left notes and they are displayed under the glass tops of the tables. Sweet.

Another place we visited in Cagayan de Oro is Missy Bon Bon. They sell baked goodies and gelato. This cafe is full so I was not able to take a lot of photos. I love the walls and the light fixtures.

This is what we ordered. I love the typography in their packaging.  The gelato we ordered cost Php90 each. I told my aunt about the price after she took a few spoonfuls. I thought she would gasp at the amount because she does not normally spend this much on a dessert this small. Surprisingly, she  said it was worth the price.  The gelato is aunt-approved! Look at our spoons! There were five of us sharing this order.

In Butuan City, we have a similar food place with cozy atmosphere. This is Margie’s.

Margie’s started as a home business where Butuanons order specialty cakes to go. Now, they have this cozy cafe in Butuan and several branches in Davao. They now have meals. In fact, I did not order cake when I took these photos. I ordered this. Yummy! I am sorry I forgot what this is called.

The wall in the cafe is filled with vandalisms names of those who visited the cafe. The walls also adorned old photos of the family and other memorabilia.

I love this little nook. It must be nice to read here while sipping coffee and eating cake. The ripped upholstery distressed chair adds charm. However, there is teeny-tiny part of me who wants to washi it. Ha!

How about you? What business idea caught your attention recently?