Café Zarah
42 Gulou Dongdajie,
Gulou
near Jiaodaokou
鼓楼东大街42号
8403-9807
Open 10am-12am, closed Tuesdays
- City Weekend
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Decorated with modern furniture and changing art and photographic exhibits, this little cafe serves up good coffees, the city's best ice-cream (supplied by Gustomenta) and a small selection of cocktails. You'll also find more substantial food offerings, with some very decent sandwiches. A perfect spot to wi-fi away an afternoon.
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cityweekend
Most Recent Reviews
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The best part was the coffee and the place is on the street so one can feel the old beijing culture to see and experience. WIFI worked well here.
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Have only been here for afternoon tea so can't rate the food - but would still be happy to say this is a neat little cafe. Simple yet comfortable and relaxing for a quiet break away from the busy streets, we enjoyed a delicious ice mocca, pretzel, and yummy ice cream. Service was relatively quick, and the place has a nice clean bathroom (always a plus, but particularly in this area!). The food menu looked great and extensive for such a small outfit, and would definitely like to go back to try!
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Was quite disappointed ! Quite poor decoration, chair not comfortable and service really poor. Plenty of much better coffee place around.
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Heard a lot of this place so we visited.The place is too small. Hardly 8 tables.We were 8 of us and could not be accomodated. There were few others who after finishing their drink or coffee were hanging around for quite some time. The manager didnt bother to accomodate us. While the ones who didnt get the place walked out .We enjoyed the coffee .It was good. May be they could increase their shop size!
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Why do I love tis cafe?
1) Pet friendly - at least they have been really sweet to Gussy boy :)
2) FRESH, HOMEMADE PESTO!!!! Perfectly balanced with cherry tomatoes, bottomless parmesan and for meatitarians - feel free to ask for additional topping of ham!
Lovely, simple and lil' place to laze & catch up on reading, tho I would agree we expected more outdoor seats during summer.
Service is very warm & friendly - can be overchallenged sometimes, but hey, I think they only operate with 2 or 3 staff.
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I don't really like the suburban chic vibe of Cafe Zarah, but to each their own. However, they do have good coffee and sweets to go along with it.
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No outdoor seating this season - they were quite rude about turning us and our dog away. Had to take out our coffee and it was too insipid for us to want to come back for more. Next.
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Had lunch here today. The food and coffee was very nice and the price very reasonable. Good menu - something for everyone. I recommend it.
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It's funny I'm normally too lazy to review but I like reading them. This time I need to have my say. This little place is my absolute favourite and I have been there numerous times, breakfast and for dinner.
They blow me away every time because these guys always give 100%, high energy, friendly service, a completely new and yummy dinner menu every 2 nights (I think), hospitality isn't easy yet me and my friends always leave this place filled and on a high.
My friends and I go there for the staff cause they are fun and they don't take themselves to seriously but they really do care, it's definitely worth trying! And the food is yum, save room for dessert.
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nice cozy place. Food was ok, but i think price a little bit expensive for a coffee shop.
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Woo, it looks like expensive place in Beijing...! So many people still working hard like a dog and 10 to 12 hour per day just for $15RMB per day... You guys all lucky and I suggesting you should save the money of a cup coffee to donate for the CHARITY. It's good for people to do the good things and please don't get mad with me to say that, ha...!
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REALLY wanted to hold a brunch party here but the girl didn't even want to take my reservation for a party of 20 women...What a pity!
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A fabulous quaint cafe that knows their stuff. I was there for a Sunday (lazy) simple breakfast. They serve GOOD coffee and fresh breads! Just the right amount to allow you to continue your cycling adventure around Gulou.
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Seriously, this is THE Café in town. I have never had such a wonderful experience in Beijing Café. What makes it so special is the interior design. The wooden decorations and the color of the floor matches perfectly with the white wall and all the furniture. The pictures hanging on the wall gives you a other-worldy feeling. The soft, yellow light gives you a profound sense of comfort. And, of course, the coffee is nice, at least better than Starbucks. I was sitting near the window, and it is just pure pleasure watching the world moving outside while enjoying their wonderful Cappuccino. Service is nice, the waitress is attentive, there is nothing else to ask for.
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Yesterday, I had one of the most enjoyable afternoons in Beijing yet! A couple of friends joined me at Cafe Zarahs for an early evening snack and lots of drinks. We ordered a couple of bottles of Proseco (138RMB each!), two breakfast cheese plates (@40 RMB) which came with two rolls, provolone, camembert and sliced cukes and tomatoes. We also ordered a couple of pretzels (12 RMB each), which were great (for Beijing). We took the row of outdoor seats overlooking GuLouDong DaJie and had a grand ole time people-watching. The service at Cafe Zarah is very good and they don't allow people to smoke inside--which unfortunately made them come outside and smoke next to us, but no biggie. Oops, almost forgot, they also have italian ice cream--we ordered a scope of the pistachio, hazelnut and coconut (the coconut rocked!). Although breakfast is their thing, I would recommend returning anytime.
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i like to have breakfast here.which one of good german food in beijing...looking forward to go there this week...=)
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Café Zarah’s bread selection and details such as capscium peppers on hot salami sandwiches (34 RMB) give the food an unmistakable western culinary authenticity for a great price! The simple but welcoming décor attracts both Chinese and expat metro professionals and during the day, the café is a frequent destination for foreign news correspondents, writers and entrepreneurs. Evenings are a nice, quiet place to have a drink or a coffee while in the Houhai/Nanluoguxiang area.
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Even in Beijing, with its numerous Western-style cafes, Zarah is unique. The bright white and red space is good for getting work done or chatting with a friend, but the real feature is the food. Zarah's breakfasts come with a delicious selection of breads and a croissant, and also feature jam, nutella, and cheese- all the perfect antidote for Westerners craving a taste of home (or even better than home). The coffee is solid, and the art exhibits on the walls are a nice touch.
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Good place for a coffee. Really relaxed.
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I love this cafe...although it is a bit pricey for what you get, the fitout is great and I love coming back to it time and time again. I live quite far away but thought it was worth the effort to get to this little one out in Gulou. So I went over with 2 friends in tow, proud to introduce them to Zarah's on Monday morning for breakfast. We were bitterly dissappointed. We ordered the cheese one and were served it pretty quickly. Without the egg and without explanation. Half way through our meal I asked the staff where our eggs were and they said it would be 5 minutes. 20 minutes later the eggs came out. The waitress gave us half an orange each as a 'dui bu qi' which was appreciated but I think more attention to detail from these guys would be good next time. Not too sure that there will be a next time for us though. How hard is it to bring out a boiled egg at the same time as the rest of the cold breakfast?
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Warm, cozy ambiance and stable wireless. Coffee tastes good and won't break your bank. The only downer is their apple cake (tart?), which comes on a soggy, spongey bottom...I had high hopes for that thing it's such a shame. I nevertheless recommend this place.
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If you are looking to plug in your computer have a graeat coffee or tea and a small snack or two then this place is for you. When I went it was almost all local westerns but you still feel like you are in China. Suggest you give it a try
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nice place with nice ambience, minimalist decor , cozy and satisfying food. i came here for their christmas special. a cup of gluhwein with piece of lebkuchen ,one scoop ice cream coated with nutella was a wonderful finish! It's a pity that the credit card isn't allowed to be used there.
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A great ambience with fantastic waffles & ice cream coated with nutella. Also good strong coffee for those who need their caffine.
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in general a nice place... had an apple tart that tasted average... i wanted to order waffles but they didn't have it anymore because it was late at night, despite the fact that it's written on the menu that waffle is made fresh :
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I went last Saturday morning when it was raining. It was me, and married couple with a 10 year old child. Warning: Do not go to this place hungry!!!!!!!!!!!!! Basically, coffee/hot chocolate with boooze is great. They bring in the bread from somwhere as there is no kitchen. We ordered two scrambled eggs for the child, 30 minutes later there was nothing. They only serve hard-boiled eggs as they must be making them in an electric tea pot. All said and done our bill was 280 rmb for 3 adults, 1 child, 1 cup each of coffee/hot coco. , and alot of bread. The ice cream was good but Haggen Das is better. Gustomenta served at this place is more like a gelato.
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Great place, good service, good music, exelent coffe, nice wine selection, ice cream.......... Very good.
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Right now they have a good offer - tasteful cup of Gluhwein with Kuchen for 22 RMB. Good service, clean and modern place.
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Despite all the little cafes lining Nanluoguxiang, this independent cafe stands out on Gulou Dongdajie. It's got a good people watching perch and its ambiance is as comfortable as modern (but warm). There's even booze, when you need it.
I've never had any ice cream there and I've never seen German food served. But I have surfed their wifi to the wee hours. Closes at 11pm.
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The best German style brunch in town. Their bread is great and don't forget to try their German Brezel with butter and a fresh boiled egg. P.s.: Good value for money, too.
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OMG! Yum! Their coffee is great. Just picked some up to go and was very pleasantly surpised when I got home.
This cozy little coffee shop serves up a small selection of espresso drinks, basic cocktails, homemade pastries and gelato from Gustomenta and despite Ikea furnishings, it feels mom'n'pop. There's no air conditioning, but the place is comfortable, the perfect respite from the two hot spots it sits between: Nanluoguxiang and Gui Jie.
The iced latte machiatto (¥28) was well-made and the cappuccino (¥26) came piping hot with just the right amount of thick, fluffy foam. Our apple pie (¥15) was tasty, but a little dry. We decided to try a mojito (¥35), and quickly found that heat plus a well-poured drink is the perfect formula for afternoon tipsiness. The selection is limited, but the friendly service, great gelato and selection of coffees make this a perfect stop for an afternoon drink.