where。|| The Cottage Cafe, Shanghai。||

認識老麥咖啡館的過程有點一波三折。我是在去年先由有人介紹老麥雜貨鋪, 知道它裡面有賣好書後常常光顧, 結果有一天看到裡面賣了這本“老麥咖啡館”的自傳後, 才知道原來老麥也有賣咖啡。我再去這家咖啡館之前, 先細細品味了用文字描述出來的老麥和他的夢想。辭掉銀行高管的工作來開咖啡館, 他追求的是一種人生態度跟生活品味。”復古雜貨“貫穿了他的人生哲學。年代等於歷練, 而歷練也就等於故事等於回憶。物品因為故事而豐富而有了內涵, 就如它的咖啡館一樣, 精心搜集來的地磚, 窗框, 門框, 木板和銅器等等...重新排列/擺放在一起後, 讓人有種回到了老家的感覺。

I have known The Cottage Cafe for a while. I knew it because of the book I bought in the zakka store that opened by the same owner, Mike. It was a bibliography that Mike wrote for the cafe. I read it all before I went there, so I was fully appreciate by the dream and the passions he creates. He resigned the well paid job in the bank as a manager to open this cafe, and what he was seeking, were just simply the taste and the attitude of life. "Vintage Zakka" means a lot in his life philosophy. Age means experience, and experience means stories also memories. Those vintages are fulfilled because of its history and story, and because of that, it has the character. Just like the cafe, all the tiles/ window frames/ door frames/ woods that he collected, was carefully arranged/ displayed together in every conner of the cafe, and they make people feels like home, the home you had when you were a child.

老麥把咖啡館開在了很有歐式情調的桃江路上, 路上兩旁都是大樹, 旁邊也有好多氣派大宅跟外國領事館。有著綠色木條裝飾的老麥完全融入了街景。踏進老麥後第一個印入眼簾的是像在住家一樣的門廳, 有著復古的地磚跟在一旁的白色木頭扶手梯給人感覺像是來到了人家家裡做客, 且上海味十足。這個咖啡廳分三部分, 一樓/ 二樓/ 地下室。那天我們一行六個人把整個地下室包了下來 （因為是地下室, 加上很多舊物所以霉味有點重）這邊的咖啡是illy的所以算很不錯, 但因為我不喝咖啡所以我點了杯藍莓奶昔, 結果意外的好喝！不甜因為是用優格做的所以在夏天喝格外沁涼。雖然地方小, 但人很多, 大家都是三五好友找張桌子窩在一起聊天喝咖啡, 把這裡當自己家裡一樣自在。如果是一個人來, 這裡也很適合坐在二樓陽台邊靜靜看書（裡面提供好多書！）或沈思。

The Cottage Cafe is located in a very european style street call Yao Jiang Rd in Shanghai. Trees and big houses are along the side. The cafe, with green wood front door is perfectly fitted in the street. When I walked in the door, I saw the lobby with beautiful tiles and the white staircase along side, made me feel I was walked in someone's home, with strong Shanghainese style. This cafe was divided into three part, first floor/ 2nd floor and the basement. The day I went, I was with other 5 friends, so we had the whole basement of our own. (It was smelled a bit damp tho, in the basement) I don't drink coffee, so I order the blueberry milkshake. It was a surprising refreshing milkshake, cos it was made by yogurt! Yumm. Even this place is a bit small, but filled with people. Some with friends drinking cafe and chatting/gossiping. Some was alone with laptop or book. What was in common was that they all felt relaxed and felt like home here. It provide a lot of books for you to read, next time I would try seat by the balcony and read those books with the milkshake!

雖然它不像現在滿大街的歐式咖啡館的簡潔明亮, 但老麥的懷舊巧思反而更值得讓人細細品味, 細細琢磨曾經或往後屬於這些老物和這個老房子的一切。

Its really not like any other cafes on the street: Bright and Simple, but The Cottage Cafe is the one that you would walk around wondering the stories behind the vintages also study the magnificent old house with its own marks and memories in the past or the coming future.

THANKS FOR READING! xx

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