Toranomon Koffee

Old Style Coffee in a Hip Shell

Toranomon Koffee is apparently associated with the super famous Omotesando Koffee. Besides spelling coffee wrong (or more correctly depending on your perspective) in nice fonts, they have a hip looking coffee stand right in the middle of the Toranomon Hills Mori Tower. Beans are out in glass vials like a science experiment is about to occur and everything except the machines is wood. Style points definitely carry this place a long way. Sadly Toranomon Koffee has a pretty big lack in variety, meaning that those who like really dark roasted coffee will have a great time and anyone else will be left in the dust. I personally don't have anything against dark roasting but it's definitely an old overused technique that's often used to show that a shop doesn't want to try too hard on the flavor. When dark roasts are really the only option, it definitely raises a few red flags. Simply put, the espresso is too darkly roasted for the way it's made. I can stand some dark espressos but this is at a level that sends us back to the early 1900s in Italy, before modern espresso was really even a thing. The other coffees don't suffer so much, and colder options usually do benefit from darker roasts meaning that those ones could save it. Also the milk of cappuccino would expand on that dark roast flavor making it more bareable and possibly even enjoyable to dark roast fanatics. If you're in town and think coffee beans should be dark or "it's just coffee," it's a worthwhile spot to hit up. If you're looking for something new or a place worth going out of the way, there's better places for your time.