Manaia Coffee & Things

‘Manaia Coffee and Things’ instagram.com/manaia_coffeeandthings/ is a lovely, well-lit café nestled along a small side street in the Kamigyo Ward of Kyoto, just a five-minute walk from Kuramaguchi Station on the Karasuma Line. The café opened in March 2021 and is run by a friendly husband-and-wife team who met on a working holiday in New Zealand. Both had a deep interest in working as baristas and gained experience at several cafés in New Zealand and Melbourne.

Upon their return to Japan, they started with a coffee stand pop-up at a coworking space and hostel under the name ‘Mana Coffee Works.’ After two years, Jun and Hitomi decided to focus on opening their own shop and thats how ‘Manaia Coffee’ was born.

The name Manaia comes from New Zealand’s Maori culture, where Manaia means containing power and prestige. The traditional Manaia accessory has the head of a bird, the body of a human, and the tail of a fish, representing the sky, earth, and sea. It is considered a guardian angel, a spiritual piece that protects the wearer from evil and bad things, bringing good luck in life. The Manaia is a messenger and spiritual kaitiaki (guardian) of the sky, earth, and sea.

A big focus at Manaia cafe is sustainability, the owners do that by donating all their used coffee grounds to local farms through Project Mame-Eco , using compostable straws made from bagas (sugar cane pulp), implementing digital point cards and more.

The café is located on the ground floor of a chalk-white, standalone building, with a facade partially covered in greenery. Inside, you’ll find a cozy interior with an abundance of natural light, creating a happy, mood-boosting vibe.

The menu offers a morning plate (08:00 – 11:00) with homemade bread, salad and yoghurt, a lunch bowl (12:30 – 16:00) with organic salad bowl. Besides the morning plate and lunch bowl they also offer toast with salad and yoghurt, homemade granola and yoghurt or choco granola as well as baked sweets. Drinks include: espresso, long black, piccolo, latte (600), flat white, cappuccino, mocha, handdrip or cold brew. There is also mork choco, chai latte, tea, apple juice and even kids drinks.

Manaia Coffee and Things is a lovely café run by friendly owners in a quiet neighborhood, offering delicious coffee and food as well as a calming respite away from all the hustle and bustle.