Restaurant: Aki Cafe & Gallery

Whatever happened to the bohemian cafe-cum-gallery where art and coffee commingled; where temperaments rose with each downed espresso? The cafes still exist, of course, but for the poor bohemians the coffee has become prohibitively expensive. Such is the case with Aki, the latest Tienmu establishment to merge an art space with a cafe.

Gone are the days when an artist's work simply hung on the walls of a room while patrons scrutinized the work and someone slaved over an espresso machine in the corner. Now the gallery itself is the focal piece and the art is found more in the cups than on the walls. The first thing you'll notice about Aki, which had its soft opening last month, is its Spartan interior, its lighting hidden behind galvanized sheet metal: white tables and chairs, a touch of frosted glass, Miles Davis humming over the speakers. The first thing you'll think: "I should have brought more money -- and a date!"

In fairness, Aki's coffee comes as close to being worth NT$300 as any you may ever taste. The management has some of the world's best beans shipped to Taiwan. Blue Mountain Old Tavern Estate, Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, Sumatra mandheling and Yemen mocha are brought here fresh and roasted right in Taipei to ensure the best-possible cup of coffee.

What to have with such a cup of coffee? Aki's caramelized apple tart would be a good bet (NT$250) or the Grand Marnier souffle (NT$200) or German pudding (NT$120). Most any of the items on the dessert menu are guaranteed to complement your coffee; not too sweet, not too heavy. Like their coffee beans, Aki's management searched high and low for the right people to prepare their desserts: a Taiwanese man trained in Japan and an Englishman who clearly knows his sweets.

As the management is still tweaking the bigger part of their menu, there is currently little on offer besides coffee and desserts. Teas and fresh fruit juices are also available, as are a selection of beverages from the water bar: Perrier, Evian and Apollinaris each sell for NT$150 per bottle. As it stands, Aki's cafe serves more as an add-on to the gallery, filled at the moment with pieces by local potter, Wang Bai-lu (王百祿), whose wood-fired glazes are some of the best you can see anywhere.