The MAG Vietnam Vol 7 March 2017 | Page 41

Travel Adventures
The Central Highlands is famous for its coffee and its mountains. Photo & Bike Cafe marries these two elements nicely, making it the perfect pit-stop on any road trip that passes through Bao Loc, on the way between Saigon and Dalat on National Highway QL20. Address: 1037 Tran Phu Street( Highway QL20), Bao Loc City, Lam Dong Province Price: 20,000-40,000vnd($ 1- $ 2) | Phone:(+ 84) 0933 216 246
Opened in October 2015, Photo & Bike Cafe has been attracting Vietnamese cyclists and phượt travellers( road-trippers) for the quality of its coffee and its good highland views. Located on the south side of Highway 20 before entering Bao Loc City, Photo & Bike is a smart-looking, four-storey townhouse perched on a ridge above sprawling coffee plantations, small hold farms, and mountains.
The cafe signage is hung with bicycle frames, and the biking theme continues inside, where bike tyres and wheels decorate the ceiling above the coffee bar. The interior is clean and shiny, with wooden tables and chairs, big glass windows and lots of natural light.
Doors open onto a long, narrow balcony, furnished with a wooden bar and high stools. From here you can look out over the coffee plantations and across to the mountains. Order a coffee or tea and enjoy the views in the purple highland light.
The drinks are excellent quality and reasonably priced. Choose from rich, aromatic, Italian-style hot coffees( with fresh highland milk, if you choose), or strong, brooding Vietnamese-style coffees served iced or hot. There are also frappuccinos and teas( including matcha, peach, and ginger). All the coffee beans( robusta and arabica) are locally sourced: either from the Bao Loc area or Cau Dat, near Dalat.
Prices are between 20,000-40,000vnd($ 1- $ 2).
Owner, Ms Hà, is very modest, but her cafe is fast becoming an essential stop for any young travellers passing through on Highway 20, and for locals with a taste for good coffee and good views. Opening hours are 6:30am-9pm daily. Make sure you stop by here if you’ re following one of my guides in the area, such as the Binh Thuan Inland Loop, the Lunar New Year Classic, Dalat’ s Waterfalls, Cat Tien National Park, or Juliet’ s Villa Resort.
The MAG Vung Tau 41