kissaten traditional coffee house in Kyoto, Japan

A Barista's Guide to Kyoto Coffee Culture

Turn a corner on a random city street in Kyoto, and you’re just as likely to run face-first into a classical Buddhist temple as into a five-floor shopping center. Ancient shinto shrines sit anachronistically beside rent-a-bike stations. Brilliant pink cherry blossoms are blown from their branches by the speed of passing delivery trucks. But despite the apparent contradictions, nothing feels disjointed or ungainly about this city. 
 

Kyoto is a place where modernity and tradition meet in seeming harmony, at least...