For the first time in years, I didn't finish drinking the coffee while visiting a coffee shop.

What went wrong?

Let's find out about this peculiarity as I tell you the experience I have with this place. This place was another place that my cousins and my aunt talked about often. They said that the place is famous among the youth in town and it is so hip. Even my grab driver told me, " That place is so hip, and it's also famous among the grab drivers" (indicating that a lot of people order from there). I was enthusiastic when I heard about that. " So after all, my cousin and aunt weren't wrong."

My criteria while choosing a coffee shop are remote-friendly, good coffee, comfortable place, good for hanging out, decent seating, and good lighting. I have sampled four places which review you can find before the end of my post. I also like to check from the interior and the exterior of the coffee shop. I enjoy finding out the non-rustic or industrial themed coffee shop. But it's such a rarity for a scale of remote-friendly places. A co-working cafe is not a thing where I live at the moment. Hence, I often visit a mixture of restaurant and bistro, cafe and eatery, cafe and roastery. The concept itself is different, so I narrow down my criteria and lower my expectation for a perfect working space friendly. This place I am about to review is a place with a cafe & eatery as the concept.

Culino Coffee & Eatery is located strategically in the heart of Jombang. It is located 5 minutes away from the central train station and 2 minutes walk to the city's park called Kebon Rejo. The operating hours of this rustic-themed cafe are from 11 AM to 10 PM. According to Google, visitors typically spends 1 to 2.5 hours in this place. This place is also considered as the local popular hangout place with instagrammable friendly cafe and colourful murals.

When a visitor steps into the cafe & eatery's front side, they will be greeted with polychromatic murals. This mural is the uniqueness of this place compared to many cafes in the city. It's almost stealing the main entrance of this cafe which is located a bit further after the parking lot.

In this place, other than dining in and take away, you can also make a reservation if you want to have a reunion with friends. They serve a variety of coffee and a great selection of western to local cuisine.

Upon entering the place, you will be greeted with friendly staff who will guide you through this cafe's menu. After ordering, you can pay your meal with either cash, card or e-payment.

I wanted to get some work done in this cafe. I saw the seating is quite comfortable, but I saw no electric plug around. For a detailed review about the exterior and the interior, let's get to it.

Exterior

Other than the colourful murals, the surrounding area is decorated with hanging plantation. The door and the terrace are relatively small. It's ubiquitous to find this at the coffee shop as the highlight is the interior.

Interior

The colour doesn't seem to blend nicely. Half of the first floor is dark, with too blinding lighting although it gets some natural lighting from the window glass. The stairs are a bit too long.

The second floor is spacious with two seating options, indoor and outdoor. The indoor seating has a long comfy sofa and some tables and chair, some with cushions.

The outdoor section is also equipped with some tables and a chair alongside a toilet. It is decorated with wall plants and vintage-ish banners.

I went to the second floor, attempting to get some work done. I waited for my drink for about 20 minutes then I started getting uncomfortable inside the place because it was too hot despite the staff turning the AC. I took some more picture of the area. Eventually, I decided to leave the establishment while only sipping a little bit of the coffee. To me, something was missing from the coffee. It was as if I didn't quite taste like an actual roastery coffee. In the end, my expectations of the place were ruined. But for those who enjoy hanging out with friends and family, this could be the right fit. For a remote-friendly place, this is not something that you'd want to visit.

~ Mac

Mac covers technology, philosophy, nootropics, books, productivity, minimalist lifestyle, cybersecurity, and languages. Other than those, she is passionate about cooking and travel. In her free time, Mac enjoys learning art and exploring new hobbies.