I was lucky enough to go on our family holiday this year to beautiful Mauritius. With the current financial crisis all over the “richer” part of the World, there are deals galore to dream destinations and Mauritius is definitely one of them. OK ! my second job is not a tour operation so I’m going to get to the bottom of the cup on this – what coffee experiences did I have, because you know that wherever I go I’ve got to have some sort of coffee experience. We stayed at this really nice hotel called Le Touessrok and all coffee served at this top hotel happens to be sourced from Illy.
So every breakfast and every dinner I had Illy coffee. Now to be fair to Illy, sometimes it’s not about the coffee, it’s about how it’s served and sometimes it’s about the type of machine, which for a hotel that was voted the 7th best in the World, should be the best. However, to avoid libel (or being sued), I’m not going to comment on the machine below, as I don’t know what it is.
From my current experience, lots of top hotels and restaurants boast about providing you with the best food, etc, but when it comes to coffee, there’s a bit of compromise. OK ! it was good to be asked what coffee you would like every morning.
OK ! this is a bit exaggerated on the foam, but on another occasion the froth was a bit flatter.
However with views like this from the breakfast table, you can forgive the barista.
Not to be confined to the hotel, we did manage to explore a bit of the Island and headed up to the north-west of the Island to Grand Baie, where I managed to find Cafe La Fournaise on “Sunset Boulevard” named I guess because it is one of the best places to watch the sun set. The location of this cafe is right on sunset Boulevard and has a very French Riviera feel to it – you can easily think you are in a fancy Ā European beach side resort. In any case I ordered an espresso, snapped away and gulped it down before our ride back to our hotel, some 1 hours drive away.
Coffee was okay, but the location is a real people watching place, so I can imagine it being a popular place with rich locals and tourist alike. So, that’s my bit of sharing my coffee experiences in Mauritius, au revoir.
From Coffee With Love 
I like ILLY coffee. I prefer their medium roast to their fine grind. I just bought Starbuck’s Costa Rica coffee but think its too strong of a taste. Its all coffee and no flavour! Keep up the good work!
Thanks Mams. I think Starbucks roasted the Costa Rica wrong because Costa Rican coffee is usually full of flavour and not strong.
i also like coffee,i like going to all types of resto bar for lunch all around the island of mauritius,i have found only 2 places who makes really good coffee was MYSTICA in phoenix les halles which is sadly closed today and also le juice bar cafe ebene way where they sell good types of coffee like ;cafe mocha,black forest,vienna with lots of whipped cream and a special version of a flat white with a drawing on top which i take a picture before i drink it,there is also cold coffee like cafe frappe,affogato and oreo shake,it is so nice but pity its in the food court.
Francess – I guess you live in Mauritius. Where are these places ? Shame I missed them.
Hello, I have pretty good coffee experience that I gained from australia working for popular cafes.
I currently live in mauritius and what I can say is we don’t have a proper coffee culture. Most people won’t know how an espresso should be prepared or how a cappucino should have the right type of foam, etc..
I am currently in charge of opening two cafes in the premium class lounges at the Airport of Mauritius, and I’ve put myself on a mission to serve the best coffees with properly trained baristas.
Illy happens to be one of the best product in the island..however we all know its really not about the coffee itself.. its about the barista, the machine, how it is served etc… its sad that le TOuessrok is serving coffee like shown in your pictures.
Francess like you mentioned, Mystica had La Marzocco machines but their barista wasnt as qualified to pull perfect espressos and pour lattes, caps, etc..
I would say the same for Le Juice Bar. They might be serving the whole coffee menu.. but how about quality?
Hope the information helps
cheers
hi stephen,i have find that the guy who own le juice bar cafe is also from australia perth and is opening 3 coffee bar on the island…….about quality i leave it to you…..
Hi coffee lovers,
the best and most effordable place I fount to get a nice coffee was at restaurant coffee garden in the north of the island. A small, charming place runned by a Mauritian family. They’re using original Segafredo coffee and a real old fashion italian coffee machine.
On top, the proprietor is daily offering home baked cakes and muffins. Mmmmmh, just perfect.
They even have a website (http://www.coffeegarden.mu) where you can see some pictures too and a map where to find them.
Hope you’ll get the chance to get there.
Andreas
The finest espresso I’ve tasted in Mauritius last year, and the lone worth to be mentionned for me, was in Grand Bay, at “le Rendez-vous CafĆ©”: they are involved in “La Fournaise” coffee roasting.. and I brought back a pair of packs of their best blend to France to taste it on my own coffee machine. This year, a happy surprise: to find in an as far as Rodrigues Island a fair unexpected espresso (La Fournaise roasted beans in a honest Solis machine!) at an end of the road of St FranƧois beach, seafood grill of Robert & Solange!
Mauritian here. Very good feedback. And I totally agree with you. 8 years later. Things have finally changed over there. People are being taught the difference between coffee and coffee lol.
Cheerd