Cardoon
Cafe · Ballard ·
Chinese & German fusion cafe with unique lattes, cookies, and toast
Chinese & German fusion cafe with unique lattes, cookies, and toast
"At this Ballard German- and Chinese-inspired coffee shop, Seattle’s best chocolate chip cookie is hiding in plain sight. It’s not the simplest—and yet, all of the elements work together flawlessly like a well-constructed Rube Goldberg machine. The edges are sandie-crisp while the middle is nougat-soft. Cardamom adds baking-spice warmth. Chocolate chunks ooze like thick Nutella. And salted licorice caramel creates a toffee-like brittle around the perimeter. We know that anise stuff can be polarizing, but there’s just enough to impart some herbal pizzazz without feeling like you swan-dove into a swimming pool of black Red Vines." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley
"This Chinese and German-influenced cafe defies the laws of physics. They use the same brand of oat milk as the rest of the planet, but their lattes somehow still come out like liquid velvet. The foam has a sudsy thickness, Kuma espresso pulls are smoother than a Gibson electric guitar, and salty licorice caramel adds a subtle anise bite. The drink is even better as a dunk tank for Cardoon’s gooey chocolate chip cookie. While the cafe is quite teeny-weeny, it still feels bright. A ton of natural light washes in, tight corner seats are as comfy as a sectional sofa, and sometimes you’ll even find a couple sitting outside enjoying espresso with their backpack-bound pet rats. (Yes, we saw them—and they’re real.)" - aimee rizzo, gabe guarente
"This cafe is unique thanks to its blend of German and Chinese flavors. The house chocolate chip cookie has black pepper and swirls of salty licorice caramel, giving a little bit of an edge to a classic treat. Although licorice can be divisive, this cookie should unite everyone with a surprisingly gentle complexity (it’s not all that anise-y). If you’re a real licorice fan, get the lava hot chocolate to accompany your cookie." - Kurt Suchman
"Preserved fruit on eggs sounds like a mistake, but at this German- and Chinese-inspired coffee shop in Ballard, the addition of strawberry-chili jam on their breakfast sandwich is pretty brilliant. All that sweet punchy vibrance gets along well with mellow gouda, which, in turn, hits it off with a grassy scallion scramble. It’s served on a crackly poppy-loaded brötchen roll that holds up on its own while providing a good home for the other stuff. You will get little black seeds in every tooth crevice, but it’s worth it." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley
"Cardoon is a tiny shop tucked into the ground floor of a big apartment building on Market Street — anonymous and easy to miss, but an absolutely unique cafe. It serves a mixture of German and Chinese cuisine, a reflection of its owners’ heritages. The highlight treat is streuselkuchen, a German cake that here is topped with white miso streusel and seasonal fruit. If you want savory food instead, check out the gluten-free, vegan “egg” rice, which features silky beancurd skin and tomatoes over a bed of rice. As for coffee you can’t go wrong with the Seaweed Latte — don’t let the name fool you, the star ingredient is soy sauce caramel, which has an elegant umami finish. Cardoon is also developing an nonalcoholic beverage program, reflecting the growing connection between coffee and NA drinks." - Harry Cheadle