Sawada Coffee is a coffee shop in Chicago opened by World Champion Latte Artist Hiroshi Sawada. In 2008, Sawada became the first Asian to win the Latte Art World Championship. Sawada Coffee is his first US coffee shop (he also opened Streamer Coffee Company in Tokyo).
When I was in Tokyo last year I wanted to visit Streamer Coffee for its military lattes but unfortunately didn’t get around to it. So I was really excited when I found out that there was a location in Chicago.
The coffee shop has an industrial feel to it. In addition to drinks, they also carry a selection of doughnuts from Chicago’s Doughnut Vault.
Military Latte
Their signature drink is the military latte, where Japanese matcha green tea is combined with vanilla syrup, espresso and cocoa powder.
This drink was so beautiful, I didn’t want to ruin the latte art. It tasted great too. It was slightly sweetened but not overly sweet and I thought it had just the right balance of matcha and espresso.
Black Camo Latte
A newer addition to their menu, this drink replaces matcha green tea with hojicha (a green tea roasted over charcoal). I actually enjoyed this drink even more as I really enjoy the taste of hojicha tea, which is more mild and nutty than pure green tea.
Overall, we really enjoyed the coffee drinks here and this coffee shop was one of the highlights from our trip to Chicago. I’d be visiting quite often if this coffee shop was closer to me.
Sawada Coffee
112 N Green St, Chicago, IL 60607
