Sozo (Ho Chi Minh)

So, after visiting Cambodia, I went over to Vietnam to visit an old friend. He had to work during the day and he said in the evening there was nothing much more to do than eat dinner and drink coffee. So every day that I was there, there was a cafe visit. The first night we went to a place near his flat. But I was so excited to see him after two years that I didn't pay attention to it then.

The second night we went to a rather interesting cafe in a different district. According to my friend, someone started this initiative where they take in street kids and train them to work in the cafe so that they can make some sort of living instead of just being street kids. And now when he says "kids", he doesn't mean little ones or anything, they're teens or young adults.

We ended up getting coffee and a cake, even though it was before dinner. I know, what rebels. My friend went with carrot cake and I, after some deliberation, went with passion fruit cheesecake. Vietnam coffee for me. Cappuccino for him.

So, I discovered that I love Vietnam coffee but I'm also glad that it's not really available so often on menus in Japan because I would probably end up with diabetes before my next birthday. It's so sweet and delicious, but also quite strong. Perfect! And the passion fruit cheesecake? Basically it was edible happiness. I had a bite of the cheesecake and it was good but I will say that I made the better choice out of the two desserts.

As for the cafe, it was really cozy and cafe like. There were two floors, and since the second floor was air conditioned, we went with that floor. They had three big comfy looking chairs that were all occupied so we sat at a table. In the corner, they also had a bookshelf full of books that you could buy or exchange for. Basically, everything a cafe should be and have.

So we only went there once, but went I visit Ho Chi Minh again, I will definitely revisit Sozo. After all, they're "restoring hope, changing lives".

Order: Vietnamese White Coffee (50,000VND) and Passion Fruit Cheesecake (60,000VND)
Review: Great place with a great cause

Website: http://web.mac.com/sozoasia/Site/Home.html
Location: 176 Bui Vien, District 1, Ho Chi Minh