SPOT.ph Roadtest: This Japanese Chain's Budget-Friendly Kori Kohi Only Costs P99

(SPOT.ph) Did you begin your relationship with coffee during the pandemic? You're not alone—in fact, a lot of people made a habit of going out on dates, crawls, and workshops centered on coffee. This is probably one of the reasons why there are more coffee shops in shopping districts, neighborhoods, and online. 

Yoshinoya is a top-of-mind option when comes to low-priced bowls of gyudon, but the Japanese fast food chain isn't exactly known in the coffee scene. But with the recent addition of the Iced Kohi on their menu, coffee drinkers can add this drink to their budget-friendly options when they need a sweet, milky, caffeine fix.

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Here's what we think about Yoshinoya's new iced coffee:

Price

Yoshinoya's Iced Kohi is truly a gem because it's extremely rare to find coffee that's less than a hundred pesos nowadays. Most coffee shops price their coffee in the P200 to P300 price range, and often we would have to plan our budget around it just so we can have our daily dose of caffeine.

We're not denying that the most appealing aspect of Yoshinoya's Iced Kohi is its price, but we can't contest that it's actually good iced coffee (more on the tasting notes later). It doesn't make sense how it's less than a hundred bucks, but hey, our wallets aren't complaining!

Appearance

If you're dining in, Yoshinoya's Iced Kohi comes in a glass filled with frozen coffee cubes and accompanied by a serving of milk that's placed in a separate pitcher. It's worth noting that—as opposed to other places' versions with warm milk—the milk here isn't too hot or warm because this type of drink is intended to melt the coffee cubes to mix with the milk.

Thankfully, we're in the Philippines. As much as we frequently curse at the constant humidity of the country, this is one of those rare times that the Metro's hot weather is a good thing because it helps the coffee cubes melt. So while the milk's a bit colder than expected, it's no big deal—it'll just take a little longer than usual to have all the cubes completely melted and for everything to get mixed together.

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Taste

The coffee cubes have a strong coffee taste, almost similar to what you'd get if you mixed instant coffee crystals with a bit of hot water then placed it in an ice tray and kept it in the freezer overnight. If anything, the darker-than-usual color should have been a dead giveaway.

We tried drinking the milk on its own and found that it's sweetened—specifically at about a level seven or eight out of 10 if we were to rate it. For the sake of being inclusive to all coffee drinkers, we think it would have been better if sugar syrup or any type of sweetener is served separately in order to sweeten the drink to one's preference. 

Once you've poured the milk and the coffee melts, it results in a milky, sweet glass of coffee. It's a caffeine high and sugar rush in one drink!

IMPORTANT: Don't rush into drinking the Iced Kohi without the coffee cubes melting completely, because you'll be left with nothing but the coffee and none of the sweet milk to balance it.

Availability

Yoshinoya has a total of seven branches in the National Capital Region. The ones that are currently open are SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City, SM North EDSA and Eastwood in Quezon City, Robinsons Place Manila in Manila, SM Grand Central in Caloocan City, Glorietta in Makati City, and DD Meridan Park Pasay in Pasay City.

If you're living in the South of the Metro, we spotted a board up that the Japanese fast food chain is soon opening at Festival Mall in Muntinlupa City.

Final verdict

Depending on how you like your cup of joe, you'll either love or hate Yoshinoya's Iced Kohi. The drink is perfect if you like your coffee sweet AND milky—not just sweet and not just milky. You have to be both because there's really no room for customizing the coffee to your preference.

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See a list of Yoshinoya branches. For more information, visit Yoshinoya Philippines' Facebook page.

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