Photo booth, Stickers, and Aesthetics: A Visit to Elsewhere Cafe

Manila has always been special to me. I spent my college years there and recently had to visit my alma mater with @gabbiebi to get some documents. After wrapping up our errands, we decided to check out one of the coffee shops we've been meaning to visit.

Elsewhere Cafe is located on the 3rd floor of a building beside De La Salle College of St. Benilde. We spotted the Elsewhere cafe sign outside but we weren't really sure how to get there. While we're figuring it out, a guy outside the building seemed to sense our confusion. Luckily, he pointed us in the right direction. Thanks Kuya!

Once we reached the third floor, we saw the sign outside. Before stepping in, we tried to gauge if there were available seats. It was already past 4pm, a lot of students were already out. I'm not a fan of crowded cafes. At that time, it was impossible to tell if the cafe's full because of the exterior. We had no choice but to enter the cafe to check, only to find out it was full.

The cafe was warm and inviting. Upon entry, you'll see the counter and to the left was a huge couch, beside it there's a charming collection of Ghibli references. Every corner was carefully curated, blending different colors and elements to create an instagrammable ambiance.

Since there were no available seats yet, we browsed their menu while waiting and then wandered into their mini-store inside the cafe. Just like the cafe itself, the mini-store also had a carefully curated aesthetic. They have an old television repurposed as a CCTV screen where the customers take a selfie with. One thing that caught my eye was a cute bear wearing a statement shirt and hat, reminding me that rest is important and that bad days don't last forever.

We explored more and ended up buying some stickers to decorate our laptops and tumblers. Just as we finished shopping, we spotted a vacant table.

_{the view from our table ft. the bags of the customers next to us}

Gabbie went to the counter to place our orders. I took a picture of the window beside me. The view is the nearby university building and the train tracks.

It was almost 5 PM. We ordered quite a lot. Grilled Cheese Sandwich (Php 250 / $4.35), Potato Wedges (PHP 175 / $3.05) for me, partnered with Taho Latte (Php 170 / $2.96), Truffle Pasta (Php 298 / $5.19), Cream Cheese Carrot Cake (Php 200 / $3.48) together with Elsewhere Latte (Php 170 / $2.96) for Gabbie.

Though I'm not a fan of cheese, I do enjoy cheese sandiwches 🥰 I was curious about their Taho Latte, given that I make my own Taho at home and wondered how it would taste like if it's mixed with coffee. Overall, the food and coffee did not disappoint. The Taho Latte was a unique experience. It has the sweet familiar taste of Taho with tapioca pearls but without the silken tofu. I liked this more than a similar drink I had tried at a mall near my place.

_{how to use their photobooth}

After eating, we explored their photobooth. For Php 200 / $3.48, we got eight shots and one printed copy. There were two photo booth designs but we chose the aesthetic elevator setup with a TV on top. Our experience turned out to be a hilarious one 😭 The timer was so fast that we barely had the time to think of poses. When we checked out printed copy, we've got zero decent shot, just a collection of confused faces and panic 😂 but for me, that made it more fun. We realized we should probably start looking for photo booth pose inspirations for next time.

We left the cafe laughing and satisfied.