Hong Kong has long been a tea town. Its signature coffee drink, the tannin-heavy yuenyeung, is a blend of coffee, black tea and evaporated milk. But a wave of Australian-style coffee culture has belatedly arrived, bringing superb flat whites and ever-lengthier pour-over menus. Many opt for the “Dirty”, a Tokyo invention in which a shot of espresso (or two) is poured over a short glass of cold milk, making a sort of unmixed cortado that offers harried office workers a quick, rich drink. A “Creamy Black”, meanwhile, is a chilled Americano with a small amount of milk foam on top, that, in the words of my local barista, “drinks like a beer” (he’s right). Coffee shops are also staying open later — one favourite haunt mixes fiendish coffee negronis at sunset. However, many don’t open until 10am or 11am, leaving this confused New Yorker with his cafetière.
— Eli Meixler, Asia world news editor