The old St. Lazarus district is definitely one of the most quaint and beautiful areas in the city, with its narrow cobblestone alleys, old architecture and leafy banyan trees. And tucked away down one street is a hidden gem of a coffee shop, Wonderwall Coffee.
“This area is the perfect place to relax and have cup of coffee, which is why we chose this location,” says Jonathon Lok, one of the partners in the business. “It has a real cultural interaction, with a European feel, but also very local.”
Together with a group of friends from high school, Jonathon opened Wonderwall about three years ago.
“We’d like people to be able to come here on a regular basis, spend time here, enjoy some good coffee, have some good food, and a use the place to create something while they’re here. Use the space for communication and to come up with something creative.”
Jonathon used to work in a coffee factory in Macau, which is where he first developed his passion for the beverage.
“Coffee really helps you to connect to people. It’s like the RAM in the computer. It gives you the feeling to meet people and come up with new ideas and go further.”
Wonderwall is open from 11am to evening time on weekdays, and on weekends stays open later.
“It’s a good place to have your first round of drinks on Saturday evening before moving on,” suggests Jonathon.
Recently they have expanded the menu from just snacks and sweets to more full meals. All the meals are cooked on site and come at very reasonable prices, like Wonderwall Roasted Chicken Salad for $68, Wonder Noodles for $38, or Smoked Salmon Aglio Olio Spaghetti for $48.
And for dessert, Jonathon recommends the Wonder waffles and homemade marble cake.
Although the location is lovely and quiet and the ambience inside is very cozy, Jonathon admits that more needs to be done to attract people to the neighbourhood.
“Now on this street, from 8am to 6:30pm cars are not allowed on the streets, so we are thinking that we’d like to try to organise some street activities, with the approval or support of the government of course.
“We actually did something like this before to celebrate our anniversary, we had a mini performance outside out shop with a live band.”
Inside the shop, there are some little crafts for sale, some made in Macau, and Jonathon mentions that they’d like to have a small retail area to sell locally made souvenirs to tourists.
Jonathon’s is also a bit of a tech entrepreneur and has developed his own App to manage customer loyalty programs called Diandian, which he uses with regular Wonderwall customers.
As well as being a great hangout for those who live nearby, Wonderwall is also available for private parties, functions and wine tasting events.
Rua Do Volong, No, 54-A, Macau
Open: 11-12am
