Leonard Caffè

One of the Leonard Caffè coffee bars in Chișinău, at 29/7 Nicolae Testemițanu Street in the Malina Mică neighbourhood of the Centru district, on the ground floor of a complex housing several food outlets. The format is a coffee boutique: espresso and milk drinks made to order by a barista, tea and a small pastry counter, with most coffee going out to take away. The outlet has no website of its own and takes no bookings — you simply walk in.

Google reviews rate the service positively. The favourable feedback dwells mainly on the coffee, described as natural and carefully made, and on friendly staff, named as the reason people come back. The critical side is just as consistent: long queues at peak times, a noisy room that makes the place unsuited to a long conversation or to working, and, in one review, service that was correct but indifferent. The lack of nearby parking also comes up repeatedly — only the paid underground car park or the street, usually full. Come on foot if you can.