The little bear wobbles on the matcha foam!"Palarie" 3D stacked latte art—limited to two cups per table on holidays

Reported and photographed by Yan Yun-Cen / Kaohsiung

With a vision of bringing families together, he established an Italian-style café in the quiet residential area of Fongshan, blending industrial design with cultural creativity. To attract more visitors, she spent two years researching how to apply pottery techniques to latte art—drawing eyes, noses, and mouths on three-dimensional milk foam. Cute little bears and cats perch atop the cups, their foam heads bobbing when lifted, making it almost too hard to take a sip. This is "Palarie," a café that has been around for over three years, combining charm and craftsmanship to breathe new life into the back of Fongshan Railway Station.

▲ Two sea lions and a little bear lounge atop vibrant green matcha, instantly brightening anyone’s mood.

▲ Many girls can’t resist the charm of bear latte art coffee.

▲ Limited to two cups per table on holidays: Palarie’s “stacked latte art” features a grinning kitty on your milk tea. (Video/Photo by Yan Yun-Cen)

The highlight at Palarie is undoubtedly the bear latte art coffee. Baristas stack layers of hot milk foam, sculpting them into shape before using chocolate sauce to etch facial features. For cat designs, they add three final strokes to the tail.Currently, the café offers three types of drinks that can be adorned with latte art: matcha, cocoa, and milk tea. Customers can choose from seven to eight patterns when ordering, with bears, sea lions, cats, and Totoros being the most popular. The art lasts about ten minutes. On holidays, they sell around 30 cups a day, and roughly 15 on weekdays.

Wu Chia-Lun, 76-year generation (born in 1987), co-owner and barista, graduated from the Fine Arts Department at Tainan University of Technology. Determined to merge her career with her studies, she didn’t rush into the workforce after graduation. Instead, she returned to her hometown of Taitung to intern at a café for two full years. While there, she gathered inspiration and planned her dream coffee shop. Eventually, she decided on an industrial style base complemented by large-scale cultural and creative murals. After two years of effort, she finally realized her ideal shop in Fongshan, her mother’s hometown.

▲ Sibling business partners Wu Po-Yung (left) and Wu Chia-Lun take on different roles in the café.

Nestled within a residential area, Palarie’s exterior blends in seamlessly with surrounding houses. But push open the wooden door, and you’re greeted by the rich aroma of coffee mingling with a creative vibe. Colorful painted wooden guitars hang along the walls, and neon lights twinkle beside wooden-framed windows. The counter houses not only coffee machines and grinders but also various cultural artifacts—many of which Wu Chia-Lun has “hunted down” during her travels.

▲ Many of the cultural items in the café were collected by Wu Chia-Lun during her travels.

Wu Chia-Lun shared that she majored in pottery during university. In the early days, business was slow. During her downtime, she stumbled upon the work of Japanese stacking master Yamamoto online and was struck by the idea: “Coffee can be played with like this too.” She began experimenting by re-whipping the milk foam during the coffee-making process.By combining pottery techniques with latte stacking—"treating coffee as a canvas and a spoon as a brush"—after more than a year of research, she finally made the foam “stand” on the coffee.To balance flavor and texture, she ultimately decided not to stack foam on lattes. “Their heat tolerance is only 55–65 degrees; stacking foam might result in a burnt milk smell.”

Her co-owner and younger brother Wu Po-Yung, born in 1988 (77-year generation), was a professional soldier. Less than half a year after being discharged in 2013, he dove headfirst into the coffee shop venture. Since the whole family had to contribute, he reluctantly sold his one-year-old domestic car, keeping its four rims to make tables now placed in the shop. Three of them sit in front of the black sofa by the second-floor floor-to-ceiling window.

▲ The three “rim tables” by the second-floor window are the only remnants of Wu Po-Yung’s beloved car.

Wu Po-Yung explained that because the café follows a premium route, it hasn’t broken even since opening. To attract more customers, the shop has embraced diversified operations. Right next door is a coffee classroom, where professional instructors teach the public about coffee. With multiple certifications himself, Wu also doubles as a roasted bean seller and a business consultant, occasionally showcasing his skills inside the shop.

When asked what coffee best represents Palarie besides the stacked bear, Wu Po-Yung paused before naming “single-origin coffee” and “latte.” Single-origin coffee is brewed via pour-over, mostly using lightly roasted beans, resulting in less bitterness and more fruity notes.Lattes use the first extraction of espresso. Though less intense in coffee flavor, they offer a richer acidic and sweet layered taste.“Pairing it with scones or banana chocolate ice cream muffins makes it perfect.”

▲ Palarie’s coffee paired with scones is another highlight of the shop.

Wu Po-Yung said he hopes every visitor to Palarie can enjoy ample relaxation. He also revealedthe reason behind the name “Palarie.” It came about because his family members are somewhat reserved (in Taiwanese, “惦”). Unexpectedly, when he looked it up in Italian, he found the word “Parlare,” meaning “to communicate”—which aligns perfectly with the café’s philosophy. So he borrowed it as the English name, toning down the local flavor and adding an artistic touch.Currently, Palarie is family-run, with a total of nine to ten staff, including family members. Among them, only two baristas—including Wu Chia-Lun—can create stacked latte art. Wu Chia-Lun said each cup, from brewing to completing the foam art, takes roughly six to eight minutes. Drinks with cocoa or matcha bases, due to their darker colors, are especially popular. She’s even had customers ask for a straw just to sip around the bear art without ruining it.

▲ Wu Chia-Lun showcases freshly made bunny and cat latte art coffee.

▲ Latte art left too long becomes “burst bubbles.” Don’t just take photos—remember to drink it too.

Although the concept is heartwarming, Wu Chia-Lun still recommends drinking both the foam and coffee together for the full experience. Also, some people take photos for ages before taking their first sip. Little do they know…

Though the sentiment is touching, Wu Jialun still suggests that flower-piled coffee should be drunk with both the milk foam and the coffee together to fully enjoy the flavor; also, some people, after the coffee is served, take photos for quite a while before actually drinking it, not realizingThe hardened foam tastes like "burst bubbles."Those who want to capture photos of cute bears or kittens should take their pictures within the 10-minute optimum tasting window to enjoy both visual and flavor delights in one go.

Parla-re (Parlare)

Address: No. 7, Wenhua West Road, Fengshan District, Kaohsiung City
Phone: 07-780-6976
Price: 120~150
Business Hours: 13:00–21:00 (Floral Layered Coffee available only from 13:00–18:00 in limited quantities)
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/Parlare.coffee/