The area around Mills Avenue in Orlando has a lot of Asian restaurants, and one of the more popular spots for Lake Highland Preparatory School’s students is the Matcha Café Maiko. This café is on Mills Avenue, which is walking distance from both
of LHP’s campuses, and it has great snacks for after school. Matcha Café Maiko is a Japanese-inspired café that specializes in traditional matcha and has a variety of different matcha incorporated soft-serve, shaved ice, floats, frappes, lattes, teas, and sparkling beverages. The only food option they have is called Taiyaki, which is a waffle, fish-shaped pastry that comes in four flavors: Custard, Nutella, Red Bean, and Cheddar Cheese. Red Bean flavoring is a traditional flavor in Japan and is found in many Japanese food and dessert items. My personal favorite is the Rose Matcha Latte, which has a lovely floral taste that pairs amazingly with the matcha. What makes this café special to me is that I have always been a matcha hater, after trying Starbucks’s matcha and hating it. However, when I tried the Rose Matcha Latte, which was recommended to me by a recurring customer at the café, I fell in love with matcha.

Another thing I love about the Matcha Café Maiko is that the people there are so friendly. The café itself inside is just a very warm, aesthetic environment that will brighten anyone’s day. The people that work there are incredibly nice, always welcome you with a warm smile, and are always willing to answer any questions you may have about their items. If you are not big on matcha, or you just are not ready to branch out and try it, they still have a lot items for you to try: Black Sesame Latte, Hojicha Latte, Black Sesame Espresso Latte, Mango Spritz, Strawberry Spritz, Yuzu Tea Spritz, Espresso, Rose Coffee Latte, Lavender Coffee Latte, Vietnamese Coffee, Hojicha Oreo Frappe, Hojicha Frappe, Coffee Latte Float, Americano Float, Black Sesame Float, Hojicha Latte Float, Hojicha Tea Float, Ube Soft-Serve, Vanilla Soft-Serve, Strawberry Sundae, Affagato, Boba Sundae, Strawberry Shaved Ice, Maiko Special, Ube Foam, and Cheese Foam. Visitors can also customize
an item with the wide variety of different toppings they offer, ranging from 24k Gold Leaf to Kokuto Jelly.

This café has a little bit of something for everyone at an affordable price, with one of the most expensive prices being at $10.00, but most average around $6.00-$7.00. If you are looking to try matcha for the first time, I recommend coming here, because amazing, house-made, traditional matcha is guaranteed. If you are just looking for a good snack, they’ve got those too.