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Located a little off Stadium Street in the northwest of Gaienmae Station is Latte Art Mania Tokyo, which opened at the end of last year. The owner, Mr. Baba, hailing from Fukuoka, is a skilled barista who has been crowned Japan's number one in latte art four times (of course, in the fiercely competitive coffee scene of Fukuoka, but he honed his skills in Tokyo). I visited around 3 pm on a holiday. Surprisingly, there was a line of nearly 20 people in front of the shop. I have never seen such a long line for a coffee stand before. The shop interior, designed in cool monochrome tones of gray and black with flowers and a baron, doubles as a pick-up counter for takeout coffee. There is a counter and one table for four people, and the turnover is relatively fast. Mr. Baba, along with two support staff, manages the shop with three people. Mr. Baba seems to alternate between being at the shop and not, but he was there on this day. Upon entering, you place your order and pay in advance for a one-drink order per person. This time, I ordered their signature Black Latte (¥850) and Matcha Terrine (¥550). The café latte is a signature creation, using bamboo charcoal to enhance the contrast and design. Mr. Baba drew a heart with roses, one of his representative works, right in front of me. The art, drawn with free pour, has fine stripes and looks beautiful. The coffee changes daily, and this time it was a deep roast of single-origin Ethiopian (I forgot to ask which roaster). The espresso machine is a Sanremo F18 (full black, 2 groups), and the grinder is an Eureka Atom (both were new to me). They add homemade syrup, so it's slightly sweet. The Matcha Terrine starts off sticky in the mouth and then becomes smooth, with a strong matcha aroma. For takeaway, I had an Americano (¥550 with a Lotus biscuit) which had a balanced taste emphasizing acidity and fruitiness, typical of Ethiopian light roast. The extraction temperature is reportedly 87°C (dripper was not confirmed). If you're used to light roast, you might not be able to tell in a blind test. I had a nice conversation with Mr. Baba, who kindly answered our questions. Despite looking like a model for a certain youth magazine (which I found out after writing the review), Mr. Baba is clearly a skilled artisan, as evident from his hands. It was a delightful experience. I'd love to visit again, but it looks like weekends will be quite busy from now on...