It’s purported to be the oldest cafe in Paphos, though the year is not given. The server thinks it opened in 1953.
I love the vibe here, and I’m not alone. I had to come back twice before I found a vacant table.
The tables are wooden, some with steel legs and some with wooden legs, but all decorated on top as if by a child using a stencil.
It’s the same with the chairs, wooden with wicker seats, but all painted with some type of design – flowers, stripes, polka dots.
On the patio is a shade tree, a mulberry tree, and I’m told it’s over one hundred years old.
From its branches and trunk hang a number of interesting items – a metal watering can, a miniature crib with a toy bird inside it, and several little bird cages.
Above the arched doorway are a series of mosaic tiles of various designs.
Below the cafe sign is a painting of the Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo, who is holding a cigarette in one hand and a Cypriot beer (Keo) in the other, with one of Kahlo’s quotes below: “At the end of the day, we can endure much more than we think.”
I order a Sykaminia breakfast – eggs, bacon, halloumi, mushroom, salad, toast, and olives. I don’t know what halloumi is, but I learn later it is a cheese that originated in Cyprus that can be fried. On first taste, if someone told me it was a potato, I would have believed him.
I also order an iced caramel latte, which I’ve never tried and think might be appropriate in this Mediterranean heat.
While I eat, I notice under the welcome sign is a board displaying various hearts, some with wings, some being carried by little flying birds.
And below the hearts is a series of miniature chairs, all different, and all screwed into the board.
There is no customer seating inside the cafe, just a small table where the staff roll up utensils in napkins.
Above the table is a shelf with empty bottles of every size and colour, which complement the nearby stairwell, the steps of which are painted in various bright colours. It’s all very playful.
There is pleasant music playing, but I can barely hear it because of the sound of the nearby traffic and the need for customers to speak loudly with their dining friends to be heard above it.
Two middle-aged German women at the next table are taking pictures of each other in various poses, holding an espresso cup, sipping from a straw. They switch seats a couple of times to get a good background. After each photo is taken, they check the picture together, make a few comments, adjust the pose, take another photograph.
This place is lively, the staff are exceedingly friendly, and the customers all seem to be joyful. It’s a fabulous morning.
