I’ve lived on the border of Baishizhou for a few years now. I keep my eyes open for anything new and my ear to the ground for restaurants and bars. Apparently, I wasn’t paying attention hard enough. Located not 15 meters from my home, Rose Cafe opened about three months ago and I knew nothing about it.

Rose Cafe is thriving in the desert that is Baishizhou. It is currently the only local restaurant/cafe serving international cuisine. Not only is it unique non-chinese food, it’s simply good.

Rose Cafe is owned and operated by a friendly German and all around nice guy Lennart è Kleiber, a manager who strives to offer high quality healthy ingredients and won’t settle for anything less. “I want people to leave happy with the food. That’s more important than making money,” said Kleiber.

Ever since I found Rose Cafe, I’ve been their loyal customer almost every night for the last week and a half. Their menu isn’t extensive at the moment, but they offer falafel wraps (that has even the approval of some Lebanese customers in the area), and chicken kebab wraps stuffed with fresh vegetables and topped with all in-house homemade sauces.

Their chicken meat is marinated with over 10 spices and they cook it on a traditional gyro machine where you can see the meat turn and cook on a rotisserie until it’s ready to be sliced.

When you’re there, you definitely want to get an order of the french fries. They are some of the best I’ve had in town, and are served with a hefty amount of ketchup and mayonnaise. They also serve four types of pressed grilled sandwiches.

As well, if you’re interested in a beverage, Rose Cafe serves tall cans of German beer, coffee, milk tea, and fresh juice. Currently, they don’t deliver, but it’s in the works.

The whole area is scheduled to be torn down in the coming years and Kleiber hopes for lots of growth for their business so they can offer something truly special for foreigners and Chinese alike whether it continues in the newly-formed Baishizhou area or elsewhere in Shenzhen.

As it says on their business card, they serve food, spirit and more.

For more information on this restaurant, please take a look at our listings.

Photos: Jeff Bussel; courtesy Rose Cafe