Only a few who cannot forget the taste of Balinese coffee keep coming back for more, getting what they need in a small specialized shop in the heart of Denpasar, on Jl. Gajah Mada.

Nestled among the old and unpolished stores, the small shop draws pedestrians with the aroma of coffee.

Don't expect fancy cafe-like settings, since the shop only has one table with cappuccino and espresso makers on it and several seats to allow visitors to sample coffee on the spot.

There are tall shelves on the wall where attractively packed coffee -- in aluminum wrapping, batik, paper, fabric, tins and bamboo boxes -- are on display.

"The attractive wrappings are to tempt tourists to take them home as souvenirs," said Djuwito Tjahjadi, owner of the Bhineka Jaya shop.

Visitors can choose either roasted coffee beans, medium grind coffee, fine blend coffee or cappuccino in different sizes and packets. Others coffees like Toraja are also sold.

In order to meet the demands of coffee fans wanting to buy more than a kilogram of coffee, a series of large rectangular tins for fine-blend coffee are neatly lined up next to an old fashioned scale used to weigh the coffee.

Large pictures showing the coffee-making process hang on the wall.

Whenever the 82-year-old Djuwito Tjahjadi is in his shop, he will kindly invite visitors to taste a cup of espresso or cappuccino.

"It took me seven years to find the right taste of espresso to meet the different tastes of coffee drinkers," said Djuwito, who visited other countries in his youth to learn about and taste different coffee flavors.

The excellence of his coffee, claimed Djuwito, had drawn Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to drop into his shop several years back.

"I visit Bali regularly and never miss coffee shopping in this shop," said an American tourist from Wisconsin, who bought many packets of coffee.

Djuwito's father, Bian Ek, started selling coffee at Bhineka Jaya in the 1930s. Since the mid-1960s, modern machinery has been used to roast the coffee.

When the director of Worldwide Coffee Research, Dr. Hubert S. Koehler, visited Djuwito's coffee retail shop and factory in 1995, he left a written statement praising the hygienic process of coffee roasting and the authentic taste of Balinese coffee.

According to Djuwito, the secret behind the excellent taste of his coffee is its freshness. He said that the coffee sold at his outlet is always freshly produced in the factory. Moreover, he never uses chemicals and only selected coffee beans grown at plantations in Kintamani, Pelaga and Singaraja are roasted, making his coffee 100 percent pure Balinese coffee.

At times, Djuwito helps visitors select which coffee to buy. "Bali Gold is a favorite of Westerners," he said.

Despite its relatively expensive price, customers keep coming back to replenish their supply of fine blends, ground coffee and beans. The price of coffee in tins starts from Rp 20,900 per kilogram while those in attractive wrappings cost Rp 15,000 to Rp 25,000 per 500 grams.