We wrote about Prague’s coffee scene and the reasons why it’s so great last week (TL;DR version: specialty coffee now a standard, young people, barista a viable career here, and high standard of skill), but this week it’s time to list our favorite specialty coffee shops in Prague. Before we get to the list, a few details on how we choose the coffee shops and why maybe your favorite is not included.
We write this blog as a service to the guests of our awesome Prague food tours, and these best-of’s are primarily targeting foreign visitors to Prague who may have just a few days here, so our key criterion here is consistency. If we drag you across the town for a cup of coffee, we better be damn sure they serve good coffee EVERY DAY. So if a coffee shop served us the best cup of coffee ever on one occasion, but a mediocre cup the next day, it may not have made the list. We don’t want to run the risk of our readers coming in on that mediocre day.
As Jarda Tuček, one of the founders of Doubleshot Coffee Roasters told us, once you reach a certain level of quality in coffee, the rest is just preference or nuance. So all of the Prague coffee shops below should pass the basic bar: they use good beans freshly roasted by a high-quality, independently-owned roaster, ground just before brewing, by a barista that has been properly trained and uses properly maintained equipment. Even on that mediocre day, the places listed here will serve coffee that is drinkable, but the coffee shop may not make the must-go cut.
How have we divided the coffee shops? Easy. We have roughly used and adapted the Michelin guide principle. The Must Go Coffee Shops are the three Michelin stars: worth a separate trip if you like coffee or coffee culture. The Other Favorite Coffee Shops are the two stars: worth a detour on your trip. And the coffee shops included in the neighborhood guides are the single stars: worth a stop if in the area or on the way. Easy, right? Enough talk, let’s do this.
Must-go coffee shops in Prague
Onesip coffee
Well, we get our mail delivered to onesip coffee. ‚Nuff said. (Well, we start our Prague food tours around the corner, so that’s one of the factors.) What this little espresso bar in the Old Town lacks in size (it sits the total of three) makes up for in character: run by two famous names on the Prague coffee scene, this is the baristas‘ espresso bar. The keyword here is consistency and quality: Adam and Zdenek are immune to hype and will not serve anything that would compromise the quality of the resulting drinks. That is why they have created a small crown of loyal regulars who can be seen mostly standing around the bar daily, chatting with whomever is behind it. Luckily, they are all very nice and welcoming, so what might at first feel like being stuck in an elevator with strangers can easily turn to a great chat where you order more cups of coffee without even noticing. Onesip uses coffee by its sister operation, Candycane Coffee, so this is also a good place to buy beans.
Kafemat
Calling Kafemat a neighborhood espresso bar that seems to attract a lot of young parents with toddlers (one of our lnstagram followers has nicknamed the place „Babymat“) would pay a huge disservice to a humble place that has become a coffee institution with an incredibly consistent output throughout the years. We really can’t remember the last time we had a bad cup of coffee at Kafemat. A small team of seasoned veterans (if you can call people under 35 veterans) have been consistent in turning beans by Square Mile Roasters into great cups of coffee. But then again, this is a neighborhood espresso bar with lots of young parents and toddlers toddling around. If you like a neighborhood feel in your espresso bar, this is it.
mazelab coffee
Opened just in December 2019, mazelab.coffee has quickly become one of our favorite places to have coffee. Why? Because Jackie, the owner (and the owner of Cafefin in the Vinohrady district) dares to be different. Mazelab.coffee looks like a child of a Blue Bottle and Copenhagen’s Coffee Collective: you can’t hide the industrial nature of the former tyre-changing garage, but turning it into a spacious, all-white zen garden. The keywords: no sugar, no wifi, no cash. Using the beans by Danish La Cabra roasters for the moment, mazelab does not offer one but three batch brews at a time, with a possible tasting option. A place where every little detail has been given thought and care.
Můj šálek kávy
Můj šálek kávy in the Karlin district is a true coffee institution that has brought specialty coffee on the map in Prague as a viable and popular alternative to the Italian-inspired canon all around, in effect defining and setting the quality of coffee, the pricing and the feel of many coffee shops to open thereafter. And years later, it still is one of the best coffee shops in town, and, with Kavárna Místo, the flagship of the Doubleshot coffee roasters that, just a few years ago, used to nearly control the specialty coffee market in Prague. Their outdoor seating in the warmer months is a pure joy to sit in to enjoy a great cup of coffee or tea and just people watch. Just like Místo, you can have a fairly substantial meal here, too. Please note the barista centre next door: they run barista courses there in English, too. Please enquire at the bar. We’ve been to two and they are great.
Other Favorite Coffee Shops in Prague
Tout va Bien
Tout va bien is not a place where you go to get nerdy about coffee, and talk to the barista about how you fold that damn Chemex filter to get an even flow or whatever. You go to Tout va bien to just chill and relax, because it is hard not to: Riana and her friend/colleague, the two owners who hail from South Korea, created a space that is can be as calming and relaxing as what I can only guess is a day at a Korean spa (without the painful scrubbing). The space pulls of being minimalist and cosy at the same time - you just enjoy a cup of great coffee, grab one of the high end magazines on display and enjoy the cool sounds of Miles Davis.
EMA Espresso Bar
EMA was the first modern specialty coffee espresso bar that showed you don’t have to have a full menu and offer seating for hours to make it work, and it still remains one of the few places in Prague that can make money by selling coffee alone. Which means you have to ready to sharpen your elbows to get a seat at the communal table or the window panes around it, especially during the peak hours when hip youngsters mix in with the office rats from the big complex next door. Their buchna buns are great if they still have them when you’re there. EMA is modern, airy, and happening.
Alf&Bet
EMA Espresso Bar’s younger sister, Alf&Bet is the first flag of gentrification in the Palmovka area and a jack of many trades: a great coffee shop that roasts its own coffee right there in front of you, but it’s also a heavy duty bakery and a kitchen, all of that in what seems to be a former mechanic’s shop or large garage, which is where Alf&Bet inherits its industrial feel from. Despite the location, which some would call remote, the place can get crazy busy and dizzyingly frantic on weekend mornings, as the young city crowds grab their coffees and bread to go, or stay for simple dishes and breakfast. The coffee is as good as, if not better, than at EMA Espresso Bar, and just like its sister, it offers no wifi, so bring your own internets.
Kavárna Místo
„Some coffee shops open and struggle for the first year. Místo opened and it was packed two minutes later,“ Gwilym Davies observed on Místo’s opening day. Yes, Kavárna Místo struck a note with the locals of the Bubeneč district, hungry and thirsty for specialty coffee (in cups or in bags) from a brand they knew - the then ubiquitous Doubleshot - and the simple meals and sweets they knew from the older Sister, Karlín’s Můj šálek kávy. And why change the concept that has been so successful In MSK? So while it retains the continuously solid coffee in many forms and the meals and sweets, it adds lighter, more modern and airier interiors and a large staircase in the front that you can sit on while you wait for a table. Because you will wait for a table during rush hours and weekends.
Super Tramp Coffee
Super Tramp Coffee must be one of our favorite places to have coffee during the summer. Hidden in a courtyard of an old printing hours, it may take an effort to find STC (our tip: enter from Spálená street right next to the Chez Amis store), but it’s well worth it. The main selling point is just the feeling of being entirely detached from the rest of the city in this quiet, seemingly self-contained courtyard, and perhaps the feeling that if you know about this place, you are a part of the club of locals in the know. We always grab a cup of coffee and some of the bakery’s creations, but they also sell a craft beer and some natural wines. This is a cool place for cool people: an old Bowie spinning on the turntable, cool guides and magazines for sale, and patrons that tend to be on the younger and artsier side.
Pauseteria
The best coffee in the closest vicinity of the Old Town Square. That’s all you need to know, really. So if you find yourself in the middle of the madding crowds waiting for the 15 seconds of disappointing spectacle put on every hour by the Astronomical Clock or stuck in the crowds for Easter or Christmas Markets or, even worse, just spent an hour going up and down the Astronomical Clock, Pauseteria has you covered with good coffee and a surprising local feel for one of the most touristy hot spots in town. ‚Nuff said.
Kafe Karlín
This isn’t a place for a prolonged read or a first date place: this is unapologetically an espresso bar that serves quick coffee to the people catching the tram outside or working in the offices of the Karlín district around. But what coffee it is! Opened by two pioneers of the Prague coffee scene, Adam and Zdeněk, who were educating the general public about good coffee with their stand on the popular farmers markets or through their barista courses before most people could spell Gesha right, KK has been serving consistently great coffee from beans of their own roasting and through baristas of their own training. Very loyal following and as far as espresso bars go, the coffee is as good as it gets.
Coffee room
Czechs dislike braggadocio and boasting, so when the first press release of coffee room hit the internets a few years back, people rolled their eyes. Delicious coffee, sure…. and inspiring sandwiches? What the hell does that even mean? But you know what? Through hard work, sheer determination and many good business and coffee and food-related decisions, coffee room has become a favorite in the Vinohrady district among young crowds, and for a good reason. The coffee is great, the baked stuff is very palatable (buchta buns!) and the teas and wine come from well curated suppliers. The placed is rather small so tends to be packed but the wait is definitely worth it.
Osada
What happens when a few baristas employed by the ubiquitous Ambiente group break away from the Ambi spell and open their own place? Osada in the Holešovice district happens: a place that knows what it’s doing on the coffee side, with some tentative support from the Ambiente group on the business side. Yes, this is a place that feels modern, run by young baristas, but also reassured in its decisions and setup. Their Monte Rici sandwich, created by one of chefs at Eska, is super simple but we keep ordering it. And their outdoor seating, separated from the street outside, is great if you visit with a restless toddler.
Ronin Coffee Spot
Built single-handedly from scratch by Boris, one of the most familiar faces on the Prague coffee scene, Ronin Coffee Spot is a place that reflects his personality (to the point where it nearly feels like you’re visiting him at home) and has quickly become one of our favorite places to grab a cup of coffee in the area. The design is cool and feels lounge-y around the central part with the bar, while the outdoor seating in the back will be a shady refuge in the summer. Boris knows what he likes… and he likes good coffee, so the produce, the process and the service have all been fine-tuned to his liking. Great spot all in all.
Café Jen
Breakfast is the name of the game in this Vršovice bistro and coffee shop with an all-female ownership and staff. Hana and Dominika, the owners, love breakfast and serve it all day long. But that should not overshadow the fact that the coffee is excellent, too: Hana used to compete at the Czech Barista Championships and they are taking their coffee game very seriously. Café Jen is the kind of place that is neighborly, welcoming and friendly, and serves great coffee without you having to commit to a specific worldview, hype or aesthetic. Combine with a visit to the Grébovka vineyard and park nearby.
Barry Higgel’s Coffeehouse
The truth is we do not visit Barry Higgel’s Coffeehouse in the Holešovice often, but on second thought, we should. We are yet to get a bad cup of coffee from BHC. This place may be small and their communication on social media may not be as proactive as with other places. (Yes, it’s their fault we don’t visit more often.) But the coffee shop is truly devoted to coffee and run by real aficionados. It is also a fun place for a local coffee lover who’s been everywhere already - they use beans by whatever roasters they like at the moment, so it never gets boring. Great place in the shade of the cool Vnitroblock next door, but definitely not overshadowed by their coffee.
Prague Coffee Neighborhood guides
Prague’s left bank
The Bubeneč district is obviously dominated by the „Bubeneč triangle of great coffee“, formed by Kafemat, Kavárna Místo and mazelab coffee, all within short walking distance from each other. (We live in Bubeneč, which means we are heavily caffeinated most of the time.) But inside that triangle is La Forme coffee shop: a tiny espresso bar/bakery from the people who brought you Barry Higgel’s Coffeehouse in the Holešovice district. Strong points? Well, compared to Kavárna Místo, the wifi is better, the atmosphere is much calmer and you can actually get a seat most of the time. Confession: most of this listicle was written there. Another good coffee spot is the Kafe Kiosek stand - at the Dejvická bus stops where people wait for their bus to the airport. And that’s when we get our coffee there - on our way to the airport.
There’s honestly not a lot happening, coffee-wise, when you walk south from Bubeneč on the left bank, with two very notable exceptions. First, Kavárna Nový svět in the Nový svět area, which is definitely one of our top recommendations for a detour when you visit the Castle. Great coffee in a super cosy café (especially after a frosty winter walk through the picturesque Nový svět) and the balcony over the garden in the back is to many, us included, the prettiest place to have specialty coffee in Prague. This could probably make the „Other Favorite Coffee Shops“ list if we visited more often. But whenever we do, we are happy.
Descending the Castle, you will reach Café Savoy. Sure, hipsters look down on the Savoy, because it clearly speaks to a different demographic, but that should not obscure the fact that the Savoy has a great machine, good beans from Doubleshot, and some pretty damn good baristas (who, admittedly, may not have the time to pamper each cup). I will have batch brew from the Savoy any day. Just ask yourself: which Prague restaurant or pastry shop serves better coffee? Exactly. We rarely make our way to Kofárna around the corner from the Savoy, but that does not mean you shouldn’t. It’s specialty coffee and deserves to be on this list.
The Anděl area is graced by Kavárna co hledá jméno - a super popular coffee shop among younger crowds that has fully embraced a certain aesthetic (their bathroom must be the most Instagrammed bathroom in town - you have to get there to understand) and has become famous for their soufflé eggs Benedict - so famous, in fact, that they have paved the way for the opening of the Bockem restaurant. This is a great place to get a cup and just people watch. Finally, Kafe Kolej is a tiny stand by the Smíchovské nádraží railway station run by the people behind Kafe Karlín that has made the daily commute more tolerable for many.
Letná and Holešovice
Most people in Prague think of Karlín as the place for cool coffee shops. Well, that is until you start counting the coffee shops on the Letná hill - it almost feels wasteful. Starting from the top of the hill, Alchymista has one of the nicest back gardens in town to have coffee al fresco, and one of the darkest roasts still within the realms of specialty coffee. Kavárna pod lipami on Čechova street is the nicest of the Mamacoffee empire. Café Tvaroh, which took over the space left behind by the wonderful Milada neo bistro, adds some food to the beautiful interiors and cute outdoor seating in the back. And Kafe Kiosek has a new location in the Šmeralova street, too.
Ye’s cafe and studio on Letenské náměstí square has a lot of character, runs interesting events and serves coffee by Dublin-based Cloud Picker Coffee Roasters. Café Letka occupies one of the nicest coffee shop rooms in the cit - very Instagrammable with a nice bohemian feel. And the fairly fresh Pilot café is probably the most comfortable coffee shop in Letná if you need to get some work done.
Walking down Milady Horákové street, you will reach Dos Mundos, a nice espresso bar by one of Prague’s established coffee roasters. (If you think we missed Sólista, you probably haven’t heard that they closed at the end of 2019.) Bar Cobra is a jack of all trades, opening at 8am and closing at 2am most of the days and serving anything from breakfasts to cocktails along the way, but they also serve some very solid coffee, so this should totally make the list. The foot of the Letná hill accommodates a few more notable places: Kafe Jedna in the National Gallery is the epicenter of your Letná life if you are a parent to a toddler or two, thanks to their play area in the corner. Letec espresso bar is a bit of Berlin in Prague, both through aesthetics and produce: they serve coffee by Berlin-based Five Elephant coffee roasters.
Moving on to Holešovice, the first „obvious“ choice would be Vnitroblock, a large repurposed industrial space with a sneaker shop and many other functions run by the guys behind Kavárna co hledá jméno, which serves specialty coffee to the masses of younger locals, but our choice in the area would be Alza Café, the third location of the Doubleshot coffee roasters run in a huge on-line shop warehouse. It may be a bit weird to drink coffee while masses of people wait to collect their orders, with constant beeps and announcements, but the coffee is legit. A short walk away is the Bitcoin Coffee in Paralelni Polis - a godsend to any food writer because they have something you can actually write about. (Yeah, how many times can you write „good coffee, pleasant atmosphere“, really.) You want coffee? Need to have bitcoins, which is the only way to pay. It’s actually kinda annoying if you want coffee and don’t happen to have bitcoins, since it involves a few downloads and registrations. Without coffee. Finally, Ca Phe is a nice Vietnamese bistro and coffee shop that happens to sell great coffee, too.
Karlín
Karlín used to be Prague’s pioneering district for coffee, since it was home to Můj šálek kávy and later Kafe Karlín. Three more notable places: first, Eska is a restaurant, sure, but people tend to forget it also was Ambiente group’s first foray into specialty coffee - they have great equipment and beans by Nordbeans, a local roaster. Also, when it comes to baked stuff, they can go head to head with nearly any coffee shop in town and probably win.
The newly opened Etapa by our friends Gabi and Petr, popular food bloggers, also serves great coffee in addition to the mostly vegetarian dishes served in Etapa. It is easy for many to dismiss Etapa as amateur hour (since Gabi and Petr never ran a bistro or coffee shop and don’t have culinary backgrounds) but that would completely ignore how much thought went behind the entire operation and especially the „user experience“ - Etapa is probably the only bistro/coffee shop in town with a Maitre D’. If you want to know more about the thought processes behind Etapa, check out our podcast with Gabi and Petr (in Czech only). Finally, the cool Kasárna Karlín barracks also have a coffee shop with specialty coffee.. and the biggest sandbox for kids you’ve probably ever seen.
New Town, Old Town
So we’ve already mentioned onesip coffee, EMA Espresso Bar, Super Tramp Coffee and Pauseteria. But there’s more to coffee in the „centre“ than that. Urban Café has a beautiful floral wall along the big communal table… and some of the best buchta buns we’ve tried in the city. Hooray for that! Spell coffee is a but hard to find - you have to walk inside a courtyard and look for the Spell beauty shop. And you’re there. You want coffee with that haircut? You’ve come to the right place. Many people neglect the Myšák pastry shop as a specialty coffee place, which would be a mistake. Before the coffee sister of Café Savoy and Eska does serve specialty coffee with their delicious pastries. As mentioned in the companion Prague coffee piece, this is the place to get the „alžírská kava“ Algerian coffee with eggnog. This is probably the only specialty coffee version of that venerable drink.
The Franciscan Garden in the New Town is home to not one, but two specialty coffee places: Headshot coffee at the end of the walkthrough from the Myšák gallery, and Café Truhlárna nearer to Jungmannovo náměstí. Both serve great coffee and offer some serene outdoor seatings. Perfect for the summer. And the Fénix Palace at the top of the Wenceslas Square hides the Studio Dva theatre café, a great hideaway with good coffee.
Two more spots by the river: first, Tricafé is arguably the best coffee shop you can have around the madness that is the Karlova Street leading into the Charles Bridge. This can be your refuge and safe haven where you can regain your sanity after a few minutes spent on the bridge. Finally, I Need Coffee! Further south is one of the pioneers of Prague specialty coffee, and the single room with lots of stackable souvenirs to buy is still a great place with a minimalist, stripped-down aesthetic.
Vinohrady, Žižkov and Vršovice
When specialty coffee invaded Prague, the Vinohrady district was the epicenter of all things coffee at one point. And today, it still has a few really nice options when it comes to coffee. Dos Mundos, a local roaster, has its roasting grounds in Vinohrady, but the place serves coffee, too. Talk about that fresh roast smell. Mezi srnky can be enormously popular for brunches, but their coffee does not play second fiddle to the dishes they serve from the very open kitchen. This is a great place if you want to see where young cool people like hang. And if you want to have coffee on a comfy couch, Friends-style, you’ve got to go to La Bohéme Café, owned by a roaster of the same name, one of the first on the Prague scene, actually. They inherited the room from a fancy designer furniture store, and it shows.
Momoichi bistro has changed quite a bit since its inception - the Alpha Dominate steampunk coffee maker may be gone from the heavily Japanese-inspired bistro (all the way up to the Japanese toilets), but that does not mean their coffee or tea got any worse. And their Asian-inspired dishes only complete the experience. For a more coffee-focused trip, visit Kavárna Pražírna, a basement coffee shop and roasting facility that has been there since the humble beginnings of specialty coffee in Prague and has built a very loyal following in the meantime. Come here if you have a slight allergy to all coffee hype - they have avoided all of the attitude and aesthetics McDonald’s coffee commercials have mocked.
Whenever we have foreign journalists or bloggers reach out to us and want us to confirm their selection of places, Cafefin is inevitably included. Because it is built for for Instagram pictures, whether consciously or not. The space, the presentation, all of it. That’s because Jackie, the owner, is a designer and likes to do things his own way, and he hit the jackpot with the aesthetics of Cafefin. (He also owns and runs mazelab.coffee, mentioned above.) The Miners in the same block is a fresh, crisp place with good coffee and some baked goodies to go with that. Great if you like your coffee with a street view. Tvoje máma, a small bistro / coffee shop in the Vršovice district, is a beautiful space with nice coffee and a few dishes along the way. The main selling point is the great view of the Constructivist St Wenceslas Church outside. This feels like a hidden gem that nobody else knows about. Finally, the newly opened Mou Limited is a small coffee shop that serves well prepared coffee in a nicely repurposed basement space.
The rest
Three notable mentions that didn’t fit any of the districts above: first, Typika coffee in the Nusle area is a beautiful coffee shop somewhat affiliated with the Brno-based Rusty Nails coffee roasters. The design is very nice (the plants help), the coffee is great and we like the few dishes that the kitchen is serving. We have found ourselves traveling to Nusle to get some work done in Typika. Nusle Beans is another nice coffee shop near the Folimanka park. Finally, Kavárna čekárna is the perfect place to get caffeinated before or after your trip to the Vyšehrad fortress above. Great outdoor seating in the back.
