What’s a better to kickstart your morning/afternoon than a fresh cup of coffee? When you can enjoy it from within a cosy Bristol cafe, relaxing and people-watching. Cos even when you’ve invested money into a coffee machine or an Aeropress, and time into making sure it tastes just right, nothing beats your local coffee shop. Here’s our guide to the best coffee shops in Bristol for a quick pick-me-up of caffeine, or somewhere you can wind down for hours working away in the corner.
1. One B Coffee House
Sometimes what makes a great coffee shop is that it’s your coffee shop. One B Coffee House is our coffee shop. It’s cosy, friendly, and basically feels like a second home by this point – the coffee doesn’t taste quite right anywhere else. Yes, that’s localness bias, but it also deserves to be here. So beloved it it that a second spot is opening on Gloucester Road very soon. Pop in for speciality coffee, golden pastries, and handmade sarnies – plus, a sunny spot on permanently pedestrianised Cotham Hill.
One B Coffee House, 1b, Pitville Place, Cotham, Bristol BS6 6JZ
13A Gloucester Rd, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8AA
2. Fed 303
Coffee is great, but what makes it even better? Cake. You can’t go wrong with a great slice of cake alongside a freshly brewed coffee and Fed 303 serves just that. Their current bakes include blackberry and elderflower polenta cake, cardamom knots, tahini caramel brownies, chocolate Guinness cake, rhubarb and custard doughnuts, plus chocolate and hazelnut babka buns.
No, you’re drooling! And if you fancy trying a banana bread not made by yours truly then try Fed 303’s version served with chocolate butter alongside a cup of their Yallah coffee, for a heavenly breakfast option. You’ll also find its unique seasonal salads and savoury snacks in Cotham and Fishponds too.
FED, 303 Gloucester Road, BS7 8PE
4-6 Abbotsford Rd, Cotham, Bristol, BS6 6HB
755 Fishponds Road, Bristol, BS16 3UP
3. Sweven
Sweven is all about “coffee, first.” An eye-opener for coffee novices, a dream come true for aficionados, the Bedminster coffee shop and roastery serves an array of speciality blends. You’ll also want to take your time and relax in its sleek and modern setting – luckily, the staff won’t rush perfection! Want to take the coffee home? Grab a box of the cafe’s pleasing roasts, with unique notes like mango puree, bergamot and lemongrass, to name a few.
Sweven, 12 North Street, BS3 1HT
4. Full Court Press
Known for showing off the world’s best coffee makers – it even runs a coffee subscription service, complete with its own roasts – Full Court Press feels pretty unique in the centre of Bristol. It’s not all about highlighting flavour either, but “the effect of every step along the production chain” – which is why you’ll find such a special range of beans on offer. There’s always two espresso and two filter options, as well as soft drinks, teas and hot chocolate. It’s a small, oddly-shaped space, but on a nice day, grab a seat outside and soak in the Old City.
Full Court Press, 59 Broad St, Bristol BS1 2EJ
5. The Orchard Coffee & Co.
Located in St George, The Orchard Coffee & Co is one of the biggest coffee shops in Bristol, and all decked out with wooden flooring, counters and tables. And to give the coffee shop that extra glow, it’s decorated with numerous plants and fairy lights draped from wall to wall. The Orchard Coffee & Co serve their own unique, in-house made blend which is created with five different coffee beans and can be enjoyed at home too.
Sweet treat wise, their malt malteser hot chocolate looks quite the tease, as well as their Jammy Dodger blondies. They also serve breakfast baguettes including one with veggie sausages, spinach and sriracha, as well as cheesy bloomer toasties and Sunday roasts suitable for veggies and meat-eaters. Plus, all the ingredients in their main dishes are free-range, organic and local sourced.
The Orchard Coffee, Clouds Hill, St George, BS5 7LA
6. Albatross Café
Another coffee shop staple on North Street is Albatross Café. This pastel-hued, plant paradise is quite the haven. Not only is the coffee here incredible, but the mugs they’re served in are gorgeous. Made by Jericho Studio Pottery, and only stocked in Albatross Café, these beautifully hand-crafted mugs and bowls sell just as quickly as their cakes and coffee do so be quick.
It’s recently gone back to basics but still serves coffee, cake, pastries, cocktails, wine and beer three days a week (Thursday to Saturday). Previously featured cakes include chai-spiced caramel and white chocolate blondies; and clementine and almond cake with chocolate ganache. Stop by on a Friday for doughnuts! You can thank us later.
60 North Street, Southville, BS3 1HJ
7. Playground Coffee House
Fancy a game whilst you sip your coffee? Well, Playground is a speciality coffee shop in Bristol offering just that. And, if coffee isn’t your tipple of choice, then this place has a delicious rotation of craft beers, tasty ciders (it’s Bristol after all) and a lovely range of coffee-based (and not) cocktails. Choose from a selection of drinks and board games suitable for all group sizes. And if you’re fortunate (and quick) enough you may even be able to nap a spot at their window seat which is a swing!
Playground, 45 St. Nicholas Street, BS1 1TP
8. Origin
The independent Cornish coffee roaster, with coffee shops in London too, opened its first Bristol cafe last year. Located in the heart of the city centre, Origin is aimed at commuters, locals, and visitors alike – somewhere we can all go for a quiet drink in its industrial aesthetic. Plus, it’s big enough to host events and brewing courses too! Origin is one of the longest-standing speciality coffee roasters in the UK, as well, and is only serving single-origin coffees.
Origin Coffee, 36 Victoria St, Redcliffe, Bristol BS1 6BY
9. 3ft 6
Have you found Bristol’s smallest coffee shop? You’ll find 3ft 6 serving coffee and cake out of a converted garage in Redfield. Owned by artist and designer Rob Savage, who transformed the space during the lockdown, it’s since become a hub for the community – and it’s in the current process of extending its premises! The coffee is roasted by Blind Owl on the nearby Feeder Road. Plus, you’ll be able to pick up croissants, brownies, flapjacks, sausage rolls, flans, turnovers and more!
3ft 6, 0.5 Lancaster Street, BS5 9QL
10. 25a Old Market
25a Old Market is one of those coffee shops in Bristol that has everything you could possibly need – good coffee, a decadent deli, delicious baked goods and a plentiful pantry. Like Fed, this independent coffee shop also serves speciality coffee by Yallah and they get their amazing pastries and doughnuts from the iconic Bristol bakery, Pinkmans.
25a Old Market Street, BS2 0HB