In this post, I pick the best coffee shop in every state.
I threw in the best coffee shops in DC and Puerto Rico as an added bonus.
I’ve traveled all over the country to baseball card conventions and other personal interests. Proud to say I’ve had coffee in 48 states, Puerto Rico, and DC. Between my own experience and the advice of other coffee lovers, I feel qualified to make this list.
If you like good coffee in a cozy setting with interesting people and a laidback atmosphere, you’ll love the 52 coffee shops listed here.
See? I don’t always write about silly stuff like the best coffee at Costco or Central Market.
Let’s get right into the region-by-region guide to the best coffee shops in the United States.
Best Coffee Shops in the Northeast
The Northeastern United States is second only to the Pacific Northwest in terms of coffee culture clout.
The bone-chilling winters and mild summers common in this part of the country make it the perfect atmosphere for a gourmet coffee industry.
Sure, people in the Northeast like to get a cup of coffee from Dunkin’ when they’re in a rush and need a caffeine jolt.
But this part of the country is also nuts for coffee shops.
In fact, the oldest coffee shop in America that’s still operating is located in this part of the country. Though Caffe Reggio is not my pick for the best coffee shop in New York, it’s worth mentioning as it nears its 100th year of serving coffee to cold and wet Northeasterners.
Here are the best coffee shops in each of the northeastern US states (and the District of Columbia).
Connecticut – Rebel Dog Coffee Co.
I’m putting Rebel Dog on this list because I like their attitude, I like their website, I love their coffee, and I really appreciate their recent move to in-house roasting. Lots of in-house roasters on this list, and for good reason.
Rebel Dog has the wide range of coffee products you’d expect from a “best-in-state” coffee shop. I had a long list of coffees to pick from on my visit. Everything from very light roast to French, with both blends and single-origin coffees.
I found their Organic Ethiopia Kayon Mountain to be one of my favorite cups of the year. Light roast, loaded with caffeine, with some very interesting toffee and fruit flavors and a long finish. My wife had a dark roast Peruvian that went really well with one of their house-made pastries.
I also appreciate that they produce and highlight their Speed Limit Decaf, which is a medium-to-dark roast single-origin Colombian with bright cracker and soft honey notes.
Their coffee purchases are ethical and green – another trend you’ll see frequently on this list.
Rebel Dog currently has three locations (Plainville, Farmington, and East Hartford).
Delaware – The Coffee Mill
This is one of those “I stumbled in here and then fell in love with the place” coffee shops.
The morning after a night of many adult beverages, my wife and I stumbled in mostly because it was the only place that seemed open at 7 AM. In fact, that’s their exact opening time, so it was perfect timing.
Their menu had eight “regular coffees” (Kenya AA and Papua New Guinea caught my eye) alongside dozens of flavored coffees. Also available – eight organic coffees, including their own organic breakfast blend that my wife said was absolutely perfect.
The woman working the counter said they stock something like 120 different kinds of coffee, all told.
I think The Coffee Mill’s croissant saved my life. Fresh, warm, buttery, and the perfect antidote to overindulging the night before.
Delaware really surprised me.
For example, I had some of the best Tex-Mex in my life in Wilmington. That’s a story for another post, but in the meantime, check out Santa Fe Mexican Grill near Saint Francis Hospital the next time you’re in Wilmington.
District of Columbia (DC) – Dua Coffee DC
Dua Coffee DC is the DC branch of a Jakarta, Indonesia coffee company. Their coffees are almost entirely focused on the Indonesian/Sumatran area.
If you aren’t familiar with the Indonesian coffee scene, you’re late to the party. Indonesian coffee is traditionally brewed strong and sweet. Coffee is a major part of Indonesian culture. It’s a coffee hotspot and it deserves the world’s attention.
Stopped by here with my wife and some friends on a tour of the city a couple of years ago. We found the coffees to be fragrant, with excellent body. In other words perfect for gourmet coffee.
I loved the Cold Kopi Kedua so much, I bought a big 32 oz. jar of the stuff for about $9 and we used that to fuel the rest of our adventure through the nation’s capital.
You’ll find Dua Coffee DC just north of the McPherson Square Metrorail station, with a nice view of McPherson Square.
Dua DC Coffee is a daytime affair – they’re open at either 8 AM during the week and 9 AM on the weekends. They close at 3 PM.
Maryland – Artifact Coffee
Local restaurateurs Amy and Spike Gjerdes opened Artifact Coffee about a decade ago. The idea was to have a more casual space where they could cook food a little different from the New American dishes at Woodberry Kitchen.
Artifact makes great coffee, but that’s not the whole story of how they ended up on this list.
The night before my brother’s wedding in Baltimore, my wife and I were looking for a pick-me-up. We were surprised to find a coffee shop open at 7 PM.
It turns out that they do dinner service a few times a week at random. We lucked into a delicious family-style chicken stew with carrots and kohlrabi alongside a perfect night-time double espresso.
Artifact Coffee is just close enough to Johns Hopkins to classify as a college coffee shop, but it isn’t overrun by students. The scholars at JHU aren’t exactly rambunctious football hooligans. It’s a professional crowd with a mix of young people and students studying.
If you like great coffee and even better food, check out Maryland’s Artifact Coffee.
Maine – Coffee by Design
Maine is one of just two states I’ve never visited, so I asked my buddy Rob who lived in Maine when he was in college.
He insisted that the original Congress Street location of Coffee by Design is the best in the state.
I looked into it. It opened in 1994, right at the beginning of the gourmet coffee craze. It became the cornerstone of a revitalized neighborhood now known as the Arts District.
Coffee by Design roasts and blends their own beans at their own roastery in-town. That’s probably why my buddy remembers their coffees all these years later.
I called up their Congress Street location and asked some pointed questions. The barista said they had 11 coffees currently brewing, everything from expensive and rare single-origin stuff like Gasharu Natural from Rwanda to their own house blends and flavored coffees.
In case you want a recommendation, Rob swears by their Black Bear Blend. It’s dark, earthy, but incredibly smooth. Rob says he and his buddies use to put it through their espresso machine for a late-night study boost.
Massachusetts – Pavement Coffee House
There’s lots of competition for the title of “best coffee house in Massachusetts.”
I’m hoping to stay out of the debate entirely by giving the title to a coffee shop chain that everyone in Boston can agree with – Pavement Coffee House.
I was surprised to find out that they have eight locations now, including one at Boston University.
When I visited, around 2016, I don’t think they had more than a couple of locations, and they weren’t very well known.
Pavement buys their coffees from family-owned farms and regional co-ops, hoping for a green and ethical process. I’m a big fan of their Summer Camp seasonal blend, which I’ve continued to buy from their retail shop online whenever it’s available.
Summer Camp is a blend of washed and natural sundried Ethiopian coffees, plucked from the very first crop. It’s a summery blend that goes well with hot weather. They use a light roast to preserve the interesting floral and fruit notes. It has quite a caffeine kick relative to other African coffees you’ve had.
They also have top-notch bagels.
If you’re in Boston and you want a coffee shop with lots of variety, and you don’t mind a bit of a noisy crowd, check out Pavement.
New Hampshire – Blue Harbor Coffee
Blue Harbor Coffee is New Hampshire best roastery and coffee shop and it isn’t even close.
Small town downtown coffee shops just have to be experienced, you can’t really put it in words. There’s a soft and friendly atmosphere here. The employees are the opposite of your typical snobby barista. You can watch coffee being roasted, blended, and worked with.
It’s a big, bright, open space in a bustling little small town that will put a smile on your face.
It was a great place to take a rest late morning on a drive through New England. My wife and I both ordered the Brazil Moka Peaberry, since we’re both peaberry fanatics. The medium roast brought out some delicious creaminess and burnt sugar that complimented the light brunch foods we ordered.
I love a coffee shop that’s open early. During the week, Blue Harbor opens for service at 6 AM and doesn’t close until 4 PM. On the weekends, you probably won’t get in the door until 6:30 or 7.
New Jersey – How You Brewin? Coffee Company
Call me whatever you want, but I’m kind of a sucker for a coffee shop pun name.
Say How You Brewin’ with a stereotypical New Jersey accent. Go ahead, try it. It’s fun to say.
But, a novelty name won’t get you on my list of the best coffee shops in each state. You also have to have impeccable coffee, an inviting atmosphere, and an X factor.
How You Brewin? has been in business since 2004 on Long Beach Island. The owners had a stated goal of making their shop “an extension of you living room,” and they nailed it. Their comfortable and bright spaces are ideal spots for work, conversation, or just a relaxing hot cup.
They have a big menu of single-origin coffees, blends, and flavored brews. The pound of Mexican Roma Altura I picked up on my last visit didn’t last more than a few days. Maybe the most balanced light roast cup I’ve had all year.
How You Brewin? has a flagship location in Surf City open 7 AM to 6 PM every day. They also have a smaller location in Barnegat Light that’s open 7 AM to 6 PM from Good Friday through Thanksgiving.
New York – Freedom of Espresso
I’m gonna take some flak for not picking a NYC coffee shop, and maybe that’s warranted.
Only about 40% of New Yorkers live in and around the city. I figured it was more responsible to pick my favorite non-NYC shop to highlight here.
Freedom of Espresso has been in the gourmet coffee and pastry business since 1995. They have four locations (Fayetteville, Franklin Square, Liverpool, and Camillus) pushing out consistently awesome gourmet coffee drinks.
Even better, for my taste, is the fact that the shops themselves seem frozen in time in about the late 90s. The lighting, ambience, and even the music is decidedly late-90s stoner slacker.
The pastries, baked on-site daily, push the whole experience over the top.
My wife still raves about their African blend. Bright, in a medium roast, with a strong hint of dark cherries and stone fruit, we usually enjoyed it as a midday pot.
Pennsylvania – Passenger Coffee
Lancaster, PA’s Passenger Coffee is something the town should be incredibly proud of.
You don’t normally find this kind of coffee shop outside of a major city. The variety of coffees, teas, and specialty drinks here is unmatched in the state of Pennsylvania. I also love the big and bold menu on the wall with clear and easy to understand prices.
Passenger has two distinct vibes. One is a typical busy coffee bar. The other is more of a coffee and tea showroom, with a quieter vibe and a great focus on the customer experience. Both are open 7 AM to 2 PM every day.
The mood in both Passenger locations is perfect. But, what really sets Passenger apart from the competition are their coffee and tea products.
At any given time, they’ve got at least 30 single-origin coffees on offer in a wide range of brewing methods. Their baristas are intelligent with real strong opinions about coffee and a willingness to help customers discover something new.
Rhode Island – New Harvest Coffee Roasters
Believing that “a great cup of coffee shouldn’t be an occasional treat,” the owners of New Harvest have spent twenty years putting that belief to the test.
Located in the cutting-edge Farm Fresh Food Hub in Providence, New Harvest Coffee Roasters is doing some amazing coffee work in a part of the country not necessarily celebrated for great coffee.
I love that you can walk into this small-town shop and have your coffee made five or six different ways. I also love the modern but comfortable setting, and the high foot traffic. This is a great people-watching coffee shop.
To me, the standout experience at New Harvest was a simple cup of hot coffee. Brewed from the company’s own Roast Boy organic blend, I found it incredibly smooth with a big caffeine kick and an aftertaste of toasted marshmallows. It’s the kind of coffee that has you questioning your current go-to.
The company roasts on-site five days a week. If you like watching (and smelling) the coffee roasting process, New Harvest does it more frequently than any other coffee shop I’ve visited.
Vermont – Speeder & Earl’s
Speeder & Earl’s has been in business in Vermont since 1993. That means they’ve been roasting and blending beans since long before most Vermont coffee shops even opened their doors.
You can’t visit Burlington without heading to Speeder & Earl’s for a Stowe Sunrise Blend. It’s a unique mix of Indian and African coffees selected for brightness. The result is close to a donut shop-style coffee, but with a longer finish and more body.
Every small-batch roaster you’ve been to in America is pretty much a copy of Speeder & Earl’s From the decor to the staff, everything here is tailored to that unique and ideal American coffee shop experience.
West Virginia – The Blue Moose Cafe
Downtown Morgantown is the kind of neighborhood in a small college town that will have you wanting to move in as soon as possible.
The area is saturated with culture. Young people bring an energy to the area that’s indescribable. The Blue Moose Cafe is close enough to West Virginia University that you’ll often find students in here for a brew or a snack. But it isn’t exactly saturated with college kids.
Enough about all that – how’s the coffee?
The Blue Moose has been a local landmark for more than two decades in part because they care so much about their coffee. Their house blend must be experienced. It’s smooth, very nearly dark roast, with tons of flavor, and a long finish. It’s the kind of coffee that practically begs for a pastry.
They’re open 8:30 AM to 2:30 PM. It’s like banker’s hours but for coffee shops. It’s also a testament to the youthful energy of the area. Why open before 8:30 when everyone’s asleep until at least 8?
Best Coffee Shops in the Southeast
Here’s another part of the country where “strong gourmet coffee culture” doesn’t spring to mind. Without making any Florida Man jokes, go ahead and scan the list of states in the Southeast US and you’ll see what I mean.
Great food? Friendly people? Absolutely. But you don’t necessary think about good coffee when you think about Kentucky or Florida.
The seven states I list in the Best Coffee Shops in the Southeast category defy any and all geographical expectations.
Florida – Axum Coffee
Florida’s Axum Coffee runs four coffee shops in and around the Orlando metro area.
Axum’s insistence on placing orders for ESDA Organic and Fair Trade coffees sets them apart from any other coffee shops in the state, as does their commitment to making a great cup of coffee in a cozy setting.
They first caught my eye on a trip down to the Keys. I walked in to their Apopka location thirsty for a strong cup. The barista sold me up on a cup of Columbia Pink Bourbon. It turns out, they were the only shop in the country to receive any of this unique single-origin bean.
From there I got into a long discussion about washed vs. natural coffees and the proper ways to express them. Clearly, Axum knows how to hire smart and dedicated baristas.
The interior is cozy, if a bit on the small side. Maybe not the best place to sit and spend a long time working, but ideal for people-watching in their busy storefronts.
Georgia – Refuge Coffee Co.
I wanted to highlight Georgia’s Refuge Coffee Co., even if their coffee shops aren’t always up to my high standards.
The work Refuge Coffee is doing with Georgia’s refugee community is worth celebrating.
Refuge has as its mission “to use a delicious cup of coffee as a platform for job training” for resettled refugees and other immigrants.
To date, Refuge has trained 50 refugees and immigrants from 15 countries around the world, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars along the way. In fact, 70% of their staff are resettled refugees or other immigrants.
Between their Atlanta-based coffee truck and coffee shop, and their catering company based in the suburbs, Refuge Coffee Co. is making a big name for itself for all the right reasons.
Kentucky – Please & Thank You
Kentucky’s Please & Thank You is maybe better known as a cookie shop. They sell tons of cookies, and they’re delicious.
But, I propose that their coffee drinks represent the best Kentucky has to offer.
Please & Thank You has three locations in and around Louisville. The one I found, called River, is a bit outside of town on an old river road.
Their house blend is a bit of a shock to the system. Brewed nearly French dark, it’s low-caffeine and high flavor, a real session coffee.
You should absolutely avail yourself of their amazing cookies while you’re there. I hear you get one for free when you order a cup of hot coffee.
But don’t let the bakery distract you from the incredible coffee coming out of these three little Kentucky coffee shops.
North Carolina – Bald Guy Brew
I didn’t just pick Bald Guy Brew for its excellent name – although, I feel like I would’ve been justified in doing so.
The bottom line is – I don’t think anyone in the Carolinas is roasting and serving better coffee than “Bald Guy” Don Cox.
The cup of Organic Ethiopian Guji I had at their Boone Farmer’s Market location was a real eye-opener. Not just because of the strong caffeine content preserved by the light-to-medium roast, but because I didn’t think I’d find perfect gourmet coffee out in the boondocks.
If you’re looking for a traditional coffee shop in the Boone area, Bald Guy Brew in Boone is your best bet. Dark enough for intimacy but bright enough to see your work, the space seems plucked from late-90s Seattle. It’s an ideal and surprisingly environment.
Be sure to check out the classes and other events Don Cox hosts. They’re legendary in this part of the country.
South Carolina – Sightsee Shop
You’ll find Sightsee tucked away in a quiet corner of an otherwise busy touristy area. It’s downtown Charleston’s best-kept secret. I’m hesitant to even put it on this list, because I don’t want anyone to find out about it and ruin the mood inside.
Bright, airy, with great attention to detail, but still friendly enough to kick your feet up, Sightsee’s combination retail space and coffee shop is the best in the Palmetto State.
While the focus isn’t entirely on coffee (the retail side of the business is apparently pretty big), the coffee you’ll find here is lovingly curated. The focus is on the global, with an ever-revolving menu of coffees and teas from all over.
Tennessee – Crema
Crema is Nashville’s first zero-waste coffee roaster and cafe.
After my visit to Crema last year, I knew I had to write about it. Stumbling in late morning, I found some truly amazing coffees for sale in one of the last places in the world I’d think to look for it.
The names of the beans available from Crema read like a Who’s Who of the latest coffee trends. I saw a few different Kenyan coffees alongside Colombia’s famous El Paraiso, El Locho from El Salvador, and a few different Ethiopian beans.
The staff were friendly, open to talking about their coffee, and plenty knowledgeable.
The cup my wife and I enjoyed is a seasonal offering – Helios, a mix of rare Peruvian and Brazilian beans designed to go great with hot weather.
They have three locations in Nashville. The downtown location is the best for people-watching, while you may want to head to Crema at Pinewood to get any work done. It’s a lot less noisy.
Virginia – Swing’s Coffee
With four locations, including two across the Potomac in DC, Swing’s Coffee is becoming a household name among Virginia’s coffee lovers.
While they have light food on the menu, Swing’s is all about the coffee. As an occasional decaf drinker, I was happily surprised to see three different kinds available, including a 50/50 half-caf made of exotic Columbian beans. You don’t have to sacrifice flavor with caffeine, and Swing’s knows that.
If I could make a small complaint – some of Swing’s locations are a bit difficult to sit down and relax in. If that’s your thing, I’d stay away from either of the DC locations, which are all about “get your coffee and get the heck out.”
Best Coffee Shops in the Deep South
Of all the regions in this post, the American Deep South is probably the least likely place to find great coffee. No doubt coffee is and has long been a big part of food culture in the South. But not necessarily gourmet coffee, or coffees prepared with any method besides an old drip pot that hasn’t been cleaned in a while.
That said, I’ve found four amazing coffee shops in this storied and celebrated part of the country. Any coffee fanatic would love to find themselves in one of these spots.
Alabama – Panache
I travel through Alabama quite a bit. It’s rarely my destination, but it’s often a place I stop for gas, food, or coffee.
On my last trip through Alabama, I stopped in Birmingham on the advice of a buddy. He said Panache (serving coffee by local roastery Domestique) is the best shop in the state.
When you’re used to gas station coffee, walking into a coffee shop with a great atmosphere and a laundry list of available single-origin and blended coffees is like walking into heaven.
You know that great coffee shop smell? It’s like a mix of melted wax, roasted coffee, and pipe smoke? Panache has that, in a cute setting with lots of Instagram-friendly decorations and seating.
Domestique’s single-origin Haitian blend (including Blue and Kreyol varietals among others) is highlighted by Panache’s excellent honey latte, which adds a spark of cinnamon and just-enough honey without being overly-sweet.
Panache is open from 7 AM to 4 PM Monday – Thursday, closing at 6 PM on Friday and Saturdays.
Arkansas – Sweet Bay Coffee Co.
This pick is all about convenience.
Arkansas is not a coffee shop-friendly state, in general. There’s only 382 coffee shops in the entire state, according to this potentially-questionable research by a mattress company. If that’s true, it’s a really small number. There’s about twice that many in Seattle alone.
Instead of trying to find the coffee shop with the best environment or whatever, I picked Sweet Bay because they’re a great get-in and get-out option with excellent coffee and well-trained staff.
Sweet Bay operates four traditional coffee shops as well as a mall kiosk. Most of them are in western Arkansas, along the Oklahoma border. One is in Branson, Missouri.
My go-to order is a double Americano with an extra shot. Their espresso blend is bright, nicely-acidic, with a strong body and good finish. It mixes well with super-hot water, and the barista know how to make a darn good Americano.
Louisiana – Old Road Coffee
Everything about Old Road Coffee screams “Louisiana coffeeshop.”
The shop is in an old grocery store that still has residential space above it. Very New Orleans, very trendy, and very cozy.
The inside is modern, but more like an extension of your mom’s nice kitchen than a cozy living room. The focus here is on food and coffee, with seating inside and out, though nothing lavish.
The neighborhood surrounding Old Road is funky, so the customer base is also a bit eccentric. That’s Tremé-Lafitte for you.
I love the big selection of different local roasters, highlighting all that New Orleans vibrant coffee scene has to offer.
It ain’t all just chicory and beignets around here – I had a really great Tanzanian Peaberry here, and my wife had a tea flight so she could try a bunch of their different tea blends.
It’s a bit off-the-beaten-path, and it’s not one of the better-known coffee spots in NO, but it’s my pick because I can’t stay away from it whenever I’m in town.
Mississippi – Cups Espresso Cafe
Earlier I decried the number of coffee shops in Arkansas. But Arkansas may as well be Portland compared to Mississippi. As far as I can tell, there’s not even 250 coffee shops statewide.
Finding a legit coffee shop in Mississippi is like trying to find good barbecue north of the Mason-Dixon line.
I got a tip about Cups from a buddy in Louisiana who said he’d searched high and low for a solid cup of joe and a nice place to sip it in the Magnolia State.
Cups is just that. The beans are roasted locally. They source from fair trade and organic sources as often as possible, and the emphasis is on variety.
They’ve been open since 1993, making them by far the oldest and most successful coffee enterprise in all of Mississippi.
A dozen Cups cafes are now open across the state. Check them out for legit coffee in a state where coffee typically means Folgers out of grandma’s old drip pot.
Best Coffee Shops in the Southwest
Hardtack and sourdough biscuits aside, the American frontier (and the American Southwest) was settled with the aid of morphine, nicotine, and coffee. In fact, having read many accounts of life on that frontier, I’d venture that coffee was the most important of all these settlement aids.
That tradition has continued, but with some interesting influences. Mexican culture is beginning to have a more obvious influence on things like restaurant menus and food trends. You’ll see quite a bit of that in the four coffee shops I’ve picked below.
Arizona – Driftwood Coffee
Arizona has an exciting food scene – it shouldn’t be a surprise that they have a burgeoning coffee industry as well.
I picked Driftwood here, as opposed to a local roastery shop, because I like the variety. Driftwood has coffees from all the great local roasters (Xanadu, Cartel, Klatch, etc.) as well as some big national names.
Also, I like the curation that takes place. They seem to have at least one coffee in every style of roast, body, and expression. It keeps me coming back.
I also love that Driftwood keeps long hours. They open at 7 AM and close at 9 PM every day.
Locals will swear that Driftwood Coffee is in Peoria, but to anyone not from the state, it’s in Phoenix. Sure, it’s northwest Phoenix, but it’s Phoenix nonetheless.
New Mexico – Trifecta Coffee Company
I have family in New Mexico, so I’m in the Land of Enchantment pretty frequently. I’m kind of an expert on local coffee shops.
Let me tell you – if you haven’t been to Albuquerque’s Trifecta Coffee Company, you may not realize that New Mexico has awesome coffee to rival any Pacific Northwest state.
Trifecta’s Puma Moon Espresso Blend is my family’s go-to espresso for home use. It’s also Trifecta’s house espresso. It’s complex, medium-roast with a thick crema that helps smooth away the initial blast of brightness and acid.
I think it’s the perfect espresso blend. You have to try it in their shop in basically any espresso-based drink you can think of. It’s a true delight.
Driving around ABQ, you might miss Trifecta. It’s in an unassuming neighborhood, tucked away among auto shops and other small industrial businesses. Also, their hours are a bit confusing.
But it’s worth the work to have some of the best coffee in all of the country.
Oklahoma – Elemental Coffee Co.
OKlahoma’s Elemental Coffee Co. promises “coffee in its purest form.”
To that end, they keep their menu simple, using a variety of global beans and teas to keep things interesting.
Their house espresso, a bit too dark for my taste, is memorable nonetheless. It has a strong aroma and flavor of toasted nuts and dark chocolate. It’s a blend of natural Brazilian and Ethiopian beans that has a lighter body and lighter caffeine kick than other blends. My wife swears by it.
If you stop by Elemental’s shop on Mondays and Wednesdays, you can watch and smell the roasting going on live.
Texas – BlendIn Coffee Club
BlendIn Coffee Club was launched by Weihong Zhang, a PhD in Biochemistry who also works as a Q Arabica coffee grader.
In case you can’t tell from that intro, this is a coffee shop heavy on the nerdy parts of the industry. Lots of talk about farms, processing, and the supply chain.
They have two locations in Houston – convenient for me, since that’s where I live.
Texas’ BlenmdIn Coffee Club offers a “tree-to-cup” experience that’s trendy right now. Basically, it means all their coffees are traceable back to a specific farm, and sometimes even a specific lot from that farm.
All roasting at BlendIn takes place in-house (also trendy).
The coffees on the rotating menu are a hit list of the world’s best. The day I visited last week, they were heavily selling a couple of Indonesian coffees, including an exotic Raja Batak Peaberry with a strong chai profile.
If you like your coffee with a science lesson, or if you appreciate the kind of coffee shop that can introduce you to a cool new global bean, come to Houston and check out BlendIn Coffee Club.
Best Coffee Shops on the Pacific Coast
The Pacific Northwest is America’s coffee heartland. This is the home of Starbuck’s. It’s the home of the gourmet coffee trend itself.
When you think about Portland or Seattle, you probably think about rain and strong coffee.
I had a lot of trouble narrowing down my selections in some of these states. I decided to go with places I’ve actually been to and can recommend whole-heartedly.
Here are the five best coffee shops in the Pacific Northwest and on the Pacific Coast.
Alaska – Black Cup
Local roasters are all the rage right now in Alaska, at least according to my teacher friends who recently spent two years teaching in the Alaskan bush.
They make it seem like you can’t throw a snowball in Alaska’s big cities without hitting a roaster.
Alaska is the perfect place for a coffee culture. Much of the state is dark and cold most of the time. Coffee has been a big deal in Alaska since the 70s, long before the mainland’s current java obsession began.
I say all that to explain why I highlight Alaska’s Black Cup Coffee.
Black Cup has been around since 1974, a good 20 years before most of today’s baristas were even born.
Stop at the Anchorage Barnes & Noble next door, pick up a good book, and go to Black Cup for an insane list of single-origin coffees, teas, blends, and flavored drinks.
My favorite cup of decaf comes from Black Cup. Their Colombia Decaf starts with a blend of gourmet-grade beans from well-known Colombian farms in the Huila region. None of their cashew and raisin notes are lost in the natural decaf process used. Black Cup’s Colombia Decaf proves low-caffeine coffee doesn’t have to be flat and boring.
California – Maru Coffee
According to the state of California, there’s more than 11,000 coffee shops in the Golden State. Starbucks alone has about 3,000 locations in California.
I say that to say this – you can’t pick the best coffee shop in California without making millions of people mad. So just understand that this is my pick for my favorite coffee shop in the state.
Maru Coffee has two locations in Los Angeles – one in Los Feliz and one in the Arts District. Their coffee is all roasted in-house, but only at the Arts District location. The Los Feliz shop is intimate, and more about grabbing coffee and heading out than hanging around.
But, oh Lord, that Arts District shop is just about the best people-watching coffee shop I’ve ever been to.
It’s not just a pleasant place to enjoy a cup of coffee, it’s also a great spot for celeb sightings and beautiful-people sightings in general.
The Korean minimalist design is cozy without being overbearing. The music is great.
The coffee is perfect, if a bit on the California side for this Texan. Lots of notes about origin and organic and various certifications. I’m all about the taste.
Their house espresso is interesting, if not quite to my taste. It’s heavy on Brazilian Santos, in a strong medium roast that leaves behind plenty of dark cherry and stone fruit notes to keep things interesting.
They also sell and prepare a wide range of single-origin coffees daily.
Hawaii – Maui Coffee Attic
Hawaii’s attitude toward coffee is as laidback as you’d expect. They like to keep things simple. I don’t mind that at all, so long as the coffee tastes good.
Maui Coffee Attic is a cute mom-and-pop looking coffee shack in the Wailuku neighborhood of Maui. They don’t serve anything particularly fancy, but their coffee is all locally-harvest and roasted, and it’s about the freshest coffee I’ve ever tasted.
I respect their use of coffee ice cubes in the iced coffee. This is a trend that needs to catch on.
Oregon – Water Avenue Coffee Co.
The two states I didn’t want to have to pick one shop for are Oregon and Washington.
Let’s start with Oregon.
I’m listing Water Avenue Coffee Co. here in part on the strength of their coffee shop, but significantly because of how delicious their coffees are. As in, every single Water Avenue coffee I’ve ever tried has made me go, “Oooh, wait, what is this again?”
Their Water Avenue Coffee is easily the best American coffee blend I’ve tasted in a long time. It’s a blend of Central American, South American, and Indonesian beans. It’s blended for high caffeine content, a bright sweetness, and a strong earthy undertone. All with a silk-smooth finish.
This blend is sort of like what would happen if you made the world’s finest donut shop coffee.
Water Avenue has two locations in Portland with plans to expand much farther in the near future. I think the original Water Ave. location is by far the cozier of the two.
Washington – Valhalla Coffee
6 of the top 10 cities for coffee drinkers are in Washington State.
To say there’s lots of competition for “best coffee shop in Washington” is an understatement.
Just to be extra controversial, I went outside Seattle and picked a Tacoma coffee shop.
Valhalla is a lot more than a coffee shop. They provide coffee beans to most of the coolest restaurants and stores in the area. But their flagship coffee shop and retail store is worth a visit, even if the coffee were mediocre.
Everything about Valhalla’s shop is perfect. The music is cooler than anything you listen to. The employees are fun, friendly, and smart. The clientele are coffee lovers with high expectations. It’s busy, it’s just bright enough, and it happens to be putting out delicious coffee.
I keep their Valkyrie Blend around as the ultimate gourmet coffee crowd-pleaser. A blend of Sumatran, Ethiopian, and French Roast coffee, it has about as much body as you’re going to find in a regular drip pot cup. The notes (earth, berry, herbs) are a little wild, but mild enough for the average coffee drinker.
I think Valhalla Coffee in Tacoma is the best coffee shop in Washington. I’d put them head-to-head against any great coffee shop anywhere else in the country.
Best Coffee Shops in the Rocky Mountain States
It’s tough to lump these states together in any kind of neat category.
There’s as much variety in the Rocky Mountain States as any other part of the country. You’ve got libertarian Colorado next to conservative Iowa, all close neighbors to the quasi-religious state of Utah.
The strange bedfellows here make for interesting coffee. The Rocky Mountain States have a strong and interesting coffee culture that’s worth visiting and celebrating.
Here are the six best coffee shops in the Rocky Mountains.
Colorado – Corvus Coffee Roasters
Colorado has a lively coffee and food culture, but Corvus Coffee Roasters is by far the best shop in the state. They’ll have competition soon, but for now, they’re my go-to for coffee in Colorado.
Their shops are clean, modern, and inviting. The Tech Center location tends to be a bit more fast-paced than I like a coffee shop to be, but their other locations are sufficiently chill.
I’m a coffee nerd, so Corvus’ collection of rare and exotic beans was really exciting for me. I got to try a cup of Geshas – a rare treat for me. The barista was super cool about brewing it for me and up sold a couple of other people on the spot. It was the least like a typical American coffee shop experience that I could’ve expected.
Corvus’ four locations are dotted around Denver in an almost perfect circle. That makes them convenient for you to check out the next time you’re in the Mile High City.
Idaho – Neckar Coffee
Idaho has a sizable Scandinavian population. No surprise, then, that my favorite coffee shop in Idaho is Neckar Coffee.
Neckar uses a traditional Scandinavian setup to brew some amazing beans from all over the world. Neckar even employs a special Scandinavian roast – lighter, preserving the high acid prized by the Scandinavian palate.
I’d prefer to have a few more choices when it comes to single-origin coffee. On my last visit to Neckar, they were only offering a washed Burundi and a washed Ethiopian Guji. But they know their clientele, and Idahoans have a taste for simple flavored coffees and sweet pastries.
Boise is a happening little college town that deserves a cool coffee roaster doing things a bit different. That’s what Neckar is, and they’re the best at it in the state.
Montana – Black Coffee Roasting Co.
Not much competition for the title of “best coffee shop in Montana.”
This is also one of very few states I’ve never visited. I had to rely on local reporting and reviews.
As far as I can tell, Black Coffee Roasting Co. is the biggest boy in the Montana coffee shop business.
The Coffee at Black Coffee Roasting Co. is all about the blends. Customers love their AM blend for its brightness and smooth body with a strong finish.
They also have a range of single-origin “nerd coffees” as my wife calls them.
Gourmet coffee culture is still in its infancy in Montana, but Black Coffee Roasting seems to be leading the way.
Nevada – Hub Coffee Roasters
From a tiny Reno garage in 2009, Hub Coffee Roasters has grown to a vibrant community of people who care a lot about coffee.
Hub Coffee sources from around the world, roasts in-house, and hires people who know a lot about what they do.
If you like Colombian coffee, know that Hub highlights beans from this region thanks to partnerships with area farmers.
The standout cup for me was a natural fermented Colombia Santa Elena in a medium roast. Prepared in a French press, the notes of rose and chocolate competing for space in my palate was truly pleasant and memorable.
For the perfect coffee shop environment, head to the Hub on Pine Street, which has an in-house bike shop. It’s a weird blend, but in this part of Nevada, it makes a certain kind of sense.
Good people, great coffee, and a nice relaxing atmosphere. That’s all you can ask for in a coffee shop.
You might also check out this list of coffee shops in Las Vegas.
Utah – Publik Coffee Roasters
Do I need to do a Mormon joke here? I don’t think so. Surely people know that not all Utahans are Mormons. Surely people know that some Mormons consume caffeine.
Now that’s out of the way, the next time you’re in Salt Lake City, Utah, seek out some Publik Coffee Roasters coffee.
I’m really picky about iced coffee. I hate how the melting ice flattens the coffee and kills the aftertaste. But I have to compliment the iced coffee I had last summer in Utah at their downtown location.
Made with a dark house blend called Cabin, it help up all the way to the end. That’s probably because of the strong flavors in the Brazilian and Guatemalan beans in the blend. Base notes shone through all the dairy and ice I threw at it.
People rave about the food at Publik as well, an added bonus. I can’t vouch for it. I grabbed my iced coffee and soaked up some atmosphere and left pretty quickly.
Wyoming – Paramount Cafe
Paramount Cafe doesn’t roast their beans, but they get them from one of the area’s best roasters in Jackie’s Java.
Paramount doesn’t bake their own pastries, but they get them from one of my favorite bakeries in Northern Colorado.
Do you see a pattern here?
What Wyoming lacks in big city amenities it more than makes up for in every other way thinkable. It’s a beautiful state with very few crowds and lots of opportunities for recreation.
But it’s not a coffee lover’s paradise.
Paramount Cafe is a good consolation prize. It’s comfortable, the food is good, the people are friendly, and they serve somewhat-locally roasted gourmet coffees.
Best Coffee Shops in the Midwest
The Midwest gets a bad rap. Millions of proud hardworking people live in these 12 states. They have a strong work ethic and believe in progress. Many of them are people of faith with strong convictions.
If those sound like people who need good strong coffee, you’re right. Midwesterners are among the heaviest coffee drinkers in America. All that forward progress requires fuel.
The twelve coffee shops below represent some of the best America has to offer, right in its heartland.
Iowa – The Encounter Cafe
I’m not alone in my love for Iowa City’s The Encounter Cafe. It seems like they’re an annual shoe-in for local awards like Best Cafe, Best Desserts, and Best Atmosphere.
What does The Encounter Cafe have going for it besides being a local favorite? It’s literally across the street from the University of Iowa. That’s a built-in crowd of coffee appreciators and people typing away on laptops.
But it also serves delicious coffee and house-made goodies made from scratch.
It’s not a roastery or anything – they use beans roasted locally, and in some cases to order.
I have spent a few days a year in Iowa City for a couple of years running now, and The Encounter Cafe is by far the best place to enjoy a cup, a plate of goodies, and some people-watching in the entire state.
Added bonus, The Encounter Cafe is totally non-profit. After paying expenses and salaries, 100% of their revenue goes to local Iowa City causes. It’s run by the Mennonite Church and is designed to redistribute wealth into areas of local need.
Illinois – Sol Cafe
Just north of Chicago proper, on the border with Evanston, is Sol Cafe. It’s a humble spot compared to some of the fancy offerings available uptown. But it’s pumping out reliably excellent gourmet coffee in a perfect coffee shop atmosphere.
That’s why it’s on this list as the best coffee shop in Illinois.
Oh, and I love how green the interior is. It’s just peppered with green plants and feels and smells fresh and clean as a result.
The people who frequent Sol Cafe are an eclectic mix of working class moms and dads and hip young college students. Loyola and Northeastern Illinois are nearby and there’s like 25,000 students between the two of those schools alone. But the neighborhood is solidly middle class, trending upwardly-mobile.
That makes for a great coffee shop. But you have to serve good java, too.
I go here when I’m in Chicago, which is at least once a year. Their shelves and pots highlight the best of what’s being roasted locally. That means plenty of Dark Matter, Big Shoulders, Dollop, and Intelligentsia blends and single-origin coffees.
Indiana – Foundry Provisions
Foundry is the pride and joy of Indianapolis’ Near Northside. Serving locally-roasted coffee (mostly from Tinker Coffee Co.) and a huge list of well-reviewed foods and snacks, Foundry Provisions is a big part of this popular urban-suburban hybrid neighborhood.
A red eye and a muffin from Foundry every morning is about all that got me through the two-week training session I had to endure at nearby IUPUI.
Free wi-fi, local music and art, a cozy and friendly atmosphere – these things make for a great coffeeshop, and Foundry Provisions has them in spades.
Kansas – Thou Mayest Coffee Roasters
Weird name, right? I’ll explain it really quick.
It comes from the Hebrew word timshel, loosely translated as “thou mayest.”
The owners of Thou Mayest Coffee Roasters take it to mean that life is a journey.
Now that the name is out of the way, let’s talk about this amazing coffee shop find in the middle of Kansas of all places.
Thou Mayest has two kiosks – one in the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City and one at Family Tree Nursery in Shawnee. But the real coffee shop charm comes from their flagship shop at River Market in KC.
In my mind, Thou Mayest is the ideal coffeehouse. They serve house-roasted coffee in a bajillion varieties. They staff their shops with knowledgeable employees. The shops themselves are cute little exposed brick spaces with comfy seating and chill vibes. That’s enough to make it a top-ten coffee shop in the entire country.
The coffee we liked enough to bring home ten pounds was Super Ego, a dark-roast version of their popular Alter Ego. It’s incredibly smooth and roasted almost past French dark. It has a long finish with milk chocolate and toasted nuts peppered throughout a balanced background. Yummy stuff, a blend of various high-end Brazilian and Sumatran beans.
Be warned, they’re closed on Mondays.
Michigan – RoosRoast Coffee
I first came across RoosRoast not at their shop but at my house. A buddy brought a bag of their Sublime coffee over for a late-morning pot. It’s a medium roast blend of Indian, African, and South American coffees, and it was great with a box of pasteles from a local panaderia.
Of course, the next time I was in Ann Arbor (which happened to be for a football game – long story for a different post) I had to stop by and try something fresh from the source.
They have three locations – well, two and a half. The roastery (solar-powered and super-fancy) is open from 8-4 and is the most traditional coffee shop-like spot. They also have a downtown location – smaller and designed for grab-and-go. A kiosk at the farmer’s market, while lovely, ain’t exactly a coffee shop.
The big drink at the roastery is a cortado made with local milk and their own Portland in the 90s blend. Funny name, but a dead-serious coffee. It’s about as dark as you can go before burning the beans, with a low caffeine content for long session drinking. The cortado lightens the load a bit, but be warned, it’s addictive.
The atmosphere is typical for a Midwestern coffee shop – relaxed, open, friendly, and not too noisy. It’s the perfect coffee shop in all of Michigan.
Minnesota – The Get Down Coffee Company
The Twin Cities area is a vibrant area with its own unique food and arts scene. If that sounds like a place perfect for coffee shops, you’re right.
The Get Down Coffee Company has the local coffee shop scene down pat. It’s a collaboration between Houston White and local coffee celeb Dan Anderson, whose Dogwood Coffee was a close second when preparing this list.
Ever had a sweet potato latte? You can try one here. (It’s creamy and rich with deep roast coffee flavor.)
Available on my last visit – Rwanda Shyira Lot B, which I had as a double espresso, highlighting the thick fudgy and creamy raisin tones in that rare and expensive bean.
It’s a Black-owned and Black-led coffee shop that wears its culture and its heart for coffee on both sleeves.
The mood, the sense of community, and the gourmet coffee make it the best coffee shop in Minnesota.
Missouri – Sump Coffee
A part of me hesitated before naming Sump Coffee the best coffee shop in Missouri.
That name – am I the only one that thinks of a basement sump pump? Not something I want to associate with my morning coffee.
But pushing past the name that I find disagreeable, there’s plenty to love at Sump.
I love a coffee shop with conviction. Sump Coffee doesn’t roast anything darker than medium. It’s a personal conviction of the ownership and they’ve stuck to it. While I appreciate a good dark roast, I respect Sump’s choice to take a stand on the issue.
They’re incredibly serious about sourcing and offering the best coffees in the world. Their menu is full of interesting and delicious coffees that cover a wide spectrum of styles.
Of course, everything’s roasted in-house. St. Louis has been in on the in-house roasting trend since the beginning.
The atmosphere is clean, modern, and casual. I love the simple porch out front on good weather days. It’s just enough sun, just enough shade, and great people-watching in a vibrant neighborhood.
Hours are Tuesdays through Fridays from 9 AM to 2 PM. They stay open for an extra hour on the weekends. Sump Coffee is closed on Mondays.
Nebraska – Archetype Coffee
I have a few bags of Archetype Coffee at my house and I wish I had more.
That should tell you all you need to know about Nebraska’s best coffee shop.
Archetype’s house espresso blend was impressive enough to warrant me asking some questions. The barista told me they use a blend of 50% Brazilian dry process beans with 25% Colombian wet process and 25% natural process from Guatemala or elsewhere in Central America.
The result is a sweet and clean espresso with a thick and long-lasting crema. It’s bright, with a light body. I have a feeling it’ll blend well with just about anything you throw at it.
Let’s cheer for the fact that a barista could recite a complex espresso blend from memory and work it into polite conversation with a customer.
Archetype regularly sends baristas to national barista competitions, so the fact that they were great coffee conversationalists shouldn’t be a surprise.
Check out Archetype Coffee in Omaha’s Medical Center or at their Dahlman location for a great coffee shop vibe and seriously gourmet coffee and tea drinks.
North Dakota – Twenty Below Coffee Co.
Twenty Below Coffee Co. offers “good coffee that’s good for people.”
Their shtick is ethically-sourced freshly-roasted coffee beans – which is great, because that’s kind of my shtick, too.
The next time you find yourself in downtown Fargo, seek out Twenty Below Coffee Co. and buy as much of their Blizzard of ’66 light roast house blend as you can get your hands on. This one’s a serious caffeine jolt, with a backbone of chocolate and toffee that compliments a hearty breakfast.
It’s one of my favorite breakfast blends in the country and I can’t keep it in my pantry. All the coffee drinkers in this house love it.
I’ve only been to the downtown location, but I can vouch for its brightness, coziness, and perfect coffee shop feel.
Twenty Below is open from 6 AM to 6 PM every day except Saturday, when they stay open an hour later, and Sunday, when they’re closed entirely.
Ohio – Muggswigz
Muggswigz is Canton, Ohio’s answer to Starbucks. The company now has two locations in Akron, but to me, Muggswigz will always be a Canton thing.
They’ve been open since 2003 and are regularly named on all sorts of Best Of lists, including this one.
I think Muggswigz was roasting gourmet coffee before anyone else in Ohio. If that’s not quite true, they’ve certainly been doing it longer and better than anyone else. They believe in a middle Italian espresso roast. That means dark enough to develop complex flavors, but not so dark that the beans come out burnt or carbon-influenced.
Subtle dig at Starbucks famously over-roasted beans, there.
Check it out for yourself. I like the Downtown Canton location on Walnut Ave. It has the most cozy coffee shop feel of all the locations I’ve been to.
South Dakota – The Breaks Coffee Roasting Co.
We’re back to one of those US states I’ve never visited.
Luckily, this time I can rely on actual reportage from a real person – my sister-in-law, who grew up in South Dakota.
When I called her to ask her what her favorite place is, she couldn’t stop talking about The Breaks Coffee Roasting Co. In particular, she went on and on about their Absolute Blend. It’s a blend of Central, South American, and African beans that leans toward balanced and sweet with an after taste of cocoa and citrus.
I looked into it. Locals rave about it, too.
The Breaks is one of these influential little roasteries that distributes their product to lots of local markets and restaurants. They’ve created a decent footprint in a state without much in the way of coffee culture.
I like the industrial-meets-log cabin vibe of the photos I can find online, and the big windows and sliding garage door wall ensures plenty of light and opportunities for people-watching.
Wisconsin – Anodyne Coffee Roasting Co.
I love Anodyne. Pretty much every Wisconsinite I’ve ever met loves Anodyne. I think you’ll love Anodyne, too.
My first visit a few years back had me sampling and asking questions and jumping around like a toddler. That’s a sign of a great coffee shop that brews top-notch coffee and is happy to talk to you and educate you about it.
They’re deep into the whole ethically-sourced organic thing, and that’s awesome. But it wasn’t my focus.
I just couldn’t stop trying their laundry list of coffee beans in a wide range of prep styles.
Anodyne has four locations, but I’ve only ever been to the Walker’s Point location. That’s where they roast their beans. It’s big, bright but not Apple Store bright, and the people are super-friendly and coffee-obsessed. What more could you ask for?
The Best Coffee Shop in Puerto Rico
Café con Cé
CCC (as those in the know call it) is an off-the-beaten-path coffee lover’s treasure. It’s somewhat hidden from tourist eyes – set between a gas station and an Italian restaurant.
The menu here is simple: strong local coffees served with or without leche, alongside cold brew drinks, teas, and pastries.
It makes the list for several reasons: it’s tourist-friendly, it’s inexpensive, the coffee is top-notch, and the setting is lovely. Inside, a modern interior is peppered with local products and art for sale.
On my one and only visit, I grabbed a pot of local honey that helped wipe out my wife’s allergic reaction to some local flowering plant.
A few years ago, I paid $3 for a large latte. The menu on their website indicates the price is the same today.
If you’re headed to the beach or out shopping on your next trip to PR, make Café con Cé your first stop in the morning. They open at 7 AM sharp. You can also use it as a pick-me-up before a night out – they close at 8 PM.
Conclusion
The shops on this list represent the best the United States has to offer.
My buddy Courtney already covered the best coffee roaster in every state. This post does something totally different.
My goal here is to get people interested in going out and trying a new coffee shop in their area.
You could make a pretty great road trip by picking three or four coffee shops from this list and plotting a Google map between them. Grab a few coffee-loving friends and hit the road.