15 coffee roasters worth the trip across United Kingdom, editor-ranked by TableJourney. All United Kingdom guides.
Artisan Roast ★ 4.7 · Edinburgh
canonmills-inverleith · 57 Broughton Street, Edinburgh EH1 3RJ
Artisan Roast on Broughton Street in Edinburgh, founded 2007, the city's third-wave coffee pioneer with a Glasgow roastery and cafes in Bruntsfield.
Tip: Whole-bean retail is sold from the Broughton counter; the Glasgow roastery does Saturday public tours by booking.
Williams and Johnson Coffee Co ★ 4.7 · Edinburgh
leith · 1 Customs Wharf, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6AL
Williams and Johnson Coffee Co roastery and cafe on Customs Wharf in Leith Edinburgh, founded 2017 by two former Square Mile baristas, the city's.
Tip: Saturday morning roastery tours run by booking; the cafe sells single-origin whole-bean retail from the roastery rack.
Square Mile Coffee Roasters ★ 4.7 · London
hackney · Unit 5, Wenlock Studios, 50-52 Wharf Road, London N1 7EU
Anette Moldvaer and James Hoffmann's Square Mile coffee roastery near Wenlock Basin in north London, founded 2008, the city's most-cited specialty roaster and the bean behind Kaffeine.
Tip: No public cafe; the beans go to subscribers and the city's top espresso bars (Workshop, Prufrock, Kaffeine).
Monmouth Coffee Company ★ 4.7 · London
borough · 2 Park Street, London SE1 9AB
Anita Le Roy's pioneer London coffee roaster, founded 1978 on Monmouth Street in Covent Garden, runs two retail-and-cafe sites and is the city's longest-running specialty roaster.
Tip: The Covent Garden original on 27 Monmouth Street has the standing counter; Borough has more outdoor seats.
Twelve Triangles ★ 4.6 · Edinburgh
leith · 90 Brunswick Street, Edinburgh EH7 5HU
Twelve Triangles bakery-cafe on Brunswick Street in Edinburgh, founded 2014, a third-wave coffee counter pouring filter and espresso from UK roasters beside.
Tip: Coffee is rotating UK single-origins; the bakery counter is the volume play. Saturday queues from 09:30.
Fortitude Coffee ★ 4.5 · Edinburgh
new-town · 3c York Place, Edinburgh EH1 3EB
Matt and Helen Carroll's Fortitude Coffee on York Place in Edinburgh New Town, founded 2014, a third-wave coffee bar pouring filter and espresso from rotating.
Tip: Fortitude does not roast in-house; the bar rotates UK and European single-origins. Ask which is currently pouring.
Brew Lab ★ 4.5 · Edinburgh
old-town · 6-8 South College Street, Edinburgh EH8 9AA
Brew Lab on South College Street in Edinburgh Old Town, founded 2012, a coffee bar and barista-training academy with Saturday cupping sessions and an open.
Tip: Saturday public cuppings at 11:00; sign up online a week ahead. Their training academy runs barista courses through the year.
Workshop Coffee ★ 4.5 · London
marylebone · 75 Wigmore Street, London W1U 1QD
James Dilworth's Workshop Coffee, founded 2011 in Clerkenwell and now roasting in Bermondsey, runs cafes across central London and supplies serious filter bars across the city.
Tip: The Wigmore Street cafe has the deepest counter selection. Marylebone Lane and Holborn sit nearby for office-lunch coffee runs.
Climpson and Sons ★ 4.5 · London
hackney · 67 Broadway Market, London E8 4PH
Daniel Climpson's roaster on Broadway Market in Hackney London, founded 2002, runs a Saturday-market cafe at 67 Broadway and a roastery on Helmsley Place.
Tip: The Saturday market is the canonical visit. Climpson's Arch on Helmsley Place is a Friday-Saturday-only railway-arch bar.
Allpress Espresso ★ 4.5 · London
shoreditch · 58 Redchurch Street, London E2 7DP
Michael Allpress's New Zealand-founded specialty roaster, opened in London on Redchurch Street in Shoreditch in 2010, runs cafes across east London and an in-house roastery.
Tip: The Redchurch Street original sits next to Brat. Their Dalston site has the bigger laptop seating area.
Origin Coffee Roasters ★ 4.5 · London
shoreditch · 65 Charlotte Road, London EC2A 3RL
Tom Sobey's Cornwall-founded Origin Coffee, roasting in Helston since 2004, opened the Charlotte Road London cafe in 2015 and runs a third-wave filter bar with serious beans.
Tip: The retail wholesale relationship runs to many of Soho and Clerkenwell's morning coffee bars. Look for the seasonal Ethiopian filter offers.
Machina Espresso ★ 4.4 · Edinburgh
tollcross-west-end · 5 Brougham Place, Edinburgh EH3 9JU
Machina Espresso on Brougham Place in Tollcross Edinburgh, founded 2015, a tiny espresso bar doubling as a commercial coffee equipment shop with home espresso.
Tip: Their second branch on South Lauder Road has tables for drinking in; the Brougham Place original is a stand-and-go counter.
Cairngorm Coffee ★ 4.4 · Edinburgh
new-town · 1 Melville Place, Edinburgh EH3 7PR
Cairngorm Coffee Company on Melville Place in Edinburgh New Town, founded 2014, a basement coffee bar pouring rotating UK and European roasters daily.
Tip: Whole-bean retail is sold from the Melville Place basement counter; the Frederick Street branch runs more sandwiches.
Has Bean Coffee ★ 4.4 · London
various · Unit 5, Triumph Industrial Park, Stafford ST16 3AB
Stephen Leighton's Has Bean Coffee, founded 2002 in Staffordshire and a foundational supplier to the early London specialty scene, runs a subscription roastery and weekly beans.
Tip: Has Bean's beans feature at Tap, Prufrock and other London cafes. Subscribe through their site for weekly single-origin filter beans.
Volcano Coffee Works ★ 4.3 · London
brixton-tooting · 5-7 Stockwell Lane, London SW9 9XR
Kurt Stewart's Stockwell-based London coffee roaster, founded 2010, runs a serious B-corp-certified specialty roastery in south London and supplies cafes across the capital.
Tip: No public cafe; subscribe online or buy beans through stockists. The Mons Sandwiches deli on Stockwell Road is the nearest cafe pouring their beans.