27 editor picks in San Antonio.
27 cafe places in San Antonio we have eaten in, sorted by editor score. All cuisines in San Antonio | Cafe across every city.
San Antonio's cafe scene has grown well beyond the panaderia counter, with a clear specialty coffee wave across the city. The Pearl has Local Coffee at the Pearl and Bakery Lorraine, while the Broadway corridor's Press Coffee and the west side's Shotgun House Coffee Roasters push the roasting side. Halcyon in Southtown and Estate Coffee Company in Dignowity Hill extend the all-day cafe format into evenings.
Bakery Lorraine grew from a Pearl farmers-market stall into a full cafe and patisserie, with macarons, quiche, and croque monsieur from a bright counter.
OrderMacarons, quiche and a croque monsieur.
TipThe macarons are the calling card, but the savoury quiche and croque make it a proper lunch stop.
Halcyon Southtown flips from a coffee shop by day to a cocktail bar by night, where the patio s'mores are the after-dinner move on a Southtown evening.
TipIt flips from coffee shop to bar as the evening goes on. The patio s'mores are the after-dinner move.
CommonWealth Coffeehouse & Bakery pairs careful espresso with French-style pastries in a bright South Flores room, a work-friendly cafe with a proper bakery.
TipThe pastry case leans French; pair a croissant with a flat white. Plenty of seating for laptop mornings.
Local Coffee at the Pearl sits in a historic brewery building, a polished cafe that serves carefully brewed coffee to a steady flow of Pearl shoppers.
TipIt gets busy on Saturday market mornings; come early for a seat. The pour-over is the order for the coffee-minded.
Press Coffee pours espresso and locally roasted beans at the Boardwalk on Broadway near the Witte Museum, with a treehouse style interior and a patio.
TipThe upstairs treehouse seating is the draw. It sits on Broadway near Brackenridge Park, an easy stop after the Witte Museum or Botanical Garden.
Bird Bakery on Broadway, founded by Elizabeth Chambers in 2012, is a cheerful bakery-cafe near Alamo Heights known for from-scratch cupcakes, layer cakes.
TipThe cupcakes and layer cakes are the draw; the coffee is a sidekick. Grab a box of sweets to take with you.
Barrio Barista on Culebra Road builds its menu around Mexican flavours, with horchata lattes and cafe de olla, a West Side cafe with its own identity.
TipThe horchata latte and cafe de olla are the orders that set it apart from the third-wave crowd.
Folklores Coffee House near Fort Sam Houston builds Latin-inspired drinks like the Bexar Latte and the Chagaccino, a community-minded local cafe.
TipThe Bexar Latte is the signature; the Latin-flavoured drinks are the reason to skip the chains.
The Spin Coffee & Vinyl on the north side lets you flip through record bins while you sip, a fun, low-key alternative to the polished Pearl coffee bars.
TipFlip through the record bins while you sip. A fun, low-key alternative to the polished Pearl cafes.
Sip & Sit with ME is a welcome South Side cafe near the Missions, good for lattes and house pastries on a coffee stop along a Mission Trail morning.
TipA welcome cafe on the South Side near the Missions. Good for a coffee stop on a Mission Trail morning.
Estate Coffee roasts and brews in a Dignowity Hill storefront on East Houston Street, with the roaster in view of the bar; ask what they roasted that week.
TipThe roaster is right in view of the counter; ask what they roasted that week. The cafe sits on East Houston Street east of downtown.
Box St. All Day at Hemisfair pairs a compiled espresso bar with an all-day brunch menu, a daylight Hemisfair Park option between the Tower and Yanaguana.
TipLean on the espresso bar in the morning, switch to brunch cocktails by noon. First 30 minutes free in the Hemisfair Garage.
Theory Coffee Company is a precision-minded roaster and cafe that has landed on Yelp's best US coffee shops, serving carefully dialled espresso and filter.
TipTheory ranks among Yelp's top US coffee shops; the espresso is the order. A small space, so seating is limited.
Merit Coffee is a dependable Broadway stop in Alamo Heights with consistent espresso and seasonal lattes that rotate; ask the barista what is pouring.
TipA dependable Broadway stop with consistent espresso. The seasonal lattes rotate; ask what is pouring.
Indy Coffee Club near UTSA roasts in house and pulls precise espresso in a punk-leaning room, a north-side cafe that punches above its strip-mall setting.
TipHouse roasting and a strong espresso make it worth the drive north. Popular with the UTSA crowd at exam time.
Shotgun House Coffee Roasters works out of a former sewing factory turned creative space on the near West Side, roasting on-site and brewing single-origin.
TipThe roastery cafe is tucked inside a converted factory; follow the signs to Warehouse 5. Single-origin filter is the move.
La Panaderia's downtown cafe pairs conchas with a cafe con leche, and a full breakfast and lunch menu makes it more than just a quick coffee stop.
TipThe conchas and the cafe con leche are the pairing. A full breakfast and lunch menu makes it more than a coffee stop.
Bakery Lorraine at the Pearl is a patisserie-cafe that grew from a farmers-market stall, where the macarons and a latte make a classic Pearl morning.
TipThe macarons are the calling card; the quiche makes it a lunch stop too. It draws the Pearl crowd, so expect a queue.
The PigPen near Brackenridge Park is a hybrid coffee bar and bar with a big shaded patio, pouring espresso in the morning and craft beer in the afternoon.
TipCoffee in the morning, beer in the afternoon, dogs welcome on the patio throughout. A flexible all-day hangout.
The panaderia counter at Mi Tierra in Market Square sells conchas, empanadas, and Mexican sweet bread around the clock, a 24-hour bakery window for the city.
TipThe bakery counter is open 24 hours; grab pan dulce and a Mexican hot chocolate any time of day or night.
Qatra Specialty Coffee on Louis Pasteur Drive is a Medical Center-area cafe focused on single-origin espresso and pour-over, open late for evening study.
TipOpen late Mondays through Sundays, so a useful study spot. Single-origin espresso and pour-over are the orders.
Vida Mia in Stone Oak is a solid option away from the chains, where Monterrey-style conchas and a cafe de olla are the breakfast move worth the drive north.
TipThe Monterrey-style conchas and cafe de olla are the breakfast move. A solid Stone Oak option away from the chains.
Mas Café on Bandera Road is a Latina-owned cafe whose drinks lean Mexican, from abuelita lattes to tres leches cold brew, a far-north-west spot in Helotes.
TipOrder the Around Mas Flight to sample the abuelita latte and tres leches cold brew. A Latina-owned room in the Creative Market complex.
Qargo Coffee on Culebra Road is a far-West Side cafe and drive-through with a broad espresso and latte menu, a handy modern coffee stop for the growing.
TipThe drive-through is quick for a morning latte. A useful far-West Side option where cafes are still thin.
Picnikins Patio Cafe is a blanco road cafe locals send each other to for fruit salads and sandwiches, easy to drive past and worth a proper stop.
TipThe fruit salad and the sandwiches are the draw on the shaded patio. A quiet lunch find tucked off Blanco Road.
Shotgun House Coffee Roasters is a roastery in a converted West Side sewing factory; follow signs to Warehouse 5 for single-origin filter and bagged roast.
TipFollow the signs into Warehouse 5 to find it. Order the single-origin filter and buy a bag of the house roast.
Barrio Barista is a west side cafe doing horchata lattes and cafe de olla that the third-wave coffee crowd often overlooks for the pearl spots.
TipThe horchata latte and cafe de olla give the coffee a local accent. A West Side cafe worth the detour.
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